USS North Carolina (BB-55) was an American battleship laid down in 1937, launched in June 1940, and commissioned in the US Navy in 1941. The ship was 222 m long, 33 m wide, and her full displacement - at the time of launching - 44,400 tons. The maximum speed of the USS North Carolina battleship was up to 26 knots. The main armament was 9 406 mm guns in three turrets of three guns each, and the secondary armament was mainly 20 127 mm guns.

USS North Carolina was the first of two battleships of the type to bear the same name. This type of ships was one of the first modern US Navy ships of the World War II period. During their construction, no tractor restrictions were applied, which resulted in a significant increase in displacement to the so-called standard battleships and the ability to mount powerful main and secondary weapons located in separate towers, not casemates. The new battleships also have improved performance over battleships such as Colorado and Pennsylvania. USS North Carolina (BB-55) underwent its baptism of fire in World War II in the Pacific from participating in the fighting in the Gudalcanal area in the second half of 1942, taking part in the Battle of the Eastern Solomon Islands, among others. In September 1942, the ship was damaged as a result of an attack by the I-19 submarine. After the repairs of the USS North Carolina, however, she quickly returned to the line. In November 1943, the ship supported operations in the Tarawa region. A year later, the ship supported the landing on Saipan and took part in the Battle of the Philippine Sea. In 1945, the ship supported operations in Okinawa. USS North Carolina (BB-55) was decommissioned in 1947 and has been serving as a museum ship in Wilmington, North Carolina since 1962.