Guns Ashore: The 8-Inch Turrets of USS Lexington (CV-2) on Oahu, 1942

In the tumultuous aftermath of Pearl Harbor, as Oahu braced itself for further Japanese attacks, an unusual piece of naval firepower found new life ashore: the 8-inch gun turrets of the aircraft carrier USS Lexington (CV-2). Dismounted from the famous “Lady Lex” during her transformation into a pure aircraft carrier, these heavy turrets stood sentinel over Hawaii’s beaches in 1942—unique symbols of America’s desperate adaptability in the face of wartime crisis.

From Battlecruiser to Flattop

To understand how carrier guns ended up aiming out to sea over the sugarcane fields of Oahu, we must revisit the origins of USS Lexington. Conceived as a battlecruiser during World War I and reimagined under the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, Lexington retained a potent vestige of her past: four twin turrets, each mounting 8-inch/55 caliber guns. These weren’t usual aircraft carrier fare—by the time Lexington was completed in the late 1920s, she and her sister ship Saratoga would be the only American fleet carriers equipped with such heavy artillery.

Originally meant to duel enemy cruisers or help ward off destroyers, the main guns made the Lexington a hybrid of old doctrines and new technology—flying the flag just as naval air power began to outpace the reach of the big gun.

The Changing Face of Naval Warfare

By 1942, the reality of war had proven that the carrier’s true strength was in her air group, not her artillery. Heavy turrets took up valuable weight and space on the flight deck, and presented a hazard during flight operations. As the U.S. Navy rushed to modify and build new carriers, gunnery was increasingly left to escorts and smaller-caliber anti-aircraft batteries.

Still, the guns themselves were formidable—each capable of hurling a 260-pound shell over 17 miles. With the fall of Wake and Guam, and the Japanese offensive threatening Hawaii, every available avenue of firepower was urgently needed for island defense.

Ashore on Oahu: New Guardians

In the feverish months after Pearl Harbor, the Navy sought ways to bolster Oahu’s coastal defenses. Resourcefulness became a necessity. Four of Lexington’s 8-inch turrets, and two from Saratoga, were removed as both carriers went through wartime upgrades. Rather than scrap these valuable weapons, the Navy shipped them ashore, mounting them at key points around Oahu’s coastline.

Positioned in permanent concrete emplacements—most notably at Battery Lexington at Barber’s Point and Battery Saratoga at Pearl Harbor—these turrets stared out over the Pacific, standing ready to repel any Japanese surface assault. Crewed by Navy personnel, and using the advanced fire control systems typical of their source ships, these unlikely shore batteries brought the high standards of naval gunnery to Hawaii’s sandy beaches and lava ridges.

The Symbolism and Irony

There was powerful symbolism in the conversion of Lexington’s guns for coastal defense. It was a testament to the American ability to adapt and improvise—transforming a weapon of fleet action into a bastion of homeland security.

There was irony, too. Heavy guns meant to confront battlecruisers or support carrier task forces at sea would now, for the duration, see their only chance of combat on land, defending the base where America’s Pacific war had begun in flames.

Fortunately for Oahu, a Japanese invasion never came. The 8-inch guns fired only in training and practice, their booming voices echoing over cane fields and palm groves instead of the battle line.

The Legacy

As the war ramped up and the carrier’s role was cemented as the spearhead of naval power, guns like those from Lexington became obsolete. Yet their story is a fascinating footnote in the history of American ingenuity—where nothing was wasted, and tools of war constantly found new purpose.

After the war, most of Oahu’s heavy coastal defenses—including the Lexington’s turrets—were dismantled or abandoned. Today, few traces remain, lost beneath new construction or reclaimed by vegetation. For those who know where to look, however, the story of the Lady Lex’s big guns survives in war diaries and the scattered traces of old concrete mounts.

A Moment in Time

For a brief moment in 1942, the 8-inch guns of USS Lexington stood once again, their barrels crossing the blue horizon as silent guardians of Hawaii. Their journey from battlecruiser blueprints, through the flight decks of one of America’s most famous carriers, to the volcanic soil of Oahu, embodies the rapid change and extraordinary adaptability demanded by World War II.

It is a story carved in steel, concrete, and memory—when the guns of Lexington found new purpose, ready for a battle that, mercifully, never arrived.