1917 naval gun bore machining - photo

[mklotz]

Not surprising, considering the last battleship the US ever made (and I think it was the Iowa) was started in early 1941. By 1989 I doubt anyone had the indutrial tooling to build another battleship.

Iowa (BB-61) was the first of her class, after which came New Jersey (BB-62) and Missouri (BB-63) and then Wisconsin (BB-64).

BB65 was supposed to be the first of the new Montana class but the need for faster ships of the Iowa class to escort carriers led to her being commissioned as the Illinois (BB-65). She was still under construction at the end of the war and was never completed.

BB-66 was to have been the Ohio, second of the Montana class, but, like the Illinois, was redesignated as the Kentucky of the Iowa class. She too was still under construction at the end of the war and was never finished.

So, it appears that the last US battleship built was the Wisconsin.