USS Maine

USS Maine was a United States Navy ship that sank in Havana Harbor on February 15, 1898, contributing to the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in April. U.S. newspapers claimed that the Spanish were responsible for the ship's destruction, while evidence points to an accident caused by an internal coal bunker fire. The phrase "Remember the Maine! To hell with Spain!" became a rallying cry for action. The Maine explosion served as a catalyst which accelerated the events leading up to the war.

Maine is described as an armored cruiser or second-class battleship, depending on the source, ordered in 1886. She was the first U.S. Navy ship to be named after the state of Maine. Maine and its contemporary the battleship Texas were both represented as an advance in American warship design, reflecting the latest European naval developments. Both ships had two-gun turrets staggered en échelon, and full sailing masts were omitted due to the increased reliability of steam engines. Maine and Texas were obsolete by the time of completion due to a protracted nine-year construction period. Far more advanced vessels were in service or nearing completion that year.

Maine was sent to Havana Harbor to protect U.S. interests during the Cuban War of Independence. She exploded and sank on the evening of February 15, 1898, killing 268 sailors, which was three-quarters of her crew. In 1898, a U.S. Navy board of inquiry ruled that the ship had been sunk by an external explosion from a mine. However, some U.S. Navy officers disagreed with the board, suggesting that the ship's magazines had been ignited by a spontaneous fire in a coal bunker. The coal used in Maine was bituminous, which is known for releasing firedamp, a mixture of gases composed primarily of flammable methane that is prone to spontaneous explosions. An investigation by Admiral Hyman Rickover in 1974 agreed with the coal fire hypothesis, presented in a 1976 monograph that argued for this conclusion. The cause of her sinking remains a subject of debate.

The ship lay at the bottom of the harbor until 1911, when it was patched and refloated within a cofferdam. The hull was then towed to sea and sunk. Maine now lies on the seabed 3,600 feet (1,100 m) below the surface. The ship's main mast is now a memorial in Arlington National Cemetery.