USS Massachusetts (BB-59), known as "Big Mamie" to her crew members during World War II, was a battleship of the second South Dakota-class. She was the seventh ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the sixth state. Her keel was laid down July 20, 1939 at the Fore River Shipyard of Quincy, Massachusetts. She was launched on September 23, 1941 sponsored by Mrs. Charles Francis Adams, wife of the Secretary of the Navy; and commissioned on May 12, 1942 at Boston, Massachusetts, with Captain Francis E.M. Whiting in command.The ship, which saw action throughout World War II, is believed to have fired the U.S. Navy's first and last 16-inch shells of the war.BB-59 is currently a museum ship, the focal point of Battleship Cove at Fall River, Massachusetts.