Kimmel received command of USS New York in 1935, near the peak of his sea-going career. The battleship had undergone treaty-permitted improvements to propulsion, protection, and anti-aircraft armament and participated throughout the fleet-problem program. She also served as the American representative at the 1937 coronation naval review. The assignment shows that the Navy entrusted Kimmel with a prominent modernized capital ship rather than a routine command.
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Why command of USS New York mattered
Command of the recently modernized USS New York was a prestigious interwar assignment that marked the high point of Kimmel's shipboard career.