DATE: Monday, March 10, 1997                TAG: 9703060526

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

                                            LENGTH:   19 lines

THAT WAS THEN: ``BIG PULL'' FOR ``BIG MO''/ VIRGINIAN-PILOT FILE PHOTO

On Jan. 17, 1950, the battleship Missouri, popularly known as

``Big Mo,'' went aground on Thimble Shoal near Norfolk. Already

famous for being the ship on which General of the Army Douglas

MacArthur received Japan's unconditional surrender Sept. 2, 1945,

marking the end of World War II, the grounding elicited worldwide

interest. Only after repeated efforts was the ship freed from the

muddy deadlock. This photo shows churning propellers whipping up a

frothy wake at the height of the ``Big Pull'' during one of the

attempts to free the ship. The ``Big Mo'' was finally refloated

Feb. 1, 1950. - George Tucker

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