The keel for the carrier named in honor of America’s 16th President was laid on 3 November 1984, launched on 13 February 1988, and commissioned on 11 November 1989. Previously, the Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarine (SSBN) 602 carried the name. She deployed on a WestPac/Arabian Gulf deployment on 11 June 1998 for her regularly scheduled rotation, then returned on 7 December 1998 to her home port of Everett, WA. This is the “200 Traps” (Double Centurion) patch created for those flyers attached to her.
