Commissioned in 1943, she set more records than any other Essex Class carrier in the history of naval aviation.The ship was the oldest working carrier in the United States Navy when decommissioned in 1991. An Essex-class carrier, LEXINGTON was originally named the USS CABOT. During World War II, final construction was being completed at Massachusetts' Fore River Shipyard when word was received that the original carrier named USS LEXINGTON, CV-2, had been sunk in the Coral Sea. The new carrier's name was changed to LEXINGTON.

After training maneuvers and a shakedown cruise, LEXINGTON joined the Fifth Fleet at Pearl Harbor. The Fifth Fleet was established April 26, 1944, at this time it was Central Pacific Force. During World War II, the carrier participated in nearly every major operation in the Pacific Theater and spent a total of 21 months in combat. Her planes destroyed 372 enemy aircraft in the air, and 475 more on the ground. She sank or destroyed 300,000 tons of enemy cargo and damaged an additional 600,000 tons. The ship's guns shot down 15 planes and assisted in downing five more.

The Japanese reported LEXINGTON sunk no less than four times! Yet, each time she returned to fight again, leading the propagandist Tokyo Rose to nickname her "The Blue Ghost." The name is a tribute to the ship and the crew and air groups that served aboard her.

After the war, LEXINGTON was briefly decommissioned (1947-1955). When reactivated, she operated primarily with the Seventh Fleet out of San Diego, California. Although not involved in actual combat, LEXINGTON kept an offshore vigil during tensions in Formosa, Laos, and Cuba.

In 1962, she sailed into Pensacola, Florida, and began training operations, eventually being officially designated CVT-16, Navy Training Carrier. Corpus Christi is privileged to be selected as the permanent home to this national treasure

1. Several soldiers have been killed on this boat. The most massive amount of death that occurred at once happened when an actual plane crashed into the ship. Many individuals have claimed that they have seen an apparition on the ship that appears to be a man from the Second World War era. When individuals see this apparition, they find that it quickly seems to fade out.

2. Several residual hauntings are said to occur on the ship. Residual hauntings are like an energy, or a of an emotionally heightened time in a certain area. Many individuals claim that they hear voices, screams, and even cries. In some instances, people have indicated that they have heard noises that sound similar to distant weapons being fired while onboard the USS Lexington.

3. At one point, a storm occurred in the area where this haunted ship is stationed, and an employee stated that he could hear screams. As lightening flashed across the sky, he was able to capture a visual of several men running across the deck area.

4. In certain areas of the USS Lexington, such as in the Switch Room, many individuals have felt a high level of discomfort. In some cases, these individuals have fallen ill.

5. In the Engine Room on the USS Lexington, many individuals have indicated that they have heard screams. These screams are both of men and women. This is the room that was hit the hardest when the Japanese plane wrecked into the haunted ship. A great number of people died in this room when this tragic accident occurred.