PIERRE, S.D.(DRGNews)- There’s some new artwork being put up at Pierre’s City Hall.

Mayor Steve Harding says a painting of the USS Pierre with the South Dakota State Capitol Building in the background was revealed earlier this week (Jan. 22, 2024) during a legislative welcome event at the American Legion Cabin.

Harding says the USS Pierre christening will be held in May.

Harding says initial reaction to the painting has solicited some humor.

The United States Navy’s Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship USS Pierre (LCS 38) will be 419 feet long and capable of operating at speeds of over 46mph (40+ knots). It will be a highly maneuverable, lethal and adaptable ship, designed to support focused mine countermeasures, anti-submarine warfare and surface warfare missions. South Dakota Senator John Thune’s youngest daughter, Larissa Thune Hargens, is the sponsor of the USS Pierre.

This will be the second ship to bear the name of South Dakota’s capitol city. The first USS Pierre was a PC-461-class submarine chaser built for the United States Navy during World War II. Originally called the USS PC-1141, she was renamed the USS Pierre in 1956. The ship was decommissioned from the US Navy at Pearl Harbor in October 1958, then transferred to the Indonesian Navy (KRI Tjakalang). The most recently activated naval vessel with ties to the state is the USS South Dakota (SSN 790) fast attack submarine. It officially joined the US Navy’s fleet Feb. 2, 2019.