USS Portland (CA-33)

USS Portland (CA-33), at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on 14 June 1942.
History
United States
NamePortland
NamesakeCity of Portland, Maine
Ordered13 February 1929
Awarded15 August 1929
BuilderBethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation's Fore River Shipyard, Quincy, Massachusetts
Cost$10,753,000 (contract price)
Laid down17 February 1930
Launched21 May 1932
Sponsored byMrs. Ralph D. Brooks
Completed15 August 1932
Commissioned23 February 1933
Decommissioned12 July 1946
Stricken1 March 1959
Identification
Nickname(s)"Sweet Pea"
Honors and
awards
16 × battle stars
FateSold for scrap, 6 October 1959
General characteristics (as built)[1]
Class and typePortland-class cruiser
Displacement9,800 long tons (9,957 t) (standard)
Length
  • 610 ft 3 in (186.00 m) oa
  • 582 ft (177 m) wl
Beam66 ft 1 in (20.14 m)
Draft
  • 17 ft 1 in (5.21 m) (mean)
  • 24 ft (7.3 m) (max)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed32.7 kn (60.6 km/h; 37.6 mph)
Range10,000 nmi (19,000 km; 12,000 mi) @ 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph)
CapacityFuel oil: 1,600 long tons (1,626 t)
Complement91 officers 757 enlisted men
Armament
Armor
  • Belt: 3+14–5 in (83–127 mm)
  • Deck: 2+12 in (64 mm)
  • Barbettes: 1+12 in (38 mm)
  • Turrets: 1+122+12 in (38–64 mm)
  • Conning Tower: 1+14 in (32 mm)
Aircraft carried4 × floatplanes
Aviation facilities2 × Amidship catapults
General characteristics (1945)[2]
Armament
  • 9 × 8 in (200 mm)/55 caliber guns (3x3)
  • 8 × 5 in (130 mm)/25 caliber anti-aircraft guns
  • 2 × 3-pounder 47 mm (1.9 in) saluting guns
  • 4 × quad 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors anti-aircraft guns
  • 4 × twin 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors anti-aircraft guns
  • 17 × single 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannons

USS Portland (CL/CA–33) was the lead ship of the Portland class of cruiser and the first ship of the United States Navy named after the city of Portland, Maine.[1] Launched in 1932, she completed a number of training and goodwill cruises in the interwar period before seeing extensive service during World War II, beginning with the Battle of the Coral Sea in 1942, where she escorted the aircraft carrier Yorktown and picked up survivors from the sunken carrier Lexington. She screened for Yorktown again in the Battle of Midway, picking up her survivors as well. She then supported the carrier Enterprise during the initial phase of the Guadalcanal Campaign later that year, and was torpedoed during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. The torpedo inflicted heavy damage which put her out of action for six months as she was repaired in Sydney, Australia, and later San Diego, California.

Returning to combat in mid-1943, Portland saw action in many of the major engagements of the Pacific War, conducting shore bombardments in support of campaigns at the Aleutian Islands, Gilbert and Marshall Islands, Mariana Islands, and New Guinea. She was involved in the October 1944 Battle of Leyte Gulf, engaging Japanese ships in the decisive Battle of Surigao Strait. She then conducted shore bombardments at Lingayen Gulf and Corregidor Island, and in 1945 supported landings during the Battle of Okinawa until the end of the war.

Following World War II, Portland accepted the Japanese surrender in the Caroline Islands and then undertook several Operation Magic Carpet cruises to bring U.S. troops home. She was decommissioned in 1946 and scrapped by 1962. In her extensive service she accrued 16 battle stars, making her one of the most decorated ships in the U.S. fleet.

  1. ^ a b "Ships' Data, U. S. Naval Vessels". US Naval Department. 1 July 1935. pp. 16–23, 338. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
  2. ^ Rickard, J (19 December 2014). "USS Portland (CA-33)". Historyofwar.org. Retrieved 8 October 2015.