- Oregon City class cruiser
-
USS Oregon City (CA-122)Class overview Name: Oregon City class cruiser Operators: United States Navy Preceded by: Baltimore-class cruiser Succeeded by: Des Moines-class cruiser In commission: 1946–1970[note 1] Planned: 10 Completed: 4 (1 completed as a command ship USS Northampton (CLC-1) Cancelled: 6 General characteristics Type: Heavy cruiser Displacement: 17,000 tons Full Load Length: 673 ft 5 in (205.26 m) Beam: 70 ft 10 in (21.59 m) Draft: 26 ft 4 in (8.03 m) Propulsion: General Electric turbines turning 120,000 hp (89,000 kW) Speed: 32.4 knots (60.0 km/h; 37.3 mph) Complement: 1,142 officers and enlisted Armament: - 9 × 8 inch/55 caliber guns (3×3)
- 12 × 5 inch/38 caliber guns (6×2)
- 48 × 40 mm Bofors guns
- 20 × 20 mm Oerlikon cannons
Aircraft carried: Four amphibious scout planes The Oregon City class were a class of heavy cruisers of the United States Navy. Although it was intended to build ten, only four were completed – one of those as a command ship. The three cruisers were in commission from 1946 to 1970.
Contents
Design and development
The Oregon City-class cruisers were a modified version of the previous Baltimore-class design; the main difference was a more compact pyramidal superstructure with single trunked funnel, intended to improve the arcs of fire of the anti-aircraft (AA) guns. The same type of modification also differentiated the Cleveland and Fargo classes of light cruisers.[1]
History
Ten ships were authorized for the class with three being completed and the fourth suspended during construction. The final six ships were cancelled.[2] Construction on the incomplete fourth ship was resumed in 1948 and the ship served as a command ship Northampton (CLC-1). All three completed ships were commissioned in 1946. Oregon City was decommissioned after only 18 months of service, probably the shortest active life of any WWII-era cruiser. Albany was later converted into a guided missile ship, becoming the lead ship of the Albany class and served until 1980. A similar conversion was planned for Rochester but was cancelled.
Ships in class
Data from [2]
Hull Number Name Builder Laid down Launched Completed Fate CA 122 USS Oregon City Bethlehem Steel 8 April 1944 9 June 1945 16 February 1946 Stricken 1 Nov 1970 CA 123 USS Albany Bethlehem Steel 6 Mar 1944 30 Jun 1945 11 Jun 1946 Converted to Guided Missile Cruiser – Stricken 30 June 1985[3] CA-124 USS Rochester Bethlehem Steel 29 May 1944 28 August 1945 20 December 1946 Stricken 1 October 1973 CA-125 USS Northampton Bethlehem Steel 31 August 1944 27 January 1951 7 March 1953 Converted to command ship during construction – Stricken 31 Dec 1977 CA-126 USS Cambridge Bethlehem Steel 16 December 1944 N/A N/A Cancelled 12 August 1945 CA-127 USS Bridgeport Bethlehem Steel 13 January 1945 N/A N/A Cancelled 12 August 1945 CA-128 USS Kansas City Bethlehem Steel N/A N/A N/A Cancelled 12 August 1945 CA-129 USS Tulsa Bethlehem Steel N/A N/A N/A Cancelled 12 August 1945 CA-137 USS Norfolk Philadelphia Naval Shipyard N/A N/A N/A Cancelled 12 August 1945 CA-138 USS Scranton Philadelphia Naval Shipyard N/A N/A N/A Cancelled 12 August 1945 See also
References
- Notes
- ^ Albany was converted to a guided missile cruiser and as such was in commission from 1962–1980, but this was a totally different class of ship to a heavy cruiser. Northampton was decommissioned in 1970 as the last of the Oregon City class "gun cruisers".
- Citations
- ^ Norman Friedman, U.S. Cruisers, An Illustrated Design History 1984 ISBN 9780870217180[page needed]
- ^ a b Whitley 1999, p. 269.
- ^ Gardiner and Chumbley 1995, p. 578.
- Bibliography
- Gardiner, Robert and Stephen Chumbley (editors). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1947–1995. Annapolis, Maryland USA: Naval Institute Press, 1995. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
- Whitley, M.J. Cruisers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. London: Brockhampton Press, 1999. ISBN 1 86019 8740,
External links
Oregon City-class cruiserBuilt Canceled Bridgeport · Cambridge · Kansas City · Norfolk · Scranton · TulsaPreceded by: Baltimore class - Followed by: Des Moines class
List of cruisers of the United States NavyUnited States naval ship classes of World War IIAircraft carriers Light aircraft carriers Escort carriers Battleships Large cruisers Heavy cruisers - Pensacola
- Northampton
- Portland
- New Orleans
- WichitaS
- Baltimore
- Oregon CityC
- Des MoinesC
Light cruisers Destroyers Destroyer escorts Patrol frigates Minesweepers Submarines - S — Single ship of class
- C — Completed after the war
- X — Cancelled
Categories:- Cruiser classes
- Oregon City class cruisers
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.