- USS Cleveland (CL-55)
The second USS "Cleveland" (CL-55) of the
United States Navy was alight cruiser , thelead ship of the "Cleveland" class and active in both the Mediterranean and Pacific theaters ofWorld War II .History
On
1 November 1941 Hull No. 423 was launched and christened the "USS Cleveland CL-55". Built byNew York Shipbuilding Corporation ofCamden, New Jersey , and sponsored byMrs. H. Burton , "Cleveland" was commissioned15 June 1942 with CaptainE. W. Burrough in command.Clearing Norfolk's
Chesapeake Bay 10 October 1942 , "Cleveland" joined a task force offBermuda (onOctober 29 ) bound for the invasion ofNorth Africa – the first new class of ship to enter World War II. Her firepower supported the landings atFedhala ,French Morocco , on8 November and she remained on patrol until12 November , returning to Norfolk,24 November ."Cleveland" sailed for the Pacific
5 December 1942 , and arrived atEfate 16 January . Her first mission in the consolidation of theSolomon Islands was with TF 18 to guard a troopconvoy toGuadalcanal from27 January to31 January , "Cleveland" fired on the enemy as she came under heavy air attack in thebattle of Rennell Island on the 29th and 30th.Joining Task Force 68, "Cleveland" steamed up "
the Slot "6 March 1943 to bombard Japanese airfields atVila onKolombangara , then joined in the night action which sank two Japanese destroyers (the "Minegumo" and "Murasame") in thebattle of Blackett Strait .Command of the "Cleveland" passed to Captain Andrew G. Shepard in June. Still with TF 68, "Merrill's Marauders", "Cleveland" fired in the bombardment of the
Shortland Islands on30 June and provided gun support for the invasion landings at Munda,New Georgia on12 July . Following a short repair period atSydney ,Australia , "Cleveland" sailed for the preinvasion bombardment of theTreasury Islands on26 October and27 October . Her task force steamed to blast Buka andBonis on1 November in support of the troops invading Bougainville, dashed south the same day to neutralize bases in the Shortlands, and that night intercepted a Japanese force in thebattle of Empress Augusta Bay which was to win her aNavy Unit Commendation . "Cleveland" poured her radar-controlled fire into the four Japanese cruisers for over an hour, aiding in sinking "Sendai", then chased the fleeing ships until daybreak. An air attack followed and one stick of bombs severely rocked "Cleveland", who answered by splashing several of the enemy planes. She returned to Buka for another bombardment on23 December , then patrolled betweenTruk and Green Island from13 February to18 February 1944 while American forces captured the latter.After supporting the capture of
Emirau Island from17 March to23 March 1944 , "Cleveland" sailed for replenishment and repairs at Sydney, Australia, then returned to the Solomons21 April to prepare for theMarianas operation. One practice bombardment on20 May brought return fire unexpectedly which straddled the ship, but unharmed, she quickly silenced the shore batteries.From
8 June to12 August 1944 "Cleveland" participated in the Marianas operation. On July 24, 1944 during the invasion of Tinian the USS "Cleveland" came to the aid of the USS|Norman Scott|DD-690. The Norman Scott was hit 6 times within a few seconds by shore batteries. The Cleveland maneuvered between the Norman Scott and the shore batteries, preventing the Norman Scott from taking any more hits. She conducted softening-up bombardments and then gave fire support for invading troops until she joined TF 58 for thebattle of the Philippine Sea on19 June and20 June . Although few enemy aircraft penetrated the screen of American carrier planes, "Cleveland" was credited with splashing at least one enemy aircraft and assisting in downing another of the few which did get through.From
12 September to29 September 1944 "Cleveland" participated in the invasion of thePalaus , then sailed from Manus on5 October for a stateside overhaul. She arrived in Subic Bay9 February 1945 , and sailed on to bombardCorregidor on13 February and14 February , effectively neutralizing the fortress before the landings there. Continuing to support the consolidation of thePhilippines , she covered the landings atPuerto Princesa , theVisayas ,Panay , and theMalabang -Parang area onMindanao ."Cleveland" put out from Subic Bay
7 June 1945 to act as part of the covering force and provide fire support for the invasion landings atBrunei Bay ,Borneo on10 June . She returned to Subic Bay15 June , then sailed toManila to embark General of the ArmyDouglas MacArthur , USA, and his staff as observers of the assault onBalikpapan . Arriving30 June , she fired in a pre-landing bombardment the next morning, and after General MacArthur had made an inspection tour of the landing area, got underway for Manila, arriving3 July .With a new cruiser task force, "Cleveland" sailed
13 July 1945 toOkinawa , arriving16 July . From this base the force made a series of sweeps against Japanese shipping until7 August to insure Allied control of theEast China Sea . "Cleveland" got underway from Okinawa9 September to support the occupation ofJapan by covering the evacuation of Allied prisoners of war fromWakayama , then serving as part of a naval occupation group until the 6th Army made its landings onHonshū . After a short stay inTokyo Bay (28 October –1 November ), "Cleveland" sailed forPearl Harbor ,San Diego , thePanama Canal , andBoston , arriving5 December for overhaul. She operated out of Newport on various training exercises, including a Naval Reserve training cruise to Halifax, Nova Scotia, andQuebec in June 1946, before reporting toPhiladelphia for inactivation. "Cleveland" was placed out of commission in reserve there7 February 1947 , until sold18 February 1960 .In addition to her Navy Unit Commendation, "Cleveland" received 13
battle star s forWorld War II service.Commanding officers
* Captain Edmund W. Burrough (
June 15 1942 – June 1943) left after the battle of Blackett Straight
* Captain Andrew G. Shepard (June 1943 – August 1944)
* CaptainHerbert G. Hopwood (August 1944 – July 1945)
* Captain Charles J. Maguire (July 1945 – ????)References
*DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/c10/cleveland-ii.htm
External links
* [http://www.cl55.org/ "USS Cleveland CL-55" Reunion Association]
* [http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-c/cl55.htm "USS Cleveland" at The Naval Historical Center]
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