USS Oakland (CL-95)

USS "Oakland" (CL-95) was a modified sclass|Atlanta|cruiser, the first of a group of four sometimes referred to as the "Oakland"-class. She was laid down by Bethlehem Steel Co., San Francisco, California, 15 July 1941; launched 23 October 1942; sponsored by Dr. Aurelia H. Reinhardt; and commissioned 17 July 1943, Capt. William K. Phillips in command. She was named for the city of Oakland, California. Like the "Atlanta" class, the "Oakland" class was designed as an anti-aircraft cruiser, with a main battery of dual-purpose guns. The "Oakland" class omitted the wing 5-inch/38 turrets of the "Atlanta" class.

"Oakland" sustained three casualties during World War II.

War time history

1943

Following a shakedown and training cruise off San Diego in the summer of 1943, "Oakland" sailed for Pearl Harbor arriving 3 November. Joining with three heavy cruisers and two destroyers, she linked up with carrier Task Group 50.3 near Funafuti in the Ellice Islands for support of Operation "Galvanic", the amphibious push into the Gilberts. The carriers launched initial air strikes 19 November, and in retaliation, a wave of Japanese torpedo-bombers attacked the formation on the afternoon of the 20th. "Oakland" scored two kills and two assists in beating off the raiders.

On 26 November northeast of the Marshall Islands, "Oakland" again fought off strong coordinated torpedo plane attacks. At 2332 on 4 December a torpedo tore into the side of USS|Lexington|CV-16|2 and "Oakland" covered her slow withdrawal, arriving Pearl Harbor 9 December.

1944

"Oakland" departed Pearl Harbor 16 January 1944 with the carriers of TG 58.1 headed for the Marshall Islands. The task group launched strikes against Maloelap on 29 January and against Kwajalein on the 30th. An amphibious assault was made on Kwajalein 1 February. "Oakland" with her carriers supported American operations ashore until they entered Majuro Lagoon on 4 February.

Weighing anchor 12 February, the ships of TG 58.1 sailed from Majuro and launched air strikes against Truk 16 and 17 February, greatly damaging the important Japanese naval base there.

Then, despite a night-long series of Japanese aerial attacks, 21–22 February, to hit the Marianas with damaging blows, "Oakland"s gunners bagged two more enemy planes and assisted in splashing two others before returning to Majuro.

"Oakland" sortied with TG 58.1 7 March, bound for Espiritu Santo in the New Hebrides. The group skirted the Solomons and covered the occupation of Emirau Island, north of New Britain, on the 20th. On the 27th, the task group swept on to the western Carolines. Heavy air attacks greeted the carriers, but "Oakland" and her partners in the screen beat them off before any damage was incurred. They pounded Palau on 30 March, Yap on the 31st and Woleai 1 April, before returning to Majuro on 6 April.

Through April the group carried out similar operations at Wake and Sawar. They again hammered Truk on the 29th and the 30th, as well as hitting Satawan on the later date. Allied surface and aerial bombardment battered Ponape on 1 May, before "Oakland" retired to Kwajalein on 4 May.

Following antiaircraft training, "Oakland" helped to attack Guam 11 June, then steamed north to hit the Volcano and Bonin Islands by the 14th.

West of the embattled Marianas, Task Force 58 sped to intercept a large Japanese surface force approaching from the Philippines. In the ensuing Battle of the Philippine Sea, the famed "Turkey Shoot" took place as the U.S. carrier planes decimated the trained air groups of three Japanese carrier divisions, almost eliminating Japanese naval aviation.

Toward the end of the battle, as darkness was creeping in, the returning American pilots were scanning the sea for their carriers. Admiral Mitscher, on the bridge of his flagship, concerned about his men, gave the order "Turn on the lights." In response, "Oakland"'s convert|36|in|mm|sing=on searchlights were turned on, helping to light up the Philippine Sea.

TG 58.1 next struck at Pagan on 23 June and Iwo Jima the 24th. On the 27th the units gathered at Eniwetok Atoll for replenishment and on the 30th nosed northwest to the Bonins. The group delivered a withering air-sea bombardment against Iwo and Chichi Jima 3 and 4 July, and by the 5th was speeding south for a return engagement in the Marianas.

The carriers then began launching on 7 July a series of alternating strikes against Guam and Rota. "Oakland" and USS|Helm|DD-388|2 teamed up to recover downed pilots off Guam, and fired at targets on Orote Peninsula.

At 0800 4 August search planes reported a Japanese convoy zig-zagging out of Chichi Jima Bonin Islands. Two hours later, the carriers’ planes reported they were attacking enemy vessels. An attack group was quickly formed, consisting of the light cruisers "Oakland", USS|Santa Fe|CL-60|2, USS|Mobile|CL-63|2 and USS|Biloxi|CL-80|2, plus Destroyer Division 91.

Detached from the task group at 1241, the killer band raced at convert|30|kn|km/h between Ototo and Yome Jima and arrived on the scene at about 1730. The destroyers formed an attack group ahead of the cruisers and, at 1845, sank a small oiler. Another straggler from the convoy, later identified as the destroyer "Matsu", was sighted at 1924 and subsequently sunk.

At 2145 "Oakland" and company contacted a 7500-ton supply ship and sank her, before turning south to rake Chichi Jima. "Oakland" made three runs shelling shipping in Chichi's harbor of Funtami Ko, and helped to silence a shore battery before she retired at 1119 on 5 August. Several Japanese ships had been sunk, a seaplane base damaged, and fires started among the wharves and warehouses.

From 6 to 8 September, "Oakland"s task group hit the Palau Islands, Peleliu being the main target. On the evening of the 8th they steamed west to raid enemy airfields in the Philippines through the 22nd.

On 6 October, "Oakland" departed Ulithi shepherding her own carriers toward the Ryūkyūs and hit Okinawa on the 10th. They attacked installations on Formosa and the Pescadores 12 October and, at 1835, as they were withdrawing, fought off Japanese air counter attack.

They hit Formosa again on 13 October, and again the Imperial Air Force lashed out in full fury as the task force withdrew at nightfall. "Oakland" assisted in turning back the aerial opponents but, at 1835, USS|Canberra|CA-70|2 in TG 38.1 was damaged by a torpedo, and on the 14th USS| Houston|CL-81)|2, received a torpedo hit. "Oakland" then covered the withdrawal of the two hit ships, before participating in the strikes against Luzon 17–19 October and supporting the landings on Leyte the 20th.

Enroute to Ulithi on the 24th, "Oakland" received orders to backtrack at once to help stop the Japanese Fleet which was converging on Leyte Gulf. By the time she arrived on the scene the enemy had been repulsed, and the carriers began long range strikes against the retreating enemy. The Battle for Leyte Gulf was essentially the end of the Imperial Navy as an effective fighting force.

During November and December, "Oakland" operated with various task groups of TF 38 supporting the Philippine liberation campaign. On 18 December she rode out a raging typhoon in the Philippine Sea escaping serious damage.

1945

"Oakland" returned to San Francisco 11 January 1945. She remained for repairs and trial runs until sailing for Hawaii 4 March. Arriving Pearl Harbor on the 9th, "Oakland" began additional training south of Oahu. She received movement orders on the 14th and sailed for Ulithi, the staging area for Okinawa.

Reaching Ulithi 30 March, she sailed again with other units the following day. On tap was the most ambitious amphibious assault of the Pacific war. On 2 April the group separated, "Oakland" going ahead to join TG 58.4. For five days she engaged in hitting Sakashima Gunto in the southern Nansei Shoto and then proceeded to Okinawa.

On 10 April "Oakland" was reassigned to TG 58.3 for the remainder of the Okinawa campaign. She came under air attack again on 11 April with her gunners splashing a dive bomber.

With other groups of TF 58, "Oakland" moved northward on 15 April to launch strikes against airfields at Kyūshū. Enemy planes tried time and again to pierce the task force's protective fighter umbrella. Twice "Oakland"s guns opened up, aiding in the destruction of one "Frances" and driving off another.

Okinawan defenses were struck again on the 17th. Kamikazes evaded the combat air patrol in the morning and "Oakland" took two under fire as they passed over the ship. Both were dropped within the formation, with "Oakland" scoring one. On the 29th "Oakland" drove away another enemy aircraft. TG 58.3 had taken the best the Imperial Air Force had to offer during 11 days of April. The rest of the month was utilized in making additional strikes against Okinawa and conducting gunnery exercises with drones and towed sleeves.

Snooper planes began winging near the group early in the morning of 11 May. After breakfast the "Oakland" crew scrambled to General Quarters but an attack failed to materialize at that time. Two kamikazes plummeted into the flight deck of USS|Bunker Hill|CV-17|2 convert|2000|yd from the cruiser. A trio of life rafts were cut loose from "Oakland" to aid in the rescue of "Bunker Hill" survivors sighted ahead.

The task force struck again at airfields on Kyūshū on 13 May. On the 14th the Japanese reciprocated. Shortly after breakfast a lone "Zero" was spotted circling through the clouds and "Oakland"s guns quickly opened fire, but their quarry just as quickly disappeared from view. Then he came back like a comet. USS|Enterprise|CV-6|2 bore the brunt of his crash-dive as he blew up in a blossom of flame on her flight deck.

Shortly a flock of kamikazes appeared and within the space of fifteen minutes "Oakland" took four separate suicide planes under fire. "Oakland"s claim of two assists was substantiated by the task group commander.

For the duration of May, "Oakland" remained with the task group off Okinawa. On the 29th she shifted back to TG 38.1 under Admiral Halsey and made for Leyte Gulf, anchoring in San Pedro Bay on 1 June.

On 10 July, TG 38.1 commenced raids on the Japanese mainland beginning with Honshū and then thundering north to Hokkaidō. 17–20 July, "Oakland" participated in strikes against Tokyo and 24–27 July against Kure and Kobe. Tokyo was hit again on the 30th along with Nagoya. On 7 August the ships turned north to strike the Honshū-Hokkaido area for a second time. August 15 brought the long awaited "cease all offensive operations" order. "Oakland" then proceeded to her assigned operating area for the occupation of Japan.

Sailing on 30 August to the most important rendezvous of her career, "Oakland" dropped anchor in Tokyo Bay the next day, outside the breakwater of the Yokosuka Naval Base. Berthed several thousand yards away from USS|Missouri|BB-63|2, "Oakland" provided a box seat for her sailors to witness the unforgettable conclusion to their war.

Post war

While Oakland lay at anchor in Tokyo Bay, on the night of 27 September, a typhoon swept close to the harbor entrance. A tanker dragged anchor and struck "Oakland"s bow, causing minor damage.

On 1 October, "Oakland" sailed for Okinawa to embark homeward bound veterans for a "magic carpet" voyage to San Francisco. Leaving Okinawa on 3 October, she arrived at San Francisco on 20 October. Navy Day (27 October) observances at Oakland, California were highlighted by the presence of "Oakland". "Magic carpet" duty in November and December took "Oakland" back to the Pacific twice, first to Eniwetok and then to Kwajalein. At the year's end the Navy turned the task of bringing home the veterans solely over to its transportation service, and "Oakland" was ordered to an inactivation area at Bremerton, Washington

Reprieve came in the form of a change in orders and, instead of inactivation, "Oakland" was slated to continue as an active postwar fleet unit. A thorough overhaul was afforded her at the Puget Sound Navy Yard to erase the effects of long months of battle.

From July 1946 through January 1947, "Oakland" operated in and around San Diego as a Fleet Gunnery Training Ship. From 6 January to 8 September she participated in a Western Pacific training cruise.

On 18 March, "Oakland" was reclassified CLAA-95. On 1 July 1949, "Oakland" decommissioned at San Francisco. Struck on 1 March 1959, she was sold to Louis Simons on 1 December for scrapping.

"Oakland"'s mast and nameplate were restored and given to the city of Oakland. In July 2002, they were installed in the Port of Oakland's Middle Harbor Shoreline Park, on the western waterfront, at the site of the former Fleet and Industrial Supply Center.

Awards

"Oakland" earned nine battle stars for service in World War II.

External links

* [http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/o1/oakland-ii.htm history.navy.mil: USS "Oakland"]
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/04/04095.htm navsource.org: USS "Oakland"]
* [http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/cruisers/cl95.txt hazegray.org: USS "Oakland"]