USS ''Canberra'' (CA-70/CAG-2) was a and later a

guided missile cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

(USN). Originally to be named USS ''Pittsburgh'', the ship was renamed before launch to honor the Australian cruiser sunk during the

Battle of Savo Island The Battle of Savo Island, also known as the First Battle of Savo Island and, in Japanese sources, as the , and colloquially among Allied Guadalcanal veterans as the Battle of the Five Sitting Ducks, was a naval battle of the Solomon Islands ca ...

. ''Canberra'' was the first USN warship named after a foreign capital city, and one of the few named after a foreign warship not captured in battle with a USN ship. The ship entered service in 1943 and served in the Pacific theater of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

until she was torpedoed during the

Aerial Battle of Taiwan-Okinawa The Formosa Air Battle ( ja, 台湾沖航空戦, translation=Battle of the Taiwan Sea, ), 12–16 October 1944, was a series of large-scale aerial engagements between carrier air groups of the United States Navy Fast Carrier Task Force (TF38) an ...

and forced to return to the United States for repairs. Placed in reserve after the war, ''Canberra'' was selected for conversion into the second guided-missile carrying warship in the USN fleet. Following the conversion, she was host to the ceremony for selecting the Unknown Soldier representing World War II in 1958, undertook an eight-month round-the-world cruise in 1960, participated in the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

naval blockade in 1962, and was deployed to the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

on five occasions between 1965 and 1969.

Construction

The

heavy cruiser The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range and high speed, armed generally with naval guns of roughly 203 mm (8 inches) in caliber, whose design parameters were dictated by the Washington Naval Tr ...

was laid down as USS ''Pittsburgh'' by the

Bethlehem Steel Company The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. For most of the 20th century, it was one of the world's largest steel producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its succe ...

Fore River Shipyard Fore River Shipyard was a shipyard owned by General Dynamics Corporation located on Weymouth Fore River in Braintree and Quincy, Massachusetts. It began operations in 1883 in Braintree, and moved to its final location on Quincy Point in 1901 ...

at Quincy in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

on 3 September 1941. During construction, in recognition of the valor displayed by the Australian cruiser during the

, United States President

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

wished to commemorate the Australian ship's loss by naming a US ship in her honor: ''Pittsburgh'' was selected and renamed USS ''Canberra''. The ship was launched on 19 April 1943 by Alice, Lady Dixon, the wife of Sir

Owen Dixon Sir Owen Dixon (28 April 1886 – 7 July 1972) was an Australian judge and diplomat who served as the sixth Chief Justice of Australia. A judge of the High Court for thirty-five years, Dixon was one of the leading jurists in the English-s ...

, Australia's ambassador to the United States, and is one of two United States warships (the other being the Littoral Class Combat Ship USS Canberra (LCS-30)) to be named after a foreign capital city. ''Canberra'' was commissioned into the USN on 14 October 1943, Captain Alex Rieman Early, USN commanding. The Australian Government returned this tribute by naming a new destroyer, , in honor of the US stand during the

Battle of Bataan The Battle of Bataan ( tl, Labanan sa Bataan; January 7 – April 9, 1942) was fought by the United States and the Philippine Commonwealth against Japan during World War II. The battle represented the most intense phase of the Japanese invas ...

Operational history

World War II

She left Boston in January 1944,''Canberra'', in ''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships'' San Diego, and joined Task Force 58 in mid-February. In late February, the ship provided bombardment support during the

Battle of Eniwetok The Battle of Eniwetok was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought between 17 February 1944 and 23 February 1944, on Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The invasion of Eniwetok followed the American success in the Battle ...

.Clark, ''The Fighting Canberras'', p. 12 During March and April, the cruiser formed part of the carrier task group, supporting the aircraft carrier during air raids on

Palaus Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...

Yap Yap ( yap, Waqaab) traditionally refers to an island group located in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, a part of Yap State. The name "Yap" in recent years has come to also refer to the state within the Federated States of Micro ...

Ulithi Ulithi ( yap, Wulthiy, , or ) is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about east of Yap. Overview Ulithi consists of 40 islets totaling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest i ...

and

Woleai Woleai, also known as Oleai, is a coral atoll of twenty-two islands in the western Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in the Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia and is located approximately west-n ...

during 31 March and 1 April. On 13 April, ''Canberra'' escorted ''Yorktown''s aircraft when they provided support to amphibious landings at Hollandia and

Wakde Wakde is an island group in Sarmi Regency, Papua, Indonesia, between the districts of Pantai Timur and Tor Atas. It comprises two islands, Insumuar (the larger) and Insumanai (much smaller). History Occupied by Japanese forces in April 1942, th ...

. From 29 April to 1 May, the cruiser was attached to the group for air attacks on Truk, during the operation, ''Canberra'' detached to shell a Japanese airbase at

Satawan Satawan Atoll is an atoll located about southeast of Chuuk Lagoon proper. Geographically it is part of the Nomoi or Mortlock Islands in the Carolines and administratively it is part of Chuuk State in the Federated States of Micronesia. About ...

. The cruiser was involved in raids on Marcus and

Wake Island Wake Island ( mh, Ānen Kio, translation=island of the kio flower; also known as Wake Atoll) is a coral atoll in the western Pacific Ocean in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, east of Guam, west of Honolulu, southeast of To ...

s during May, and in June joined operations to capture the Mariana and Palau Islands. As part of this campaign, ''Canberra'' participated in the

Battle of the Philippine Sea The Battle of the Philippine Sea (June 19–20, 1944) was a major naval battle of World War II that eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invas ...

, and shelled Japanese positions in the

Bonin Islands The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic readi ...

. During August and September, the ship performed raids on the Palaus and the Philippines providing gunfire support during the Morotai landings. At the start of October, ''Canberra'' joined

Task Force 38 The Fast Carrier Task Force (TF 38 when assigned to Third Fleet, TF 58 when assigned to Fifth Fleet), was the main striking force of the United States Navy in the Pacific War from January 1944 through the end of the war in August 1945. The task ...

, tasked with performing air raids on Okinawa and Taiwan, in preparation for the landings at Leyte. On 13 October, an air-dropped torpedo from a Japanese aircraft hit the cruiser below her armour belt. The explosion killed 23 personnel and exposed the engineering spaces to the ocean, stalling the ship. took ''Canberra'' under tow for a rendezvous with the tug , which took over the tow after putting a salvage crew aboard. During the tow, the salvage officer from ''Munsee'' was killed while diving in the cruiser's flooded engine room to make temporary repairs. A week into the tow towards

, ''Munsee'' was joined by the

War Shipping Administration The War Shipping Administration (WSA) was a World War II emergency war agency of the US government, tasked to purchase and operate the civilian shipping tonnage the United States needed for fighting the war. Both shipbuilding under the Maritime Co ...

leased tug ''Watch Hill''. It took another week for the two tugboats to bring ''Canberra'' to the repair ship . After temporary repairs at Manus, ''Canberra'' sailed under her own power to Boston Navy Yard. The cruiser was docked for repairs, which lasted from February to October 1945. The cruiser was deployed to the west coast of the United States in late 1945. ''Canberra'' received seven

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

s for her wartime service.

''Boston'' class conversion

''Canberra'' was decommissioned on 7 March 1947 and berthed with the

Pacific Reserve Fleet The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and ...

at the

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, officially Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres (0.7 km2) on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington in uninterrupted u ...

, located in

Bremerton, Washington Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington. The population was 37,729 at the 2010 census and an estimated 41,405 in 2019, making it the largest city on the Kitsap Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerto ...

. ''Canberra'' and sister ship were marked for conversion into guided missile cruisers, ''Canberra'' was redesignated with the

hull number Hull number is a serial identification number given to a boat or ship. For the military, a lower number implies an older vessel. For civilian use, the HIN is used to trace the boat's history. The precise usage varies by country and type. United S ...

CAG-2 and on 4 January 1952, she was towed to the

New York Shipbuilding Corporation The New York Shipbuilding Corporation (or New York Ship for short) was an American shipbuilding company that operated from 1899 to 1968, ultimately completing more than 500 vessels for the U.S. Navy, the United States Merchant Marine, the United ...

Camden, New Jersey Camden is a city in and the county seat of Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Camden is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area and is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the 2020 ...

, for conversion into a . USS Canberra (CAG-2) fires a Terrier missile in February 1957 (NH 98398)

During the conversion, ''Canberra''s aft 8-inch and 5-inch gun turrets were replaced with two twin

RIM-2 Terrier The Convair RIM-2 Terrier was a two-stage medium-range naval surface-to-air missile (SAM), and was among the earliest surface-to-air missiles to equip United States Navy ships. It underwent significant upgrades while in service, starting with be ...

missile launchers. Her aft superstructure was rebuilt, and the two funnels were redesigned as a single unit. The upgrade of the ship concluded in June 1956, making ''Canberra'' the second guided-missile ship in the USN fleet. If the conversion proved successful, the plan was to replace the rest of the ship's gun armament with missiles at a later date. However, by 1964, the rapid advancement of missile technology made the Terrier system obsolete, and full conversion was not pursued.

Post-conversion career

''Canberra'' was recommissioned on 15 June 1956, and homeported at

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

. From June until March 1957, the cruiser operated from Norfolk and through the Caribbean. On 14 March, ''Canberra'' delivered President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

to Bermuda for a conference with

Harold Macmillan Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton, (10 February 1894 – 29 December 1986) was a British Conservative statesman and politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. Caricatured as "Supermac", he ...

, the British Prime Minister. On 12 June, the cruiser served as review ship for the International Naval Review at Hampton Roads. After a training cruise during July and August, ''Canberra'' was deployed to the Mediterranean for

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

Operation Strikeback Exercise Strikeback was a major naval exercise of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) that took place over a ten-day period in September 1957. As part of a series of exercises to simulate an all-out Soviet attack on NATO, Exercise S ...

Unknown Serviceman ceremony aboard USS Canberra (CAG-2) on 26 May 1958 (NH 54118)

The cruiser returned to American waters on 9 March 1958. In mid-April 1958, ''Boston'' and ''Canberra'' hosted a change of command ceremonies in which Rear Admiral Charles B. Martell relieved Rear Admiral Charles L. Melson as Commander Cruiser Division Four at Norfolk Naval Base. On 26 May, the ceremony for the selection of the Unknown Soldier representing World War II occurred aboard ''Canberra''. From June to August, the cruiser sailed on another training cruise, before docking at Norfolk Naval Shipyard for overhaul. From 3 March until 24 October 1960, the cruiser made an 8-month round-the-world cruise to

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