Helena (CA 75) - Naval Cruise Book

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USS HELENA CA-75 A HISTORY There have been three men o ' war christened in honor of Helena, Montana. The first USS Helena was a gunboat launched in 1896. She was about one-third the length of a heavy cruiser of today and her armament consisted of eight four-inch guns and four three-pounders. Her fifty-foot st ack gave her a floating factory silhouette. The gunboat saw action in the Spanish-American War in the Caribbean and the Philippines. After the war was over she remained on the Asiatic Station until 1932, when she was retired to fiddler ' s green. The second USS Helena was a light cruiser of the Brooklyn class launched in 1938. She was damaged during the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Helena dressed her wounds and was in action against the enemy in jig time. Helena Number Two battled through engagements at Cape Esperance and Guadalcanal. She threw out so much six-inch that the Japanese claimed her as a secret naval weapon. Her crew dubbed her the