Helena (CA 75) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 7 text:

Commander Seventh Fleet While in the Far East, the ship served as the flagship of Vice Admiral Stuart H. Ingersoll, Commander of the U.S. Seventh Fleet and Commander of the Taiwan Defense Command. Admiral Ingersoll is a native of Springfield, Mass. He entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1917. During a midshipman cruise in the summer of 1918 aboard the battleship USS Missouri, the Admiral got his first taste of duty under wartime conditions. In 1926, Admiral Ingersoll became a qualified naval aviator, and he served with aircraft squadrons until 1940. During World War II, while commanding the aircraft carrier USS Monterey during action against enemy forces in the Pacific, Admiral Ingersoll was awarded the Navy Cross for extraordinary heroism. Before taking command of the Seventh Fleet, Admiral Ingersoll was Chief of Staff and Aide to the Commander in Chief of the U. S. Atlantic Fleet.

Page 6 text:

fightin ' est ship in the Pacific until torpedoes, in the first battle of Kula Gulf off New Georgia Island in the early morning of July 6, 1943, ended her naval career. She was awarded the Navy Unit Citation posthumously for gallantry in action during the Solomon Islands Campaign. A heavy war bond subscription throughout the state of Montana by the citizens of Helena prompted the Navy Department to name CA-75 the USS Helena. She was launched on April 28, 1945 and commissioned September 4, 1945. At that time, she was one of the most powerful cruisers afloat. She displaces over 13,000 tons, is 674 feet long with a 6 ' ' -foot beam and bristles with three triple eight-inch turrets, six twin five-inch dual purpose gun mounts and a three-inch AA battery. Her four boilers can develop 120,000 shaft h.p. good for approximately 33 knots by the book. The Helena ' s smooth lines and fire power were shown off during the Victory- Presidential-Naval Review at New York City in 1945. After a shake-down in the Caribbean, the Helena voyaged around the world on a good will cruise, calling at ports in England, Scotland, France, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Ceylon, and China. With a 1000-foot homeward bound pennant streamed aloft, the Helena returned to the States in March of 1947. In January of 1948, the Helena was designated as flagship for Cruiser Division Three and soon after steamed for the Far East. That same year the Helena was awarded the Navy Battle Efliciency Award and the Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award for being the best cruiser in the Navy. In September the ship came home for overhaul and repairs, during which the catapults were removed and a wooden deck installed aft of turret three. After another tour in the Far East and while the Helena was back in the States, the Korean War broke out. Replenished and rearmed, Ship 75 was ordered to support UN forces in Korea. As a unit of Task Force 77, the Helena clobbered the enemy. She received only a minor direct hit from enemy shore batteries off Wonsan in return. Since the Korean War has been over, the Helena has been taking her turn serving in the Far East with the Seventh Fleet on cruises similar to the one we ' re now completing.

Page 8 text:

vT - • rr - m Commanding Officer y The ship practically holds her breath when she hears the preamble, This is the Captain speaking, over the PA system to congratulate her for a job well done or to announce future movements. Captain Harry Smith assumed command last July. At 47, he is the youngest commanding officer of a Pacific Fleet cruiser. The Captain was graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, Class of ' 30, and went right aboard the battleship USS Maryland, where he became Signal Officer. During World War II, he was in the Coral Sea, Midway, Aleutian, Guadalcanal and Okinawa engagements. He commanded the destroyers Kimberly and the Frank E. Evans, and also was an aide to a carrier task force commander. After the war, Captain Smith was Naval Attache to the Union of South Africa, and he commanded the attack transport USS George Clymer. Before taking command of the Helena, the Captain attended the National War College in Washington, D.C. The Skipper, whose home town is Springfield, Illinois, married a girl from Seattle, Washington. Captain and Mrs. Smith and their two sons Harry and Tom now live in the ship ' s home port.