Salt Lake City (CA 25) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 10 text:

U15 Peace years - 192 9-1941 On December ll, 1029, the Salt Lake City went into com- mission at the Philadelphia Navy Yard and became the pride of the fleet. Her commissioning was a national event. She was the first major naval vessel to be commissioned in two years. She was a symptom that the nation was rousing from an optimistic dream world in which serious people believed that peace would last forever. Other nations had started intensive cruiser building programs, and the Salt Lake City was the first example of our answer that was to play an important part in the greatest war of history. The Salt Lake City was built by the New York Shipbuilding Co. at Camden, N. I. She was ordered luly 0, l920, and her keel was laid Iune 9, l927. The launching took place on lanuary 23, l929, iwith Miss Helen Budge of Salt Lake City, Utah, acting as sponsor and Miss Gaylie Rich as maid of honor. A sister ship, the Pensacola, had been ordered sixteen months before the Salt Lake City, but she was built at the New York Navy Yard and was not commissioned until two months after the Salt Lake city. A Commissioning ceremonies were simple. The flag was run up. Admiral lulian T. Latimer, U.S.N., read the commissioning order. The Star Spangled Banner was played by the ship's band. Capt. Fredrick L. Oliver, U.S.N., took command and ad- dressed the crew. Mr. A. L. Mackenzie, representing Salt Lake City, Utah, presented a silver service, the city's gift to the ship, and the .cruiser became a part of the United States Navy. The ship was built under the limitations of the Washington Arms Conference, which sought to end war by limiting the size of weapons. Her 10,000 tons nudged the treaty maximum. Her .eight inch guns were the largest allowed. Although later cruisers so outstripped the Salt Lake City in protection that she and the Pensacola were referred to as tin clads , her light armor and compartmentation were hailed then as outstanding. 6 i is

Page 9 text:

M-. - ..........-.-..........,.,-1.. 1 .W War Uma Golumauding Owens CAPTAIN LEROY W. BUSBEY. IR., USN September 1943 to October 1944 3 2 , W' aiffwfffff 1 f 7 CAPTAIN IOHN CONNOR. USN September 1945 to Decommissioning 1.1 4 4 f -XSS- wrbbzisimwmm ox xgwx XNNB 58 XX x ' GNN 1 X wx ., 1 '76 ,Q 1' ,., 2 , Z ft 1 f Q52 CAPTAIN EDWARD A. MITCHELL, USN October 1944 to September 1945

Page 11 text:

The ten long range eight inch guns of the Salt Lake City and the Pensacola set them in a class by themselves as modern, high speed cruisers go, wrote one of the reporters who visited the ship shortly after her commissioning. None of the other powers has in commission any vessels of this class with as powerful a main battery except Iapan. Our two cruisers repre- sent, probably, the finest balance of all requisite peace and wartime qualities of any vessels of their type now afloat and ready for sea. Everybody who loves ships can feel the beauty of the Salt Lake City's swift, graceful lines. The original armament of the Salt Lake City consisted of her ten eight inch guns, four five inch 25 calibre dual purpose guns, two three-pound saluting guns and six 21-inch torpedo tubes in triple mounts. Externally, she differed considerably from her present war- time appearance. The foremast was less cluttered, the main- mast was a tripod form. The forward five inch battery was not installed nor were the six 40 MM quadruple mounts and twenty 20 MM guns. Two torpedo tubes were on the main deck, on each side and just forward of the after stack. The extensive radar equipment, of course, was not to appear until the war years. lnside, the ship was far less crowded. Her complement consisted of 538 enlisted men, half the wartime crew, and 30 officers, about a third the number carried during the war. After the commissioning, the Salt Lake City made a shake- down and goodwill cruise to Brazil where her crew was royally entertained at Rio de Ianeiro and at Bahia. She joined the scouting fleet March 3l, l930, at Guantanamo, Cuba. The ship's favored position in the fleet became apparent the next spring, when she was selected to be the presidential reviewing vessel at fleet maneuvers. Thirty-five miles off the Virginia capes on May 20, l930, President Herbert Hoover, the Secretary of the Navy, the Chief of Naval Operations and other dignitaries stood on the deck of the Salt Lake City and watched American naval might engaging in mock battle. lt was the first timea President had ever reviewed three dimensional maneu- vers---surface, air and submarine. 7