USS Oregon City

USS Oregon City (CA-122), the lead ship of the Oregon City class of heavy cruisers, was laid down 8 April 1944 by Bethlehem Steel Company, Quincy, Massachusetts; launched 9 June 1945; sponsored by Mrs. Raymond P. Canfield, wife of the City Commissioner of Oregon City, Oregon. Newspapers showed pictures of celebrated radio, film and television personality Bing Crosby adding a bit of glamor to the launching. The Oregon City was commissioned 16 February 1946 with Captain Burtnett Kent Culver in command from February 16, 1946 to December 15, 1947.[1]

USS Oregon City (CA-122) tows USS Saipan (CVL-48) in the Caribbean Sea, in 1947

USS Oregon City (CA-122)
History
United States
Name: USS Oregon City
Namesake: Oregon City, Oregon
Builder: Bethlehem Steel Company
Laid down: 8 April 1944
Launched: 9 June 1945
Commissioned: 16 February 1946
Decommissioned: 15 December 1947
Stricken: 1 November 1970
Fate: Scrapped in 1973
General characteristics
Class and type: Oregon City-class heavy cruiser
Displacement: 13,700 tons
Length: 673 ft 5 in (205.26 m)
Beam: 70 ft 10 in (21.59 m)
Draft: 26 ft 4 in (8.03 m)
Propulsion: GE turbines 120,000 horsepower
Speed: 32.4 kn (60.0 km/h)
Complement: 1,142 officers and enlisted
Armament:
Aircraft carried: Four amphibious scout planes

Oregon City is named for the city in the state of Oregon. Oregon City departed Boston 31 March 1946 for shakedown out of Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, then returned to Boston in mid-May.

Oregon City became flagship of the United States Fourth Fleet on 3 July and the following month began dockside training of reservists in Philadelphia. From 6 October to 19 October she made a post-war Reserve Training Cruise, to Bermuda, then sailed to Boston and remained until the following March with a somewhat reduced complement. Reassigned to the 2nd Fleet in January 1947, Oregon City’s crew had returned to full strength by the time she sailed for Guantanamo Bay 30 March. After three weeks of exercises she returned to Boston, not sailing again until 6 June. She embarked midshipmen at Annapolis on the 21st, then sailed for the Canal Zone and the Caribbean on an annual summer training cruise.

Oregon City debarked her midshipmen at Norfolk in mid-August and sailed for Philadelphia and deactivation. She was decommissioned on 15 December 1947. She was the only Oregon City-class ship to be decommissioned soon after completion, and was not selected for conversion to a missile ship. Her bell was sent back to Oregon where it is on display at the Museum of the Oregon Territory in Oregon City, Oregon. She was stricken 1 November 1970, and sold 17 September 1973 to Union Minerals and Alloys Corporation, NYC, and scrapped in Kearny, New Jersey the following year. Her 5" gun houses could still be seen well into the 90s at Philadelphia Navy Yard.

The bell originally from USS Oregon City was presented to Portland Area Naval Reserve through the people of Oregon City, Oregon on March 8, 1975 and it is now on display at Museum of Oregon Territory. A model of her is also on displayed there.[2]

Oregon City among ships awaiting scrapping on Hackensack River, 1974
  • USS Oregon City Lifecycle
  • USS Oregon City underway in 1946.
  • USS Oregon City mothballed at Philadelphia in 1959.

Awards
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References
  1. "Cruiser Photo Index CA 122 USS OREGON CITY - Navsource - Photographic History of the U.S. Navy". www.navsource.org. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  2. "Model Ship and Bell - Picture of Museum of the Oregon Territory, Oregon City - Tripadvisor". www.tripadvisor.com. Retrieved 27 May 2020.


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