USS Salem (CA-139)

History of USS Salem (CA-139)

The USS Salem (CA-139) was part of the 12 planned Des Moines class heavy cruisers of the United States Navy (USN) during World War II (1939-1945). Only three of the group were done because they arrived too late to see the fight in the global conflict (the rest were eventually canceled in a post-war drawdown). By wartime standards, the class was considered the ultimate form of conventional heavy cruisers.

The USS Salem was the last ship of its kind to enter service and currently lives as a floating museum in Massachusetts waters.

This class inherits a similar role from the Oregon City-class surface ships and has the same space-saving features, such as a small superstructure and combined funnels that provide better firing angles for airborne artillery. The Salem was fully modernized when it entered service, with greatly improved anti-aircraft (AA) capabilities and fully automatic main gun batteries for improved firing action.

The main gun also introduced fully jacketed projectiles, eliminating the need for the old shell pack system.

The USS Salem was ordered on June 14, 1943, to be built by Bethlehem Steel at the Fall River Shipyard in Quincy, Massachusetts. She was launched on July 4, 1945, and launched at sea on March 25, 1947 - long after the end of World War II (August 1945).

The ship was officially commissioned on January 30, 1959, hull symbol CA-139, and has a service life until 1959.

The standard load of the warship is 17,000 tons, and the full load is 21,500 tons. She has a length of 717 feet, a beam of 77 feet, and a draft of 26 feet. Power comes from 4 Babcock & Wilcox boilers feeding 4 GE 120,000 hp turbines on 2 shafts. The top speed in ideal conditions is 33 knots and the range is up to 10,500 nautical miles.

Her crew consisted of 1,800 officers and was drafted into the army.

The USS Salem followed the traditional armament plan for WWII-era U.S. warships: she carried 9 x 8 in/55 caliber guns in three triple turrets, two above the forecastle and one At the rear of the superstructure. These act as primary batteries as they provide excellent firing angles, especially for broadsides. There is also a 12 x 5"/38 caliber gun supported by a 20 x 3" gun.

Close air defense is provided by 8 x 20 mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft guns.

The USS Salem completed her trial cruise in the Caribbean in October 1949 and returned to Cuba twice before the end of the year. Before entering the Mediterranean, she joined the Atlantic Fleet at the turn of the century.

In addition to typical friendly port calls, NATO exercises and training work, the warship was used in humanitarian operations and was active in the Mediterranean during the Suez Crisis (October-November 1956). It was deployed as a deterrent off the coast of Lebanon during the 1958 Lebanon crisis (July-October).

The warship ended her sailing day on January 30, 1959, when she officially retired - a rather short lifespan for such an expensive and powerful warship. She was then temporarily assigned to the Atlantic Reserve Fleet by the Philadelphia Navy Yard. When she moved to Quincy, Massachusetts to become a museum ship in October 1994, she didn't use a waste burner torch.

Due to some issues in the nearby area, she plans to move to East Boston Waters in the near future.

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