USSBirmingham(CS-2/CL-2),named for the city ofBirmingham, Alabama,was aChester-classscout cruiser,reclassified alight cruiserin 1920. Entering service in 1908, the ship became known for the first airplane takeoff from a ship in history in 1910. DuringWorld War I,Birminghamescorted convoys across the Atlantic. The cruiser wasdecommissionedin 1923 and sold forscrapin 1930.
 USSBirmingham(CS-2), 1908
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | Birmingham |
| Namesake | City ofBirmingham,Alabama |
| Ordered | 27 April 1904 |
| Awarded | 17 May 1905 |
| Builder | Fore River Shipyard,Quincy Point,Quincy,Massachusetts |
| Cost | $1,566,000 (contract price of hull and machinery) |
| Laid down | 14 August 1905 |
| Launched | 29 May 1907 |
| Sponsored by | Miss Mary Campbell |
| Commissioned | 11 April 1908 |
| Decommissioned | 1 December 1923 |
| Reclassified | CL-2, 17 July 1920 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Sold for scrap, 13 May 1930 |
| General characteristics (As built)[1] | |
| Class and type | Chester-classScout cruiser |
| Displacement | |
| Length | |
| Beam | 47 ft 1 in (14.35 m) |
| Draft | 16 ft 9 in (5.11 m) (mean) |
| Installed power | |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | |
| Complement | 42 officers 330 enlisted |
| Armament |
|
| Armor | |
| General characteristics (1921)[2][3] | |
| Complement | 64 officers 332 enlisted |
| Armament |
|
Construction and career
editThe cruiser waslaid downby theFore River Shipbuilding CompanyatQuincy, Massachusetts,on 14 August 1905, andlaunchedon 29 May 1907; sponsored by Miss Mary Campbell.Birminghamwascommissionedon 11 April 1908,CommanderBurns Tracy Wallingin command.[4]
Birminghamserved with theAtlantic Fleetuntil 27 June 1911, and went into reserve atBostonthree days later. One of her sailors, Chief ElectricianWilliam E. Snyder,received theMedal of Honorfor rescuing a shipmate from drowning on 4 January 1910.[5]FromBirmingham's deck, civilian pilotEugene Elymade thefirst airplane take-off from a warshipon 14 November 1910[6]in aCurtiss Model Dbiplane designed byGlenn Curtiss.
Recommissioned on 15 December 1911, she made a short cruise to theWest Indiesand then reverted to the Atlantic Reserve Fleet atPhiladelphiaon 20 April 1912. From 19 May – 11 July, she was in commission for service onIce Patroland then returned to the Philadelphia Reserve Group. Recommissioned on 1 October 1913,Birminghamcarried the Commissioners of thePanama–Pacific International Expositionon a South American tour from 3 October – 26 December, and was then outfitted atPhiladelphia Navy Yardas a tender to the Torpedo Flotilla.
She left the yard on 2 February 1914, and resumed operations with the Atlantic Fleet asflagshipof the Torpedo Flotilla. On April 20, she received orders to carry a detachment of aircraft toTampicoas part of theUS occupation of Veracruz,becoming part of the first operational use of naval aircraft.[4]On May 24, after spending a month near Tampico, she rendezvoused with the fleet atVeracruzbefore returning to the United States.
World War I and fate
editFollowing American entrance into World War I,Birminghampatrolled along the northeast U.S. coast until 14 June 1917, when she sailed fromNew Yorkas part of the escort for the first US troop convoy to France. After returning to New York she was fitted for service in Europe and in August reported toGibraltaras flagship forRear AdmiralA. P. Niblack,Commander, US Forces Gibraltar. She escorted convoys between Gibraltar, theBritish Isles,and France until the Armistice. After a short cruise in the easternMediterranean,she returned to the United States in January 1919.
From July 1919 to May 1922, she was based atSan Diego, California,as flagship of Destroyer Squadrons,Pacific Fleet,and then moved toBalboa, Canal Zoneas flagship of the Special Service Squadron. After cruising along the Central American and northern South American coast, she returned to Philadelphia and was decommissioned there on 1 December 1923, being sold for scrap on 13 May 1930.
Commanders
edit- Burns Tracy Walling11 April 1908 – 9 May 1909
- William Bartlett Fletcher28 October 1909 – 1910
- Charles Frederick Hughes18 December 1911 – 1912
- William Veazie Prattc.1914 –
- David Foote SellersJanuary 1915 – 9 June 1916
- DeWitt Blamer 9 June 1916 – November 1916
- Charles Lincoln Hussey c. 1917 – c. 1918
- Franck Taylor Evans 28 April 1919 – November 1919
- George Bertram Landenberger1920 –
References
edit- ^"Ships' Data, U. S. Naval Vessels, 1911–".US Naval Department. 1 January 1914. pp. 40–47.
- ^"Ships' Data, U. S. Naval Vessels, 1921–".US Naval Department. 1 July 1921. pp. 60–67.Retrieved24 September2015.
- ^Toppan, Andrew (22 January 2000)."Chester class scout cruisers".US Cruisers List: Light/Heavy/Antiaircraft Cruisers, Part 1.Hazegray.org.Retrieved12 November2015.
- ^ab"Birmingham I (Scout Cruiser No. 2)".Naval History and Heritage Command. 25 June 2015.Retrieved12 November2015.
- ^"Medal of Honor Recipients – Interim Awards, 1901–1911".Medal of Honor Citations.U.S. Army Center of Military History. 3 August 2009.Retrieved9 May2010.
- ^Friedman, Norman (1983).U.S. Aircraft Carriers: An Illustrated Design History.Naval Institute Press. p. 31.ISBN0-87021-739-9.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.The entry can be foundhere.
External links
edit- Photo galleryof USSBirminghamat NavSource Naval History