USSMarblehead(CL-12)

For other ships with the same name, seeUSS Marblehead.

USSMarblehead(1935)
History
United States
Name	Marblehead
Namesake	Town ofMarblehead, Massachusetts
Ordered	1 July 1918
Awarded	24 January 1919
Builder	William Cramp & Sons,Philadelphia
Yard number	502
Laid down	4 August 1920
Launched	9 October 1923
Sponsored by	Mrs. Joseph Evans
Completed	1 January 1924
Commissioned	8 September 1924
Decommissioned	1 November 1945
Stricken	28 November 1945
Identification	Hull symbol:CL-12 Code letters:NIRR
Honors and awards	2 ×battle star
Fate	Sold for scrap 27 February 1946
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type	Omaha-classlight cruiser
Displacement	7,050long tons(7,163t) (standard) 9,508long tons(9,661t) (loaded)
Length	555 ft 6 in (169.32 m)oa 550 ft (167.6 m)pp
Beam	55 ft 4 in (16.87 m)
Draft	14 ft 3 in (4.34 m) (mean)
Installed power	12 ×White-Forster boilers 90,000ihp(67,000 kW) (Estimated power produced on trials)
Propulsion	4 ×Parsons steam turbines 4 ×screws
Speed	35knots(65 km/h; 40 mph) 33.7knots(62.4 km/h; 38.8 mph) (Estimated speed onTrial)
Crew	29 officers 429 enlisted (peace time)
Armament	2 × twin6 in (150 mm)/53 caliber guns 8 × single 6 in/53 caliber guns 4 ×3 in (76 mm)/50 caliber gunsanti-aircraft 2 × triple21 in (533 mm)torpedo tubes 2 × twin 21 in torpedo tubes 224 ×mines(removed soon after completion)
Armor	Belt:3 in (76 mm) Deck:1+1⁄2in (38 mm) Conning Tower:1+1⁄2in Bulkheads:1+1⁄2-3 in
Aircraft carried	2 ×floatplanes
Aviation facilities	2 ×Amidshipcatapults crane
General characteristics (1941)
Armament	2 × twin 6 in/53 caliber 6 × single 6 in/53 caliber 7 × 3 in/50 caliber anti-aircraft guns 2 × triple 21 in torpedo tubes 8 ×.50 caliber (12.7 mm) machine guns
General characteristics (1945)
Armament	2 × twin 6 in/53 caliber 6 × single 6 in/53 caliber 8 × 3/ in/50 caliber anti-aircraft guns 2 × triple 21 in torpedo tubes 3 × twin40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors guns 12 × single20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon cannons

USSMarblehead(CL-12)was anOmaha-classlight cruiser,originally classified as ascout cruiser,of theUnited States Navy.She was the third Navy ship named for the town ofMarblehead, Massachusetts.

Built in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Marbleheadwas authorized on 1 July 1918, and assigned toWilliam Cramp & Sons,Philadelphiaon 24 January 1919.She was laid down on 4 August 1920, andlaunchedon 9 October 1923, sponsored by Mrs. Joseph Evans.Marbleheadwascommissionedon 3 November 1923, withCaptainChauncey Shackfordin command.

Marbleheadwas 550 feet (167.6 metres)long at the waterlinewith anoveralllength of 555 feet 6 inches (169.32 metres), herbeamwas 55 feet 4 inches (16.87 metres) and a meandraftof 13 feet 6 inches (4.11 metres). Herstandard displacementwas 7,050long tons(7,160 t) and 9,508 long tons (9,661 t) atfull load.Her crew, during peace time, consisted of 29 officers and 429 enlisted men.

Marbleheadwas powered by fourParsonsgearedsteam turbines,each driving onescrew,using steam generated by 12White-Forster boilers.The engines were designed to produce 90,000indicated horsepower(67,000 kW) and reach a top speed of 35knots(65 km/h; 40 mph).She was designed to provide a range of 10,000nautical miles(19,000 km; 12,000 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph), but in service proved capable of only 8,460nautical miles(15,670 km; 9,740 mi) at that speed.

Marblehead's main armament went through many changes while she was being designed. Originally she was to mount ten6 in (150 mm)/53caliberguns; two on either side at the waist, with the remaining eight mounted in tieredcasemateson either side of the fore and aft superstructures. After America's entry into World War I the US Navy worked alongside the Royal Navy and it was decided to mount four 6-in/53 caliber guns in two twingun turretsfore and aft and keep the eight guns in the tiered casemates so that she would have an eight gun broadside and, due to limited arcs of fire from the casemate guns, four to six guns firing fore or aft. Her secondary armament consisted of two3 in (76 mm)/50caliberanti-aircraftguns in single mounts.Marbleheadwas initially built with the capacity to carry 224mines,but these were removed early in her career to make way for more crew accommodations. She also carried two triple and two twin, above-water,torpedo tubemounts for 21 in (530 mm)torpedoes.The triple mounts were fitted on either side of the upperdeck,aft of theaircraft catapults,and the twin mounts were one deck lower on either side, covered by hatches in the side of the hull.

The ship lacked a full-lengthwaterlinearmor belt.The sides of herboiler and engine roomsand steering gear were protected by 3 inches (76 mm) of armor. The transversebulkheadsat the end of her machinery rooms were 1.5 inches (38 mm) thick forward and three inches thick aft. The deck over the machinery spaces and steering gear had a thickness of 1.5 inches. The gun turrets were not armored and only provided protection againstmuzzle blast.The conning tower had 1.5 inches of armor.Marbleheadcarried twofloatplanesaboard that were stored on the two catapults. Initially these were probablyVought VE-9suntil the early 1930s when the ship may have operated theOJ-2until 1935 andCurtiss SOC Seagullsuntil 1940 whenVought OS2U Kingfisherswere used on ships without hangars.

Armament changes

During her careerMarbleheadwent through several armament changes, some of these changes were to save weight, but others were to increase her AA armament. The lower torpedo tube mounts proved to be very wet and were removed, and the openings plated over, before the start of World War II. Another change made before the war was to increase the 3-inch guns to eight; all were mounted in the ship's waist. After 1940, the lower aft 6 in (150 mm) guns were removed and the casemates plated over for the same reason as the lower torpedo mounts.During the Battle of Makassar Strait,Marbleheadhad seven3-inch/50-caliber gunsand eight.50 caliber machine guns,four mounted atop the foremast and another four aft.The ship's anti-aircraft armament were augmented by three twin40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors gunsalong with twelve20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon cannonsby the end of the war.

Inter-war period

After commissioning,MarbleheaddepartedBostonfor shakedown in theEnglish ChannelandMediterranean.In 1925, she visitedAustralia,stopping en route in theSamoanandSociety Islandsand, on her return, in theGalápagos Islands.A year after her return,Marbleheadwas underway again on an extended voyage. Early in 1927, she cruised offBluefieldsand Bragman's Bluffs,Nicaragua,her mission there to aidAmerican effortsto bring together and reconcile the various political factions then fighting in that country. With one exception,Augusto César Sandino,faction leaders agreed to the terms of thePeace of Tipitapaon 4 May 1927, and the United States was requested to supervise elections in 1928.

Marbleheadnext sailed forPearl Harbor,where she joinedCincinnatiandRichmondand headed forShanghai,China. Upon arrival there she contributed to the show of force aimed at the protection of American and other foreign nationals of Shanghai's international settlement during operations against that city through the summer of 1927, inChina's civil war.

In addition to her stay at Shanghai,Marbleheadspent two months up theYangtze RiveratHankow,and visited several Japanese ports before leaving the Far East in March 1928.En routehome, the cruiser stopped at Corinto, Nicaragua to assist in the preparations for elections under the Peace of Tipitapa, delaying her return to Boston until August.

During the next decadeMarbleheadoperated with both the Atlantic (August 1928-January 1933) and Pacific (February 1933–January 1938) Fleets. In January 1938, she was temporarily assigned to the Asiatic Fleet, receiving permanent assignment there seven months later. Home ported atCavite,Philippine Islands,she cruised theSea of Japanand the South and East China seas as tension, political and military, rapidly increased in the Far East.

World War II

"About on 24 November 1941," her war diary reported, "the Commander–in–Chief, US Asiatic Fleet sensed that the relations between the United States andJapanhad reached such a critical state that movement of men–of–war...was indicated. "The next day,Marblehead,with Task Force 5 (TF 5), departedManila Bayfor seemingly "routine weekly operations." She anchored atTarakan,Borneoon 29 November, and waited for further instructions. On 8 December, (7 December in the United States) she received the message "Japan started hostilities;govern yourselves accordingly. "

Battle of Makassar Strait, 1942

USSMarbleheadin February 1942 showing bomb damage received in theBattle of Makassar Strait

Marbleheadand other American warships then joined with those of theRoyal Netherlands Navyand theRoyal Australian Navyto patrol the waters surrounding theNetherlands East Indiesand to screen Allied shipping moving south from the Philippines. On the night of 24 January 1942,Marbleheadcovered the withdrawal of a force of Dutch and American warships after they had attacked, with devastating effect, an enemy convoy offBalikpapan.Six days later, in an attempt to repeat this success, the force departedSurabaja,Java,to intercept an enemy convoy concentration atKendari.The Japanese convoy, however, sailed soon after, and the Allied force changed course, anchoring in Bunda Roads on 2 February. On 4 February, the ships steamed out ofBunda Roadsand headed for another Japanese convoy sighted at the southern entrance to theMakassar Straits.At 09:49, 36 enemy bombers were sighted closing in on the formation from the east.

In the ensuingBattle of Makassar Strait,Marbleheadsuccessfully maneuvered through three attacks. After the third, an enemy plane spiraled toward the cruiser, but her gunners shot it down. The next minute a fourth wave of seven bombers released bombs atMarblehead.Two were direct hits and a third a near miss close aboard the port bow causing severe underwater damage. Fires swept the ship as she listed to starboard and began to settle by the bow. Her rudder jammed,Marblehead,continuing to steam at full speed, circled to port. Her gunners kept firing, while damage control crews fought the fires and helped the wounded. By 1100, the fires were under control. Before noon the enemy planes departed, leaving the damaged cruiser with 15 dead or mortally wounded and 84 seriously injured.

Marblehead's engineers soon released the rudder angle to 9° left, and at 12:55, she retired toTjilatjap,steering by working the engines at varying speeds. She made Tjilatjap with a forward draft of 30 feet (9.1 m), aft 22 feet (6.7 m). Unable to be docked there, her worst leaks were repaired and she put to sea again on 13 February. Some of her wounded crew were taken off the ship to be cared for by DrCorydon M. Wassell;he received theNavy Crossfor protecting them from capture by theinvading Japanese.When the ship left Tjilatjap it was on the first leg of a voyage of more than 21,589 miles (34,744 km)in search of complete repairs.

Still steering with her engines, she madeTrincomalee,Ceylonon 21 February. Repairs could not be made there or anywhere inIndiafor several weeks, soMarbleheaddeparted forSouth Africaon 2 March. After touching atDurbanandPort Elizabeth,Marbleheadarrived atSimonstownon 24 March. There she underwent extensive repairs and on 15 April, sailed forNew York.Steaming viaRecife,Brazil,she finally arrived in New York on 4 May, completing a journey of over 16,000 miles (26,000 km) from where she was damaged in action and immediately entered drydock at theBrooklyn Navy Yard.

Atlantic, Mediterranean, 1942–1944

On 15 October, the rebuiltMarbleheadagain put to sea. Attached to the South Atlantic Force, she operated against the enemy in the South Atlantic from Recife andBahia,Brazil, until February 1944. Returning to New York on 20 February, she operated along the convoy lanes of the North Atlantic for the next five months. She then sailed for the Mediterranean. Arriving atPalermoon 29 July, she joined the task force then staging forOperation Dragoon,the invasion of southern France. From 15 to 17 August, the cruiser bombarded enemy installations in the vicinity ofSaint Raphael,where Allied assault troops were landing. On 18 August, she withdrew toCorsica,her mission complete.

End of career

Marbleheadreturned to the United States, conducted a summer training cruise for Naval Academy midshipmen and then entered thePhiladelphia Naval Shipyard,where she decommissioned on 1 November 1945. Her name was struck from theNaval Vessel Registeron 28 November, and her hull was scrapped on 27 February 1946.

Awards

• 

  
  European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medalwith onebattle starforWorld War IIservice
• 

  
  Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medalwith one battle star for World War II service

References

• This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.The entry can be foundhere.

Further reading

• George Sessions Perry; Isabel Leighton (1944).Where Away: A Modern Odyssey.Whittlesey House, McGraw-Hill Book Company, Incorporated.ASINB0007DKZ0U.

External links

• Photo galleryat Naval Historical CenterArchived2010-09-10 at theWayback Machine
• Photo galleryof USSMarbleheadat NavSource Naval History