USS Richmond (CL-9)

USS Richmond (CL-9) was a light cruiser built for the United States Navy during the 1920s. The ship was named for the city of Richmond, Virginia, and served across multiple decades, seeing significant action in the Pacific Theater during World War II. After a long career that included peacetime goodwill missions and wartime combat patrols, she was decommissioned shortly after the war's end and sold for scrap.

Design and description

The *Omaha*-class cruisers were designed as fast scout cruisers to operate with the destroyer flotillas of the United States Fleet. Their design was a compromise influenced by World War I experiences and the evolving naval treaties of the era, notably the Washington Naval Treaty. *Richmond* displaced 7,050 long tons at standard load and was 555 feet 6 inches long overall, powered by four Westinghouse geared steam turbines fed by White-Forster boilers, generating 90,000 shaft horsepower for a top speed of 35 knots. Her main battery consisted of twelve 6-inch/53 caliber guns, mounted in twin turrets and unusual casemate positions along the hull. Secondary armament included four 3-inch anti-aircraft guns and ten 21-inch torpedo tubes in two quintuple mounts. Armor protection was light, with a 3-inch belt and a 1.5-inch protective deck.

Construction and career

*Richmond*'s keel was laid down on 16 February 1920 at the William Cramp & Sons shipyard in Philadelphia. She was launched on 29 September 1921, sponsored by Miss Elizabeth S. Scott, a descendant of Winfield Scott, and commissioned on 2 July 1923 under the command of Captain David F. Boyd. Following shakedown, she joined the Scouting Fleet and spent the interwar years in a routine of fleet exercises, training cruises for Naval Academy midshipmen, and diplomatic visits to ports in Europe, the Mediterranean, and South America. In 1925, she participated in the Nicaraguan campaign, landing Marines at Corinto. She was modernized in the early 1930s, receiving new fire-control systems and aircraft facilities.

World War II service

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, *Richmond* was at sea off the coast of California as part of a task force escorting the aircraft carrier USS *Lexington*. She immediately began patrol and escort duties along the U.S. West Coast and to Hawaii. In mid-1942, she was transferred to the Aleutian Islands theater, where she served as the flagship for Task Force 8 under Rear Admiral Robert A. Theobald. She engaged in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands on 26 March 1943, a long-range daylight gun duel with a superior Japanese force, helping to prevent a reinforcement of Japanese garrisons. For the remainder of the war, she provided naval gunfire support for the Attu and Kiska landings and conducted patrols against Japanese shipping, later serving as a training vessel.

Decommissioning and fate

Following the Surrender of Japan, *Richmond* returned to the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. She was decommissioned on 21 December 1945. Her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 21 January 1946, and she was sold for scrapping to the Patapsco Scrap Corp. of Baltimore on 18 December 1946.

Awards

For her World War II service, USS *Richmond* was awarded two battle stars. She also received the American Defense Service Medal with "FLEET" clasp, the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with two stars, and the World War II Victory Medal.

Category:Omaha-class cruisers Category:Ships built in Philadelphia Category:World War II cruisers of the United States Category:1921 ships