World War II Database

Contributor: David Stubblebine

ww2dbaseUSS Portland was the lead ship of the third class of "treaty cruisers" to be built by the United States Navy following the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922. There was only one other ship in the class, the USS Indianapolis, and both were originally designated as light cruisers because of their thin armor. However, because of their nine 8-inch guns, they were both reclassified as heavy cruisers in accordance with the London Naval Treaty of 1930. Under the London Naval Treaty, Portland-class ships were also allowed more armor so the thickness of each ships' armor belt was increased prior to launching. Because of the look created by the deep well deck between the two funnels, both Portland and Indianapolis were known as "Swayback" cruisers.

ww2dbasePortland was the first Navy ship named for the city of Portland, Maine. Launched in 1932 and commissioned the following year, Portland exceeded her rated top speed during trials. Six weeks after commissioning, Portland received her first assignment of importance when the Navy airship USS Akron crashed at sea off New Jersey. Underway thirty-six minutes after receiving her orders, Portland was the first Navy ship to reach Akron's crash site but no further rescue efforts were possible. 73 of the 76 aboard Akron were lost.

ww2dbasePortland then served as an escort for cruiser USS Houston as Houston carried President Franklin D. Roosevelt from San Diego, California through the Panama Canal to Charleston, South Carolina. Portland spent the remainder of the interwar era with the Scouting Force and then with the United States Pacific Fleet. She crossed the equator for the first time on 20 May 1936 during fleet maneuvers.

ww2dbaseWhen war broke out with the Pearl Harbor Attack of 7 Dec 1941, Portland was two days out of Pearl Harbor on her way to Midway Atoll as part of the USS Lexington group. From Dec 1941 through Apr 1942, she operated on patrols between the west coast of the United States, the Hawaiian Islands, and Fiji. On 23 Apr 1942 while at Tongatabu in the Kingdom of Tonga, Portland's commanding officer, Captain Robert R Thompson, was transferred to the hospital ship USS Solace with a broken back after a fall down a ladder. The best choice for a replacement captain under the circumstances was the captain of the Solace, Captain Benjamin Perlman, who took temporary command of Portland.

ww2dbasePortland then became a part of a task force built around the carrier USS Yorktown (Yorktown-class) and sailed to the Coral Sea along with the group built around USS Lexington (Lexington-class). Following the battle, Portland was to escort the stricken Lexington but the carrier was so badly damaged that she had to be abandoned and sunk. Portland took aboard 929 of Lexington's survivors while suffering no casualties herself. Back at Tongatabu for brief repairs, Portland received a new commanding officer with Captain Lawrence DuBose relieving Captain Perlman who returned to the Solace. Portland then steamed for Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii escorting the damaged Yorktown.

ww2dbaseAfter only three days at Pearl Harbor, Portland sailed again with the still damaged Yorktown bound for Midway, along with the Enterprise and Hornet (Yorktown-class). On 4 Jun 1942, Portland screened the carriers while the carrier aircraft sought out the attacking Japanese carriers and sunk all four of them. The Japanese carrier aircraft were trying to do the same thing and they were able to score several torpedo hits on the Yorktown. The carrier had to be abandoned with 2,046 of her survivors transferred to Portland. While steaming toward Pearl Harbor, she met the submarine tender USS Fulton and transferred the Yorktown survivors.

ww2dbasePortland then joined a group built around the carrier Saratoga and steamed for the Aleutian Islands to counter a Japanese force thought to be there, but the group was recalled to Pearl Harbor two days later.

ww2dbasePortland was then assigned as one of the escorts for USS Enterprise bound for the Solomon Islands in support of the Guadalcanal operations. These actions included the Battle of the Eastern Solomons where allied forces stopped a large Japanese armada from reinforcing their forces on Guadalcanal. Portland and Enterprise then steamed for Pearl Harbor. From there, Portland was ordered on a secret mission to the Gilbert Islands to conduct a raid on Tarawa along with the light cruiser USS San Juan. On 15 Oct 1942 Portland attacked Japanese ships near Tarawa before withdrawing to rejoin the Enterprise task group on their way to the Solomons. They steamed south in time to participate in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands. About midday on 24 Oct 1942, Portland came under attack from a Japanese submarine and Portland was struck with three torpedoes, but all three failed to detonate.

ww2dbaseTwo weeks later on 12 & 13 Nov 1942, Portland participated in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. During the night action, Portland was struck with a torpedo fired from the Japanese destroyer Yudachi that caused heavy damage to Portland's stern. Portland lost both inboard propellers, had her rudder jammed at five degrees to starboard, and froze her Number Three turret in train and elevation. A four-degree list was quickly corrected by shifting ballast, but the steering problem was harder to overcome and the ship could only steam in circles. At the end of her first circle, she fired on the battleship Hiei with her forward turrets. In four six-gun salvos fired by Portland, she succeeded in starting fires on the Japanese battleship. At dawn, still circling, Portland opened fire on the abandoned hulk of Yudachi at a range of 6 miles (9.7 km). After the sixth salvo, Yudachi exploded, rolled over, and sank within five minutes. Portland was eventually able to partially correct the steering problem and withdraw under her own power. With the assistance of a tug and other small craft, Portland made her way to Tulagi harbor on 14 Nov 1942. The battle resulted in heavy damage to both forces but broke up the determined Japanese effort to disrupt the landing of 6,000 American troops on Guadalcanal, to bombard Henderson Field, and to land 7,000 reinforcements of their own. Portland later received a Meritorious Unit Commendation for her actions in the battle, suffering 18 killed and 17 wounded.

ww2dbaseFrom Tulagi, Portland was towed to Sydney, Australia for preliminary repairs before being overhauled in the United States. She arrived at Mare Island Navy Yard, California, United States on 3 Mar 1943.

ww2dbaseAfter training cruises in southern Californian waters, Portland steamed for the Aleutians late in May 1943 and bombarded Kiska on 26 Jul 1943. Portland next participated in the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaigns. She bombarded Tarawa on 20 Nov 1943 in support of the landings there. She was lightly damaged by friendly depth charges when the destroyer Anderson attacked what was believed to be a Japanese submarine. In Dec 1943, she moved to the Marshall Islands escorting the new Essex-class carrier Lexington. Portland then returned to Pearl Harbor and went into drydock for more repairs to her rudder and propellers.

ww2dbaseAfter those repairs, she steamed for Majuro Atoll arriving 30 Jan 1944. After her bombardment group shelled the island for 30 minutes, it was discovered there were no Japanese ashore. She then moved to support operations on Eniwetok Atoll on 8 Feb 1944 providing shore bombardment ahead of landings which took place on 19 Feb 1944. Between 30 Mar and 1 Apr 1944, she screened carriers conducting airstrikes at Palau, Yap, Ulithi, and Woleai. Later that month, she joined a carrier force covering the landings around Hollandia and Tanahmerah on New Guinea. She then steamed northward with the carrier force and struck Truk with five other cruisers and destroyers. Portland then shelled Satawan in the Caroline Islands.

ww2dbaseFollowing this series of operations, Portland returned to Mare Island for a more extensive overhaul, which was completed in Aug 1944. She returned to the western Pacific for shore bombardments of Peleliu from 12–14 Sep 1944 with the Peleliu landings on 15 Sep 1944. She remained at Peleliu through 29 Sep 1944, and then steamed for Seeadler Harbor, Manus Island in the Admiralty Islands.

ww2dbasePortland arrived off Leyte on 17 Oct 1944 and began two days of shore bombardments to prepare for the troop landings there. On the night of 24 Oct 1944, a strong Japanese force consisting of two battleships, one heavy cruiser, and four destroyers headed for Surigao Strait with the apparent intent of raiding shipping in Leyte Gulf. The Japanese force advanced in rough column up the narrow strait during darkness but was met with a large U.S. force of battleships, cruisers, and destroyers, including Portland. She and her sisters steamed across the top of the strait, crossing the 'T' of the Japanese force. The Japanese were first met by PT boats, then in succession by three coordinated destroyer torpedo attacks, and finally by devastating gunfire from American battleships and cruisers disposed across the northern end of the strait. Portland took the Japanese heavy cruiser Mogami under fire, scoring several hits, and continued firing on the stranded Mogami throughout the night, striking her several more times. The Battle of Surigao Strait was a decisive defeat for the Japanese force, with most of its ships being destroyed.

ww2dbaseFrom 3 Jan to 1 Mar 1945, Portland covered the landings at Lingayen Gulf in the Philippines. Portland entered Manila Bay on 15 Feb 1945 and bombarded the south shore of Corregidor in preparation for landings there. She returned to Leyte Gulf on 1 Mar 1945 for repairs and replenishment, having seen five months of continuous action.

ww2dbaseFrom 26 Mar to 20 Apr 1945, Portland conducted shore bombardments of Okinawa in support of the Allied landings. At Okinawa, Portland endured twenty-four air raids, shot down four Japanese aircraft, and assisted in downing two others. From 8 May, she provided artillery support for ground forces on Okinawa, departing on 17 Jun 1945 for maintenance at Leyte. She returning to Buckner Bay, Okinawa on 6 Aug 1945 and where she remained conducting shore bombardments for the next nine days until the war ended.

ww2dbaseWith the termination of hostilities, Portland was designated flagship of Vice Admiral George D. Murray, Commander Mariana Islands, who was to accept the surrender of the Caroline Islands on behalf of Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz. The ship steamed to Truk Atoll and where Murray accepted the formal capitulation from senior Japanese Army, Navy, and civilian officials in ceremonies on Portland's quarter deck.

ww2dbasePortland was then selected for Operation Magic Carpet duty and returned to Pearl Harbor from 21–24 Sep 1945 embarking 600 troops for transportation to the United States. She transited the Panama Canal on 8 Oct 1945 and arrived at Portland, Maine, United States, for Navy Day celebrations on 27 Oct 1945. She conducted two trans-Atlantic crossings in Nov and Dec 1945, bringing troops home from the European Theater. Portland was decommissioned at Philadelphia Navy Yard on 12 Jul 1946 and placed in the US Reserve Fleet. Despite being identified as one of the few ships that fought throughout the entire war without missing any major battles, no attempt was made to save her as a museum ship at either Portland, Maine, or Portland, Oregon. She was struck from the Navy List on 1 Mar 1959 and was scrapped in Panama City, Florida during 1961 and 1962.

ww2dbasePortland's tripod aftermast is preserved at Fort Allen Park in Portland, Maine, United States. She received 16 battle stars for service in World War II, making her among the most decorated US ships of the war.

Heavy Cruiser Portland (CA-33) Interactive Map

Photographs

Portland Operational Timeline

Visitor Submitted Comments

Show older comments

2.  David Stubblebine says:
20 Jul 2018 11:53:12 AM

Anonymous (above):
You are absolutely correct – and I knew better. The correction has been made and thank you for pointing this out.