USS Nashville (CL-43)
History of the USS Nashville Cruiser
The USS Nashville (CL-43) was ordered for the U.S. Navy between World War I and World War II. Her keel was laid down by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation in New Jersey on January 24, 1935. She was launched on October 2, 1937 and commissioned on June 6, 1938 under the command of Captain William W. Wilson.
During her early career, USS Nashville made a goodwill cruise to Northern Europe. Departing Portland, England on September 21, 1938, she carried $25 million worth of British Gold bullion to Brooklyn Navy Yard in New York. The following spring, she embarked passengers for the Pan American Defense Conference in Rio de Janeiro. The cruiser was then transferred to the Pacific Fleet, arriving at San Pedro, California on July 16, 1939.
After carrying U.S. Marines to Wake Island in February 1941, the USS Nashville headed back to the East Coast to escort a convoy of Marines bound for Iceland. In August, she took up Neutrality Patrol in the Atlantic.
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, USS Nashville proceeded to Casco Bay, Maine. From there, she escorted a convoy carrying troops and cargo to Iceland. She conducted escort duties to Bermuda and Iceland until February 1942. On March 4, she escorted the carrier USS Hornet to the West Coast, arriving at San Diego, California 16 days later.
On April 2, the USS Nashville departed San Diego to escort the USS Hornet to Japan, where the carrier’s bombers would conduct what came to be known as the Doolittle Raid. American scout planes sank a Japanese picket boat that encountered the force, and the cruiser sank another. Having lost the element of surprise, the task force reversed course for Pearl Harbor immediately after launching the bombers.
After refitting in Hawaii, USS Nashville became the flagship of Task Force 8 on May 14. She arrived at Dutch Harbor on May 26 to support the Aleutian campaign. The cruiser conducted patrols in Alaskan waters and bombarded Japanese shore installations at Kiska on August 7. Once the Japanese had evacuated, she headed south.
USS Nashville headed for Fiji on Christmas Eve. She became the flagship of Task Force 67, escorting troop transports to Munda in early January 1943. For the next few months, she supported operations on Kolombangara and New Georgia. During the shelling of Vila airfield on May 12, a powder charge explosion in one of her forward turrets killed 18 men and injured 17 others. The cruiser departed Espiritu Santo on May 22 and proceeded to Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California for repairs and modernization.
Once her repair work was complete, the USS Nashville arrived back at Pearl Harbor on August 12. She screened the carrier task forces for strikes on Marcus Island and Wake Island over the next two months. From there, she moved on to support operations at New Guinea, the Admiralty Islands, Bougainville, New Britain, Wake Island, Hollandia, Tanahmerah Bay, Aitape, and Biak. While she was bombarding Biak on June 4, she was damaged by a near miss during a Japanese aerial attack.
Her repairs were completed at Espiritu Santo in time to carry General Douglas MacArthur to the invasion of Morotai in September and back to the Philippines. In October, she provided fire support during the invasion of Leyte. On November 28, she served as the flagship for the Commander of the Visayan Attack Force on her way to the invasion of Mindoro.
The USS Nashville was struck by a kamikaze on December 13 off Negros Island. The resulting explosions and fires claimed the lives of 133 sailors and injured 190 others. The Attack Group Commander shifted his flag elsewhere while the cruiser headed to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Washington via San Pedro and Pearl Harbor.
When her repair work was finished, USS Nashville arrived back at Subic Bay on May 16, 1945. She became the flagship of Task Force 74, supporting the landings at Brunei Bay and screening the carriers at Makassar Strait.
After World War II ended, the USS Nashville embarked the Commander of Task Force 73 to enter Shanghai Bay on September 19. When he shifted his flag on November 17, she brought 450 veterans home with her as part of Operation Magic Carpet. She departed for a second Magic Carpet voyage on December 3, towing an ailing USS St. Mary’s to San Francisco, California with her when she arrived on January 6, 1946.
The USS Nashville was decommissioned on June 24, 1946. On January 9, 1951, she was transferred to the Chilean Navy. She served Chile as the Capitan Prat until she was decommissioned there in 1984 and sold for scrap. The cruiser was struck from the United States Naval Vessel Register on January 9, 1961. The USS Nashville earned 10 battle stars for her service in World War II.
The use of asbestos was common in shipbuilding components for much of the 20th Century because of its resistance to heat, fire, water and corrosion. Because of their asbestos exposure onboard ship and in the shipyards, seaman, shipyard workers and longshoreman are at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma.
Sources include:
Asbestos and Ship-Building: Fatal Consequences, by John Hedley-Whyte and Debra R Milamed
