USS San Francisco (CA-38)
History of the USS San Francisco Cruiser
The USS San Francisco (CA-38) was ordered for the U.S. Navy between World War I and World War II. Her keel was laid down at Mare Island Navy Yard in California on September 9, 1931. She was launched on March 9, 1933 and commissioned on February 10, 1934 under the command of Captain Royal E. Ingersoll.
During her early career, USS San Francisco underwent conversion as a flagship at Mare Island Navy Yard before joining Cruiser Division 6 at San Diego, California in February 1935. She spent the next few years involved in with the annual Fleet Problems, tactics, and a goodwill cruise around South America.
When World War II began in Europe, the USS San Francisco took up Neutrality Patrol near Puerto Rico, Trinidad, and the West Indies. On January 11, 1940, she was transferred to the Pacific Fleet, making Pearl Harbor her new homeport for operations with Cruiser Division 6.
After an overhaul at Puget Sound Navy Yard in Washington, USS San Francisco returned to Pearl Harbor in September. She became the flagship of Cruiser Division 6 in May 1941, serving in that capacity until she put in for overhaul at Pearl Harbor Navy Yard on October 11.
USS San Francisco was awaiting docking when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, and many of her guns had been removed to make way for upgrades. Some of her crew members helped man the guns on the USS New Orleans. Remarkably, the cruiser was not bombed or damaged in the attacks, and she sailed for Wake Island with Task Force 14 on December 14. When Wake Island fell, she was diverted to Midway Atoll before returning to Pearl Harbor.
As a member of Task Force 8, the USS San Francisco got underway for Samoa on January 8, 1942. After covering the unloading of transports there, she joined Task Force 17 to raid the Gilbert Islands and the Marshall Islands. The cruiser departed Samoa in February, rejoining Cruiser Division 6 and Task Force 11 to strike at Rabaul.
Now screening the USS Lexington, USS San Francisco headed to New Guinea to join with Task Force 17 for raids on Japanese shipping. One of her scout planes was reported missing on March 7. Two days later, she arrived in the Gulf of Papua to support the air strikes at Salamaua and Lae. Her missing plane was spotted on March 11 by the USS Minneapolis, having landed in the water and being unable to communicate. The plane and its crew were recovered.
On March 26, the USS San Francisco returned to Pearl Harbor. From there, she escorted a convoy to San Francisco. She then escorted a convoy of transports carrying the 37th Army Division as far as Auckland. Upon her return to Pearl Harbor, she picked up another convoy to escort to Fiji.
Once she’d seen her convoy safely to its destination, USS San Francisco rendezvoused with the Solomon Islands Expeditionary Force. When Operation Watchtower began on August 7 to take Guadalcanal, the cruiser covered the American forces there. She remained there for the rest of the month, becoming the flagship for Rear Admiral Norman Scott, commander of the cruisers attached to Task Force 18.
The USS San Francisco continued to support operations on Guadalcanal through September, protecting reinforcement convoys. When the USS Wasp was torpedoed on September 15, she and the USS Salt Lake City attempted to take the carrier in tow, but it was soon apparent that she was a total loss.
On September 3, USS San Francisco, Destroyer Squadron 12, and five other cruisers formed Task Force 64 under the command of Admiral Scott. The task force continued to cover Allied reinforcements in the Solomon Islands and intercept Japanese reinforcements in the area.
Shortly before midnight on October 11, the USS San Francisco became involved in the Battle of Cape Esperance. There was a lot of confusion surrounding the engagement for both sides, and Task Force 64 retired to Espiritu Santo having lost the USS Duncan to enemy fire.
After an enemy submarine attack at Espiritu Santo on October 20, USS San Francisco and her task force were ordered to the scene. By the next day, she was sent out again to protect Guadalcanal. Admiral Scott shifted his flag to the USS Atlanta on October 29, and Rear Admiral Daniel J. Callaghan raised his flag two days later, as Commander of Task Group 64.4 that was soon to become Task Force 65.
USS San Francisco sailed with Task Force 65 on Halloween to cover the landings of reinforcement troops on Guadalcanal. She became the flagship of Task Group 67.4 on November 10. An enemy plane crashed into her control aft two days later, killing 15 men, wounding 29 others, and leaving one missing. Her injured men were transferred to the USS President Jackson.
In the ensuing Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, the USS San Francisco accidentally fired upon the USS Atlanta, killing Admiral Scott and most of the other ship’s bridge crew. After she determined her error, she targeted the Japanese battleship Kirishima, but she found herself the target of multiple enemy ships. The cruiser suffered a direct hit to her navigation bridge that killed or seriously injured all but one of her officers, Lieutenant Commander Bruce McCandless. By the end of the engagement, 77 of her crew members were dead, including Rear Admiral Callaghan and Captain Cassin Young, and 105 others were injured. Three of seven missing crew members were rescued.
Along with the USS Helena and USS Juneau, USS San Francisco got underway for Espiritu Santo. The USS Juneau transferred her medical personnel to attend to the cruiser’s wounded men about an hour before being struck by a torpedo from the Japanese submarine I-26. The USS San Francisco and other ships were ordered to keep going.
After receiving initial repairs at Espiritu Santo, the USS San Francisco headed to Mare Island Naval Shipyard in California for permanent repairs, arriving there on December 14. Her repairs were completed by February 26, 1943, and she escorted a convoy to Nouméa on her way back to the South Pacific.
The USS San Francisco sailed to the Aleutian Islands with Task Force 16 in late April. She spent over four months there, patrolling the western approaches, escorting convoys, and supporting the attacks on Attu and Kiska. The cruiser returned to Pearl Harbor in September for repairs, departing Hawaii on September 29 to raid Wake Island with Task Unit 14.2.1.
In October, USS San Francisco helped bombard and patrol the area surrounding Tarawa. She then moved on to support operations in the Marshall Islands, which lasted into 1944. She took part in the Battle of Kwajalein at the end of January and the invasion of Truk in February. In the following months, she continued to support carrier raids, landing troops, and shore bombardment missions.
In June, the USS San Francisco supported the invasion of Saipan. On June 19, she became involved in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, a decisive American victory. The cruiser then returned to screening duties and shore bombardment missions.
After heading home to San Francisco for overhaul between August 16 and October 31, USS San Francisco arrived at Ulithi on November 21 to serve as the flagship for Cruiser Division 6. The next few months kept the cruiser busy in support of operations at Luzon, Formosa, Indochina, Hong Kong, the Ryukyu Islands, Honshu, the Volcano Island and the Bonin Islands.
On February 19, 1945, the USS San Francisco covered the troop landings at Iwo Jima. She provided fire support there for four days before moving on to strike at the Japanese home islands. Poor weather put an end to the planned attack on Tokyo, and in March, she headed for Okinawa. The cruiser supported operations at Okinawa from pre-invasion bombardment to her continued support for American ground forces throughout April.
USS San Francisco moved toward the Japanese home islands in July, preparing for an invasion. When the Japanese surrendered on August 15, she instead took up occupation duties. Upon her return home, she was decommissioned on February 10, 1946, struck from the Naval Vessel Register on March 1, 1959, and sold for scrap on September 9, 1959. The cruiser was awarded 17 battle stars and the Presidential Unit Citation 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
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships – USS San Francisco
