Fargo-class cruiser

The Fargo-class cruisers were a modified version of the Cleveland-class cruiser design; the main difference was a more compact pyramidal superstructure with single trunked funnel, intended to improve the arcs of fire of the anti-aircraft (AA) guns. The same type of modification differentiated the Baltimore and Oregon City classes of heavy cruisers, and to a lesser degree the Atlanta and Juneau classes of light cruisers. Changes were made in order to reduce the instability of the Cleveland-class light cruisers, especially their tendency to roll dangerously. The main battery turrets sat about a foot lower and the wing gunhouses (the 5-inch, twin gun mounts on the sides of the ship) were lowered to the main deck. The medium (40 mm) anti-aircraft mounts were also lowered. In all, 13 ships of the class were planned but only Fargo and Huntington were ever completed, the rest being cancelled at varying states of completion with the de-escalation and eventual end of World War II. Fargo, the lead ship of the class, was launched on 25 February 1945, but was not commissioned until 9 December 1945, four months after the war ended. Huntington was commissioned early in 1946. The two ships were decommissioned in 1949–1950, and never reactivated.

Ships in class

== See also == List of cruisers of the United States Navy

References

== Bibliography == Terzibashitsch, Stefan (1988). Cruisers of the US Navy 1922-1962. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-974-X.

External links

Global Security.org - Fargo-class cruiser Global Security.org - Fargo-class cruiser specifications Hazegray - US Cruisers List: US Light/Heavy/AntiAircraft Cruisers, Part 2 Archived 16 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine Fargo Class Light Cruisers