The Oregon City-class heavy cruisers (CA-122-129 and CA-137 and CA-138) were intended as an improvement on the preceding Baltimore (CA-68) class. Only the first three—all built by Bethlehem Steel at Quincy, Massachusetts, and all delivered after the Japanese surrender— were commissioned as gunnery cruisers; the Northampton (CA-125, later CLC-1) was reordered and finished as a command ship. The other six (four of which had been laid down) were canceled on 12 August 1945. Compared to the Baltimores, the Oregon City class had a narrower main deck aft, the aircraft hangar hatch offset to port, their boiler uptakes combined into a single stack, the bridge structure reduced in size and moved aft, and the positions of the two Mk 34 main battery and Mk 37 5-inch gun directors reversed. The changes provided improved arcs of fire for the antiaircraft armament, allowed the addition of two more 40-mm quadruple gunmounts, and reduced topweight to improve stability. The Oregon City displaced 17,677 tons full load, and the 675-foot-long ships could achieve 33 knots on their four-screw, 120,000-shaft-horsepower (designed) steam turbine plants.
The Oregon City had only a brief operational career in the Atlantic Fleet, commissioning on 16 February 1946, making training cruises to Bermuda and the Caribbean, and decommissioning on 15 December 1947; she never operated again and was stricken on 1 November 1970. The Albany (CA-123) commissioned in June 1946 and operated with the Atlantic Fleet throughout her career; decommissioned for conversion to a guided-missile cruiser in June 1958, she emerged in November 1962 as CG-10, almost unrecognizably altered. The Albany served until August 1980, was stricken in June 1985, and was sold for scrap in August 1990.
The Rochester (CA-124), commissioned on 20 December 1946, transferred to the Pacific Fleet in 1950 and made nine West- Pac cruises before being decommissioned on 15 August 1961. During her three Korean War deployments, the ship earned six battle stars and fired nearly 3,500 rounds of 8-inch and more than 2,300 rounds of 5-inch at communist targets. The Rochester was stricken in October 1973.
The Oregon City (CA-122) on trials in February 1945, with the standard class armament of three triple 8-inch/55- caliber, six twin 5-inch/38-caliber, 48 40-mm (in 11 quadruple and 2 twin mountings), and 28 20-mm (in twin mountings) guns. The Rochester and Albany had their 40-mm and 20-mm batteries replaced by ten twin 3-inch/ 50-caliber antiaircraft mounts during mid-1950s refits. Note that the 40-mm quadruple mounts are unshielded and that the two Mk 34 main-battery directors are higher than the Mk 37 directors for the 5-inch mounts; the ships also carried eight Mk 57 directors (four each for the 5-inch and 40-mm batteries).
The Rochester (CA-124) in 1957 in her final guise, with 3-inch guns. Note that the 3-inch mount at the stem is on a sponson projecting out to starboard abreast the former aircraft crane, used to handle boats. The search radar suite had been upgraded with an AN/SPS-12 air-search set on the foremast and an AN/SPS-8 height- finder atop the mainmast.
The Albany (CG-10, formerly CA-123) as she appeared in 1963 after her four-year reconstruction to missile ship, with twin Talos launchers fore and aft and twin Tartar launchers flanking the towering forward superstructure. Also fitted was an ASROC antisubmarine missile launcher between the “macks” that enveloped the boiler uptakes and supported radar and other antennas; two sets of antisubmarine torpedo tubes and two anachronistic open 5-inch dual- purpose gunmounts also were fitted, but planned vertical tubes for Polaris ballistic missiles were not installed.