USS Houston (CA-30)

USS Houston (CA 30), off San Diego, California, in October 1935, with President Franklin D. Roosevelt on board. She is flying an admiral's four-star flag at her foremast peak, and the Presidential flag at her mainmast peak.
History
United States
Name:	Houston
Namesake:	City of Houston, Texas
Ordered:	18 December 1924
Awarded:	13 June 1927
Builder:	Newport News Shipbuilding, Newport News, Virginia
Cost:	$10,567,000 (contract price)
Laid down:	1 May 1928
Launched:	7 September 1929
Sponsored by:	Miss Elizabeth Holcombe
Commissioned:	17 June 1930
Reclassified:	CA-30, 1 July 1931
Identification:	Hull symbol:CL-30 Hull symbol:CA-30 Code letters:NIQF
Nickname(s):	"Galloping Ghost of the Java Coast"
Honors and awards:	2 × battle stars 1 × Presidential Unit Citation
Fate:	Sunk in the Battle of Sunda Strait, 1 March 1942
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type:	Northampton-class cruiser
Displacement:	9,050 long tons (9,200 t) (standard)
Length:	600 ft 3 in (182.96 m) oa 569 ft (173 m) pp
Beam:	66 ft 1 in (20.14 m)
Draft:	16 ft 4 in (4.98 m) (mean) 23 ft (7.0 m) (max)
Installed power:	8 × White-Forster boilers 107,000 shp (80,000 kW)
Propulsion:	4 × Parsons reduction steam turbines, Curtis cruising gears 4 × screws
Speed:	32.7 kn (37.6 mph; 60.6 km/h)
Range:	10,000 nmi (12,000 mi; 19,000 km) at 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h)
Capacity:	1,500 short tons (1,400 t) fuel oil
Complement:	109 officers 676 enlisted
Armament:	9 × 8 in (203 mm)/55 caliber guns (3x3) 4 × 5 in (127 mm)/25 caliber anti-aircraft guns 2 × 3-pounder47 mm (1.9 in) saluting guns 6 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes
Armor:	Belt: 3–3 3⁄4 in (76–95 mm) Deck: 1–2 in (25–51 mm) Barbettes: 1 1⁄2 in (38 mm) Turrets: 3⁄4–2 1⁄2 in (19–64 mm) Conning Tower: 1 1⁄4 in (32 mm)
Aircraft carried:	4 × SOC Seagull scout-observation floatplanes
Aviation facilities:	2 × Amidship catapults
General characteristics (1942)
Armament:	9 × 8 in (203 mm)/55 caliber guns (3x3) 4 × 5 in (127 mm)/25 caliber anti-aircraft guns 2 × 3-pounder47 mm (1.9 in) saluting guns 6 × quad 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors guns 20 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon cannons

USS Houston (CL/CA-30), was a Northampton-class cruiser of the United States Navy. She was the second Navy ship to bear the name "Houston".

She was launched by Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, Newport News, Virginia on 7 September 1929, sponsored by Elizabeth Holcombe (daughter of Oscar Holcombe, then-mayor of Houston, Texas), and commissioned on 17 June 1930, Captain Jesse Bishop Gay commanding.

The ship was originally classified as a light cruiser (hull number CL-30) because of her thin armor. Houston was redesignated a heavy cruiser (CA-30) on 1 July 1931, as the provisions of the 1930 London Naval Treaty considered ships with 8-inch main guns to be heavy cruisers.

After conducting a shakedown cruise in the Atlantic, Houston returned to the United States in October 1930. She then visited her namesake city, and joined the fleet at Hampton Roads. Steaming to New York, the cruiser departed on 10 January 1931 for the Pacific, and after stopping at the Panama Canal and the Hawaiian Islands, arrived Manila on 22 February. Houston became flagship of the Asiatic Fleet upon arrival, and for the next year participated in training operations in the Far East.

With the outbreak of war between China and Japan in 1931, Houston got underway on 31 January for Shanghai to protect American interests. She landed Marine and Navy gun platoons to help stabilize the situation and remained in the area, with the exception of a good will cruise to the Philippines in March and one to Japan in May 1933, until being relieved by Augusta on 17 November 1933. The cruiser sailed to San Francisco to join the Scouting Force, and for the years preceding World War II participated in Fleet Problems and maneuvers in the Pacific.