USS Salem (CA-139) (Quincy, Massachusetts)

 museum, military, navy, cruiser, warship, museum ship

Laid down at the Fore River Shipyard on July 4th, 1945, USS Salem is a former US Navy Heavy Cruiser and is the second member of the Des Moines Class. She holds the historic honors of being both the last totally gun-armed Heavy Cruiser to enter commission in the world, and upon the scrapping of her sister the USS Des Moines in 2006, she became the only remaining Heavy Cruiser in the world.

The Salem commissioned into US Navy service on May 14, 1949 as a member of the US Atlantic Fleet, but was later assigned to serve as the Flagship of the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean, based out of Villefranche-sur-Mer. She would share these duties with her sistership USS Des Moines (CA-134) and fellow Heavy Cruiser USS Newport News (CA-148) for the entire duration of her active service life, which lasted until 1959.

USS Salem was decommissioned from US Navy service on January 30th, 1959 and entered the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility (NIMSF) at the Philadelphia Navy Yard where she remained in reserve for over 35 years. Stricken from the Navy List in 1991 she was saved from the scrappers torch and was officially donated to the city of Quincy in 1994 for use as a museum ship.

USS Salem returned to her birthplace at the Fore River Shipyard in October 1994 and began to undergo refurbishment back to her operational appearance. She officially 'recommissioned' on May 15th, 1995 and now serves as a museum ship and part of the United States Naval and Shipbuilding Museum. As the last surviving Heavy Cruiser, USS Salem also houses the USS Newport News Museum, The US Navy Cruiser Sailors Association Museum and the US Navy Seals Exhibit room as well.
Currently the ship is closed to visitors due to dangerous conditions on the pier were she is presently moored. In 2015 it's anticipated that she will relocate to a new pier in East Boston.

www.uss-salem.org/
www.navsource.org/archives/04/139/04139.htm