This is a Baltimore-class heavy cruiser, which is a type of heavy cruiser used by the United States Navy during and after World War II. The third USS Los Angeles (CA-135) was laid down at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on July 28, 1943, and launched on August 20, 1944. Learn more about its past and secrets at la-future.com.
Command
The third USS Los Angeles (CA-135) was commissioned under the command of John A. Snackenberg, who was 45 at the time. On July 22, 1945, the official commissioning ceremony was held.
The George D. McDowell Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Collection photographs show Captain John A. Snackenberg in the center, and Mrs. Fletcher Bowron, who was the wife of the former mayor of Los Angeles, to his left. On January 31, 1946, 46-year-old James B. Carter took over as captain.
The cruiser had 18 captains throughout its existence, the last of whom was Philip H. Klepak (63 years old), who was inducted into the Lone Sailor memorial list. The captain died in Florida on April 25, 2015.
The Lone Sailor is an iconic symbol of the Navy Memorial mission, which honors, recognizes and celebrates the men and women of the Sea Service from the past, present and future. Another purpose is to educate the public about this matter.
History of the cruiser and unsolved mysteries
It can be divided into several time periods: years of change (1944-1948), years of action (1951-1953) and years of deployment and combat operations (1953-1963). It is worth noting that the Baltimore-class heavy cruiser was awarded 5 battle stars for its service during the Korean conflict.
Furthermore, the cruiser holds many secrets and contradictions that we would like to reveal. The most notable mysteries of the third USS Los Angeles (CA-135) include:
- disappearance of part of the crew while crossing the Pacific Ocean. Since the bodies of the missing were not found, the circumstances for their disappearance are unknown. There are numerous versions of what happened, the most popular being a storm in which they could have fallen overboard.
- some crew members claimed to have seen ghosts aboard the ship. Usually, it was the ghost of a young sailor.
- there were widespread beliefs that the cruiser was cursed because it was involved in multiple accidents throughout its existence (including collisions with other ships and people deaths).
- another mystery involves a lost treasure. Some believed that the cruiser was carrying treasures, but they were never discovered.
These theories have not been confirmed, but are based on eyewitness accounts or widespread myths. Such stories capture the imagination of people.
Further fate
On November 15, 1963, the third USS Los Angeles (CA-135) was decommissioned at Long Beach and transferred to the Pacific Reserve Fleet in San Diego. Initially, there was an idea of converting it into a single-end Talos missile cruiser with flagship facilities, but funds were never allocated.
The heavy cruiser was wrecked on January 1, 1974, and sold to the National Steel Corporation on May 16, 1975, for $1,864,380.21. It was eventually scrapped at San Pedro, California.
Only the bow section of the legendary USS Los Angeles (CA-135) was preserved, which measures 2.4 meters. It can be viewed at the Los Angeles Maritime Museum in San Pedro, California. It’s also worth noting that the museum displays other ship artifacts, such as a ship’s bell, an airbridge and other memorabilia of sailors.
