USS St. Louis (CL-49)

USS St. Louis (CL-49): Ran the Gauntlet at Pearl Harbor

Commissioned on 19 May 1939, USS St. Louis was a Brooklyn-class light cruiser that began the Pacific War with one of the most dramatic escapes of 7 December 1941. She was in Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked, and she was one of only two cruisers to get underway and clear the harbor entrance during the raid, an act that required running directly through the attacking aircraft and avoiding the very waters the Japanese were trying to make impassable.

As St. Louis raced for the harbor entrance under fire, two Japanese midget submarines attempted to block her path. Her crew spotted the torpedo wakes in time to evade, and she cleared the entrance with gunfire. Once clear, she joined the patrol forces searching for the Japanese fleet, finding nothing, as the strike force had already withdrawn north. But her crew had fought their way out of Pearl Harbor on the worst day in American naval history, and they never forgot it.

Through 1942 and 1943, St. Louis became one of the most active cruisers in the South Pacific. She participated in the Guadalcanal campaign extensively, conducting shore bombardments of Japanese positions, engaging in surface engagements in The Slot, and supporting the Marines and soldiers fighting to hold and expand the American beachhead. Her sustained operations in the Solomons earned her a reputation for hard work and reliability that put her in the thick of every major naval operation in the theater.

She was struck by a Japanese torpedo at the Battle of Kolombangara in July 1943, suffering damage that required repairs, but returned to the fight in time for the Leyte Gulf campaign and the final operations of the Philippine campaign. Eleven battle stars for World War II service.

After the war, St. Louis was sold to Brazil, serving as the Almirante Tamandaré until 1976. Tactically Acquired's USS St. Louis (CL-49) collection honors the crew that ran the gauntlet at Pearl Harbor and kept fighting for four more years across eleven engagements.