USS Harry E . Yarnell ( CG - 17 ) USS " Harry E . Yarnell " ( DLG / CG - 17 ) , a " Leahy " - class guided missile cruiser , was a ship of the United States Navy named in honor of Admiral Harry E . Yarnell ( 1875 – 1959 ) . Originally called a " destroyer leader " or frigate , in 1975 she was redesignated a cruiser in the Navy ' s ship reclassification . She was the second of the " double - end " " Leahy " - class guided missile frigate s to join the fleet . Construction . " Harry E . Yarnell " was launched 9 December 1961 by the Bath Iron Works , Bath , Maine ; sponsored by Mrs . Philip Yarnell , widow of Admiral Yarnell ; and commissioned 2 February 1963 at the Boston Naval Shipyard , Captain Charles E . Nelson in command . History . " Harry E . Yarnell " was equipped with RIM - 2 Terrier surface - to - air missile launching tubes both fore and aft and ASROC anti - submarine missiles , as well as more conventional torpedo tubes and guns . The new ship was fitted out at Boston and received a grim reminder that even in peacetime the sea can be a powerful enemy . While out on trials , " Yarnell " was diverted on 10 April 1963 to search for USS " Thresher " ( SSN - 593 ) , the nuclear submarine later found on the bottom some 8 , 000 feet down . Quartering the area where the sub was last reported , the guided missile frigate found an oil slick and some debris but could not contact the lost submarine . On her way to her new home base , Naval Station Norfolk , on 23 April , " Harry E . Yarnell " passed and photographed several Soviet " merchant " ships . The next few months were spent conducting training for shakedown and missile qualification . Designated to carry out standardization trials for her class as well as special acoustical tests , " Yarnell " spent 28 October – 26 November in the Caribbean operating out of Guantanamo Bay and then returned to Norfolk . " Yarnell " continued operating in the Virginia Capes area and the Caribbean until departing from Norfolk on 8 September 1964 for her first Atlantic crossing . NATO ASW exercises en route took the guided missile frigate far north , and she crossed the Arctic circle on 21 September . She visited Amsterdam en route to the Mediterranean , where she remained until returning to Norfolk in February 1965 . On her next Mediterranean deployment , which began 8 October , she transited the Dardanelles on 3 January 1966 and entered the Black Sea to operate close to the Soviet Union before returning to Norfolk in March . After NATO exercises in the North Atlantic , " Harry E . Yarnell " received the battle efficiency " E " for the preceding year . She also won the 1966 Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award for the Atlantic Fleet . Operations in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean brought the fine ship and her crew to a high degree of readiness before she sailed for her 3rd Mediterranean deployment early in 1967 . She cruised the Mediterranean ready to help snuff out trouble , should it occur in that troubled area , until returning to Norfolk in May . At mid - year she operated in the North Atlantic , honing her fighting edge to prepare for the challenges of the future . The entire " Leahy " class was given an AAW upgrade during the late - 1960s and early 1970s . The 3 / 50s were replaced by 8 RGM - 84 Harpoon missiles , the Terrier launchers were upgraded to fire the Standard missile , and 2 Phalanx CIWS were added . All were upgraded under the late - 1980s NTU program . This included new radars , a new combat system , new fire control systems , and upgraded missiles and missile launchers . In late June 1990 , Rear Admiral Thomas D . Paulson , Commander Cruiser - Destroyer Group Two , led the " Yarnell " and USS Kauffman ( FFG - 59 ) to visit Poland in conjunction with BALTOPS ' 90 , a U . S . Naval Forces Europe - hosted international naval exercise in the Baltic Sea . Their port call at Gdynia represented the first visit by United States Navy vessels to Poland since 1927 . Fate . " Harry E . Yarnell " was decommissioned 20 October 1993 , and stricken 29 October 1993 . She was sold 14 April 1995 for scrapping at Quonset Point , RI , but the scrap contract was terminated 1 December 1996 ( scrapping 10 % complete ) , and the hulk returned to Philadelphia for storage . Scrapping was ultimately completed in April 2002 .