USS Cleveland ( CL - 55 ) " Cleveland " was commissioned in June 1942 , and saw extensive service in the war , in both the Mediterranean and Pacific theaters . Like almost all of her sister ships , she was decommissioned shortly after the end of the war , and never saw active service again . " Cleveland " was scrapped in the early 1960s . Construction and Commissioning . On 1 November 1941 , Hull No . 423 was launched and christened USS " Cleveland " ( CL - 55 ) . Built by New York Shipbuilding Corporation of Camden , New Jersey , and sponsored by Mrs . H . Burton , " Cleveland " was commissioned on 15 June 1942 with Captain E . W . Burrough in command . Service history . Clearing Norfolk ' s Chesapeake Bay on 10 October 1942 , " Cleveland " joined a task force off Bermuda ( on 29 October ) bound for the invasion of North Africa – the first new class of ship to enter World War II . Her firepower supported the landings at Fedhala , French Morocco on 8 November , and she remained on patrol until 12 November , returning to Norfolk on 24 November . " Cleveland " sailed for the Pacific on 5 December 1942 , and arrived at Efate Island on 16 January . Her first mission in the consolidation of the Solomon Islands was with Task Force 18 ( TF 18 ) to guard a troop convoy to Guadalcanal from 27 to 31 January , " Cleveland " fired on the enemy as she came under heavy air attack in the Battle of Rennell Island on the 29th - 30th . Joining TF 68 , " Cleveland " steamed up " the Slot " on 6 March 1943 to bombard Japanese airfields at Vila on Kolombangara , then joined in the night action which sank and in the battle of Blackett Strait . Command of " Cleveland " passed to Captain Andrew G . Shepard in June . Still with TF 68 , " Merrill ' s Marauders " , " Cleveland " fired in the bombardment of the Shortland Islands on 30 June and provided gun support for the invasion landings at Munda , New Georgia on 12 July . Following a short repair period at Sydney , Australia , " Cleveland " sailed for the preinvasion bombardment of the Treasury Islands on 26 – 27 October . Her task force steamed to blast Buka Island and Bonis on 1 November in support of the troops invading Bougainville , dashed south the same day to neutralize bases in the Shortlands , and that night intercepted a Japanese force in the Battle of Empress Augusta Bay which was to win her a Navy Unit Commendation . " Cleveland " poured her radar - controlled fire into the four Japanese cruisers for over an hour , aiding in sinking " Sendai " , then chased the fleeing ships until daybreak . An air attack followed and one stick of bombs severely rocked " Cleveland " , who answered by splashing several of the enemy planes . She returned to Buka for another bombardment on 23 December , then patrolled between Truk and Green Island , Papua New Guinea from 13 to 18 February 1944 while American forces captured the latter . After supporting the capture of Emirau Island from 17 to 23 March , " Cleveland " sailed for replenishment and repairs at Sydney , Australia , then returned to the Solomons on 21 April to prepare for the Marianas operation . One practice bombardment on 20 May brought return fire unexpectedly which straddled the ship , but unharmed , she quickly silenced the shore batteries . From 8 June to 12 August , " Cleveland " participated in the Marianas operation . On 24 July , during the invasion of Tinian , " Cleveland " came to the aid of . " Norman Scott " was hit six times within a few seconds by shore batteries . " Cleveland " maneuvered between " Norman Scott " and the shore batteries , preventing her from taking any more hits . She conducted softening - up bombardments and then gave fire support for invading troops until she joined TF 58 for the Battle of the Philippine Sea on 19 – 20 June . Although few enemy aircraft penetrated the screen of American carrier planes , " Cleveland " was credited with splashing at least one enemy aircraft and assisting in downing another of the few which did get through . From 12 to 29 September , " Cleveland " participated in the invasion of the Palaus , then sailed from Manus Island on 5 October for a stateside overhaul . She arrived in Subic Bay on 9 February 1945 , and sailed on to bombard Corregidor on 13 – 14 February , effectively neutralizing the fortress before the landings there . Continuing to support the consolidation of the Philippines , she covered the landings at Puerto Princesa , the Visayas , Panay , and the Malabang - Parang area on Mindanao . " Cleveland " put out from Subic Bay on 7 June to act as part of the covering force and provide fire support for the invasion landings at Brunei Bay , Borneo on 10 June . She returned to Subic Bay on 15 June , then sailed to Manila to embark General of the Army Douglas MacArthur and his staff as observers of the assault on Balikpapan . Arriving on 30 June , she fired in a pre - landing bombardment the next morning , and after General MacArthur had made an inspection tour of the landing area , got underway for Manila , arriving on 3 July . With a new cruiser task force , " Cleveland " sailed on 13 July to Okinawa , arriving on 16 July . From this base the force made a series of sweeps against Japanese shipping until 7 August to insure Allied control of the East China Sea . " Cleveland " got underway from Okinawa on 9 September to support the occupation of Japan by covering the evacuation of Allied prisoners of war from Wakayama , then serving as part of a naval occupation group until the 6th Army made its landings on Honshū . After a short stay in Tokyo Bay ( 28 October – 1 November ) , " Cleveland " sailed for Pearl Harbor , San Diego , the Panama Canal , and Boston , arriving on 5 December for overhaul . She operated out of Newport on various training exercises , including a Naval Reserve training cruise to Bermuda in April 1946 and Halifax , Nova Scotia , and Quebec in June 1946 , before reporting to Philadelphia for inactivation . " Cleveland " was placed out of commission in reserve there on 7 February 1947 , until sold for scrap , 18 February 1960 . Awards . In addition to her Navy Unit Commendation , " Cleveland " received 13 battle star s for World War II service .