USS Charleston ( C - 22 ) The third USS " Charleston " ( C - 22 ) ( later CA - 19 ) was a United States Navy " St . Louis " - class protected cruiser . She was launched 23 January 1904 by Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co . , Newport News , Virginia , sponsored by Miss H . Rhett , and commissioned 17 October 1905 , Captain Cameron McRae Winslow in command . She was reclassified CA - 19 on 17 July 1920 . Service history . Pre - war . " Charleston " cruised to South American ports in the summer of 1906 with Secretary of State Elihu Root on board for good - will visits , and after disembarking the official party at Panama in September , returned to the west coast for overhaul . She cleared San Francisco 6 December 1906 to begin service with the Pacific Squadron , sailing along the west coast from Magdalena Bay , Mexico , to Esquimalt , British Columbia , on exercises and fleet maneuvers until 10 June 1908 , when she entered the Puget Sound Navy Yard to prepare for the long passage to the Asiatic Station . During this time , " Charleston " stopped in Portland , Oregon in June 1907 for the annual Portland Rose Festival . " Charleston " was the first US Navy ship to attend the event , a tradition the Navy continues participate in to this day . Leaving Puget Sound 28 October 1908 , " Charleston " served in the Far East until 11 September 1910 , first as flagship of 3rd Squadron , Pacific Fleet , and later , as flagship of the Asiatic Fleet . Based on Cavite , Philippines in the winter , the Fleet moved north each summer to Chefoo , China , to continue exercises and visits to ports of China , Japan , Manchuria , and Russia , presenting a powerful reminder of American interest in the Far East . Returning to Bremerton , Washington , " Charleston " was decommissioned 8 October 1910 at Puget Sound Navy Yard . Placed in commission in reserve 14 September 1912 , " Charleston " joined the Pacific Reserve Fleet , remaining at Puget Sound Navy Yard as a receiving ship through early 1916 , aside from a voyage to San Francisco in October 1913 as flagship for the Commander - in - Chief , Pacific Reserve Fleet . From 1912 through early 1916 , she was receiving ship at the yard . With a new assignment as tender for the submarine s based in the Panama Canal Zone , " Charleston " arrived at Cristobal , C . Z . , 7 May 1916 , for a year of operations with submarines , reconnaissance of anchorages , and gunnery exercises . World War I . On the day of America ' s entry into World War I , 6 April 1917 , " Charleston " was placed in full commission , and early in May reported for duty with the Patrol Force in the Caribbean . Based on St . Thomas , U . S . Virgin Islands , she patrolled for commerce raiders through the month of May , then sailed north carrying Marines from Haiti to Philadelphia . Here she readied to join the escort of the convoy carrying the first troops of the American Expeditionary Force to France , which cleared New York 14 June 1917 , made St . Nazaire , France , after a safe passage through submarine waters 28 June , and returned to New York 19 July . After training naval volunteers and reserves for 2 weeks at Newport , " Charleston " cleared 16 August for Havana , Cuba , where she supervised the sailing in tow of several former German ships to New Orleans . She next escorted a convoy from Cristobal to Bermuda , where she rendezvoused with a group of British transports , guarding their passage to Hampton Roads . In September and October 1918 , she made two convoy escort voyages to Nova Scotia , then joined the Cruiser and Transport Force , with which she made five voyages to France carrying occupation troops overseas and returning with combat veterans . Decommissioning and fate . " Charleston " sailed from Philadelphia for the west coast 23 July 1919 , reaching Bremerton 24 August . Here she was placed in reduced commission until late in 1920 , when she arrived in San Diego to serve as administrative flagship for Commander , Destroyer Squadrons , Pacific Fleet . She served on this duty until 4 June 1923 , when she sailed for Puget Sound Navy Yard and decommissioning on 4 December 1923 . She was sold 6 March 1930 . " Charleston " was stripped down to the waterline and then sold to the Powell River Company , Ltd . On 25 October 1930 , the ship was towed to Powell River , British Columbia , Canada , to serve as a floating breakwater for a large logging mill . The hulk was ballasted , anchored and periodically pumped out to keep her afloat . The following year , she was joined by the hull of the cruiser USS Huron ( formerly USS South Dakota ) . In 1961 , heavy weather caused the " Charleston " to partially flood , and her hull was towed to Kelsey Bay , on the north coast of Vancouver Island . The hulk was run ashore to serve as a breakwater , where she can be seen to this day .