USS BOSTON
GENERAL:
The USS BOSTON was a Cruiser of the ATLANTA class, the first "modern" United States Navy ships. Long overdue when ordered, these vessels were obsolete upon completion.
BACKGROUND:
USS BOSTON was assigned to the United States Asiatic Squadron under Admiral Dewey. She took part in the battle of Manila Bay on May 1, 1898, and the capture of the city of Manila on August 13th. The cruiser remained in the Philippines, assisting in their pacification, until June 1899. BOSTON returned to San Francisco in August, 1899 and went out of commission, rejoining the Pacific Squadron in 1902. In June, 1905 she helped represent the Navy at the Lewis and Clark Exposition at Portland, Oregon, and between April 23 and May10, 1906 she helped care for the victims of the San Francisco earthquake and fire. As a militia training vessel and receiving ship she survived until 1946.
TECHNOTES:
| Classification: |
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Protected Cruiser |
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| Laid Down: |
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November 15, 1883 |
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| Launched: |
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December 4, 1884 |
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| Commissioned: |
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May 2, 1887 |
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| Armament: |
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Two 8" guns |
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|
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Six 6" guns |
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|
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Two 6 pounders |
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|
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Two 1 pounders |
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|
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Two 47mm |
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|
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Two 37mm |
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|
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Two Gatling Guns |
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| Contractor: |
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John Roach and Sons, Chester, Pa. |
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| Length: |
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283 feet |
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| Beam: |
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42.1 feet |
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| Draught: |
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16.83 feet |
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| Displacement: |
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3189 Tons |
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| Compliment: |
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269 Officers and Enlisted Men. |
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| Engine Type: |
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Horizontal Compound engines, 3,500 hp. 1 shaft. |
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| Boiler type: |
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8100 psi boilers |
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| Speed: |
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15.6 knots |
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| Armor: |
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1.5" deck, 2" barbettes, 2" casamate. |
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Sources used for this information (see Bibliography for full source list)
Naval History Department, Navy Department, "Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships", Washington DC: Government Printing Office, 1959.
