Starboard quarter view while on sea-trials prior to her commissioning.

U.S. Navy photo.

Starboard side view while underway date and location unknown.

U.S. Navy photo.

Port side view, Barcelona Harbor, date unknown.

Photo by Galilea.

Port quarter photo while underway, Barcelona Harbor, date unknown.

Photo by Galilea.

The USS Des Moines (CA 134) is anchored in the Grand Harbor at Malta on 18 October 1949. The destroyer HMS Amethyst (F 116) is arriving, after being trapped for three months in China, after being fired on by the People's Liberation Army. The ship had been making her way from Nanking to Shanghai on the Yangtze River and the encounter became known as the 'Amethyst Incident'.

Imperial War Museum Admiralty Official Collection, by Gordon (Mr.), Photo #A 31585. ?© IWM

Royal Couple Visits U.S. Cruiser. British Royal Highness, Princess Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh visited on board the heavy cruiser USS Des Moines (CA 134) for an official call on the Commander of the Sixth Task Fleet, Vice Admiral John J. Ballentine, USN, at the Valeneta, Malta, after the ship completed extensive training exercises at sea, 3 January 1950.

U. S. Navy photograph #707434

View of the Royal Navy anchorage at Grand Harbour, Malta circa 1951. Vessels at anchor include Colossus class light fleet carrier HMS Warrior (R 31) (foreground), United States Navy cruiser USS Des Moines (CA 134) (middle) and Fiji class cruiser HMS Gambia (48) (background).

Imperial War Museum Admiralty Official Collection, Photo #?© IWM (A 32043)

Maltese lighter men ply their trade at Grand Harbour, Malta circa 1951. HMS Warrior (R 31), USS Des Moines (CA 134) and HMS Gambia (48) lie at anchor in the background.

Imperial War Museum Admiralty Official Collection, Photo #?© IWM (A 32044)

Port bow view, late 1950's, location unknown.

U.S. Navy photo

Port bow view, late 1950's, location unknown.

U.S. Navy photo

Moored in Lisbon, Portugal on 3 October 1952. By all the crew on deck in blues and the people on the pier, it appears that she has just arrived in port. The USS Des Moines (CA 134) moored forward of Baltimore.

US Navy photo #448992

(Thanks to Ken Killmeyer, USS Forrestal Association historian).

Photo caption:

(NY2-June 30) DRY RUN--A bosun's chair provides a calm trip over rough seas for crew members during a transfer operation between Sixth Fleet warships in the Mediterranean. The airborne passengers rode from the cruiser USS Salem, background, to the USS Des Moines shortly;y before the Salem left for home after serving as the Sixth Fleet's flagship for most of the last eight years. (APWirephoto) (JDC20700LN) 58

Taken during the July 1959 Villefranche in-port period, with the Ship at Full Dress for the 4th and 14th!! As a side note, the Ship is moored at Buoy #1 in 100 fathoms of water - the deepest natural harbor in the Med. It was a good mile into the Fleet Landing at the quai right in the middle of Villefranche, right in front of Mom Germaine's Restaurant. (I read a story in the July '59 issue of Reader's Digest about her and as I was awaiting orders, thought it would be nice to be assigned to a place like that!! (A Ship had not been mentioned in the article.) Three weeks later I received orders to the USS DES MOINES and picked her up at Cadiz, Spain, across the bay from Rota. Four weeks later after Gibraltar, Lisbon, and Barcelona, we pull into Villefranche and there is Mom Germaine', and I was on boat crew!!!!! [Boat Crews and SP's had free run of Mom's from 2300 to 2400, or till the food ran out!!]

U.S. Navy Photo

The crew practice manning the rail on 30 November 1959 for an upcoming visit by President Eisenhower. Note that there are men even on top of the Gun Directors.

U.S. Navy Photo

President Eisenhower arrives aboard, 15 December 1959 at 1259 while anchored off Piraeus Greece (seaport of Athens). The Sideboys' OinC is Ens. Pat Dillon, and I am the second Sideboy on the left side (Ship's Starboard - Ike's right) from the camera. Ike's arrival for five days aboard of R&R - right!!!! Only that afternoon and the third day. The morning of the 16th saw an Air Show unknown to Sixth Fleet Sailors - lots of tax dollars landed in the Med that morning. Three hours of constant bombing runs, strafing runs, and sidewinder air-to-air demo (including some wild flying to escape missile lock-on)!! At 1300 hrs a four hour Allied/Nato Passing Ship Review commenced. On Day 3 the Ship anchored off of Tunis, Tunisia for Ike to attend a two hour conference with that Country's Head of State. Day four saw Putt-Putt Golf and Skeet Shooting on the Fantail, with very limited Officer participation only! Day 5 the Ship arrived at Toulon France at 1000 hrs and Charles DeGaulle arrived aboard at 1100 hrs. DeGaulle and Ike departed at approximately 1500 hrs, and the departed bound for Villefranche (ETA "0755" the next morning!). The weather all five days was mirror calm to just a 'twinkle' on the water!! Overnight out of Toulon we hit a Gulf du Lyons storm and took a 28 degree roll - that's huge for a CA!! We also lost two vehicles overboard and had lots of broken windows in the remaining ones!! (All the Flag vehicles had been driven back to Villefranche where as the Ship's vehicles were aboard prior to departing Toulon.)

U.S. Navy Photo

86k

USS Salem (CA 139) with the USS Des Moines (CA-134) moored to her port side at the Philadelphia Navy Yard Reserve Basin circa 1995.

Library of Congress, HAER PA,51-PHILA,709W—3

Grasp (T-ARS 51) tows Ex-Des Moines (CA 134) up the Brownsville ship channel en route to the ESCO scrapping yard, at Brownsville, TX., circa 2006.

Photo ©Michael Martin, Brownsville, TX., 2006.