The USS Quincy (CA-39) was a New Orleans-class heavy cruiser of the United States Navy, constructed by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation's Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, Massachusetts. Laid down on November 15, 1933, and launched on June 19, 1935, she was commissioned on June 9, 1936, under the command of Captain William Faulkner Amsden. As a New Orleans-class cruiser, Quincy was built to the standards of the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922, with a standard displacement of approximately 10,000 tons and armed with 8-inch main guns. She was initially classified as a light cruiser but was reclassified as a heavy cruiser due to her armament. Quincy's early service included deployment to the Mediterranean in 1936, where she participated in protecting American interests during the Spanish Civil War, evacuating refugees, and operating alongside international rescue fleets. She then transitioned to the Pacific Fleet, arriving at Pearl Harbor in 1937, and engaged in fleet exercises and battle practice in the Hawaiian Islands. After a series of maneuvers and overhauls at Mare Island Navy Yard, she returned to the Atlantic in early 1939, conducting patrols, goodwill tours along South America, and training cruises amid the growing tensions of World War II. In 1941, Quincy operated in the Atlantic, participating in neutrality patrols, convoy escort missions, and neutrality patrols around Iceland and the Denmark Straits. She was part of the force involved in the early Pacific campaigns, including the invasion of Guadalcanal in August 1942. During the Battle of Savo Island on August 9, 1942, Quincy was heavily engaged by a Japanese naval force. She was hit by multiple shells and torpedoes, resulting in severe damage, with a large loss of life—370 sailors killed and 167 wounded. The cruiser sank at 02:38, bow first, becoming the first ship to be lost in the area later known as Ironbottom Sound. Her wreck was discovered in 1992 at a depth of roughly 2,000 feet, remarkably upright, though heavily damaged with missing bow sections, damaged superstructure, and bent stern. Quincy earned one battle star for her service in World War II, marking her as a notable yet tragic vessel in naval history.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.