The Memorial. This monumental public artwork provides long overdue commemoration of the distinguished service of the cruiser USS San Diego and her crew, serving as a perpetual reminder of their selfless contribution to victory in World War II. The memorial is an original artwork designed by noted sculptors Eugene Daub and Louis Quaintance for the USS San Diego (CL-53) Memorial Association, which has donated it to the Port District for the benefit of the people of San Diego. The memorial's complimentary components serve to remember, inform, illustrate and inspire.
The monument's soaring 28-foot tall central element, which resembles a ship's bow, forms an angular and uplifting profile that has become a distinctive landmark on the San Diego waterfront. Four adjoining walls of polished carnelian granite and composite terra cotta are arranged in a roughly V-shaped footprint, which encloses two sides of a small plaza. The third side is open towards the bay, and draws people into the monument from the adjacent pedestrian promenade
The floor of the monument features a large, colored terrazzo map of the western Pacific and the Asian and Australian coastlines, which proscribe the theater of operations in which the ship served during World War II. Superimposed on this map is a representation in brass strips of the ship's steaming track from this period. Locations and names of battles and engagements are marked with brass stars.
Inscriptions on the inner panels contain historical details and a summary of the San Diego's accomplishments including a list of major operations and battles she participated in between 1942 and 1945, from Guadalcanal to Tokyo Bay. Campaigns for which battle stars were earned are so indicated, correlating to the brass stars on the map. The names of all who served at any time on board the ship during the war are engraved upon the two polished granite panels at left.
Closeup of crew member sculpture. A life-size bronze sculpture is the humanizing and central focal point of the memorial. It represents all the crew men who served on the USS San Diego and is emblematic of all U.S. sailors who served their country during World War II. The sailor sculpture stands with its back to the terracotta wall overlooking the magnificent map of the Pacific Theater. The figure is portrayed in an informal pose, in relaxed battle dress, perhaps after a major action or long hours on watch or at general quarters. The sailor appears weary and exhausted, but undaunted and resolute. Its eyes focus on the distant Pacific horizon, beyond which the valiant battles of long ago were fought and won.
The Ship. The USS San Diego (CL-53) was christened at launching on July 26, 1941, by Grace Benbough, wife of the mayor of the ship's namesake city. Commissioned into service six months later--just a month after the Pearl Harbor attack--the San Diego soon joined the Pacific Fleet with which she served nearly continuously throughout World War II.
The San Diego was a light cruiser--one of four of the Atlanta class--and the only one of her sisters to survive the war unscathed. Ships of this class could steam at over 30 knots and carried a main armament of sixteen 5-inch guns, which enabled them to provide formidable anti-aircraft defense for the fast carrier task forces that spearheaded the naval offensive in the Pacific.
A fortunate and well-run ship, always ready for action, the San Diego steamed over 300,000 nautical miles, engaged the enemy on 34 different occasions, and never lost a man. She earned 18 battle stars for her World War II service, more than any other ship except the famous carrier Enterprise (CV-6).
In recognition of her battle record and her long, reliable and steady service--from the darkest days of the war to the final victory, from Guadalcanal to the coast of Japan--Admiral William F. Halsey designated the San Diego to be the first allied warship to enter Tokyo Bay at the war's end.
Returning after the war to the city for which she was named, the San Diego received a tumultuous welcome and was the center of jubilant Navy Day celebrations. Barely a year later, a brief but action-filled career came to a close when she was decommissioned in November 1946.
USS San Diego in Tokyo Bay. USS San Diego (left) in Tokyo Bay: arriving to take possession of the Yokusuka Naval Base, August 27, 1945--the first major U.S. warship to enter the home port of the Japanese Empire at the close of World War II.
San Diego Connections. Beyond the namesake relationship, the San Diego has other connections to this city. While President Franklin D. Roosevelt was in San Diego to dedicate the new County Administration building in 1937, then Mayor Percy Benbough asked him if one of the ships in the new naval appropriations program could be named after this city. In due course, this was done, and the keel for the new USS San Diego was laid on May 15, 1940. On July 26th of the following year Mrs. Grace Benbough, wife of the mayor, performed the traditional christening of the San Diego at its launching in Quincy, Massachusetts.
After commissioning and shakedown, the new cruiser operated out of San Diego for six weeks of work up training before steaming forth to combat duty in the Pacific. Many of the crew developed during this period a warm and lasting attachment and affection for the city, with many of them settling here and raising families after the war.
The San Diego returned to her namesake city for the last time on Navy Day, October 27, 1945, when she and her crew were given a welcome befitting returning war heroes including the keys to the city, a victory parade, banquets for the crew and more.
The Sponsor. The USS San Diego (CL-53) Memorial Association, Inc., a nonprofit 501(3)c organization, was formed with the specific goal of erecting a permanent memorial on the waterfront of San Diego to honor the valiant and remarkable service of the cruiser USS San Diego and the men who served aboard it during World War II. The Association, consisting of former crew members and other civic-minded individuals, spearheaded the drive to raise public awareness and to acquire over $1.4 million from private, corporate and institutional donors to build the memorial on a waterfront site dedicated by the Port of San Diego. The result of their dedicated and self-less efforts is a beautiful, stately sculpture that complements the existing architectural and natural elements of bayside site and conveys an inspiring and important story that deserves to be told and preserved for posterity.
The Site. The USS San Diego (CL-53) Memorial is located at Harbor Drive and the G Street Mole, one block south of Broadway, and is in close proximity to other naval related monuments in the area including the “Homecoming” sculpture, the “Aircraft Carrier Memorial” and the “Battle of Leyte Gulf” monument. In addition, the retired aircraft carrier USS Midway (CV-41) is permanently berthed as a museum at the south side of Navy Pier, which is less than a block away.
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