World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe first Juneau of the Atlanta-class light cruisers was designated CL-52 in the United States Navy. She was commissioned three months after the United States entered WW2 with Captain Lyman K. Swenson in command. She had an accelerated shakedown cruise along the Atlantic coast due to the demand of the war and sailed for the Caribbean Sea to patrol off Maritinique and Guadeloupe Islands against Vichy French naval forces in the region. After some time in the North Atlantic, she departed from the Caribbean Sea for the Pacific Theater on 22 Aug 1942. She joined Rear Admiral Leigh Noyes' Task Force 18 on 19 Sep 1942. On 15 Sep, carrier Wasp was hit by three torpedoes from the Japanese submarine I-19, and was scuttled by destroyer Lansdowne at 2100 that evening; Juneau and destroyers rescued the survivors and delivered them to Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides, on 16 Sep. On 17 Sep, she joined Task Force 17 and sailed for Guadalcanal. On 26 Oct, she participated in the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands, where she was a part of the anti-aircraft screen that together downed about 20 Japanese aircraft during the battle; however, the screen was not able to save carrier Hornet, which was badly damaged and sank the next day. Because of the loss of Hornet, Juneau was transferred to the Enterprise group to provide additional anti-aircraft capability just in time for the next round of Japanese air attacks before the battle waned several hours later. On 8 Nov, she sailed from Nouméa, New Caledonia as a unit of Task Force 67 under the command of Rear Admiral Richmond K. Turner to escort transports to Guadalcanal. During the day of 12 Nov, the convoy was attacked by Japanese torpedo bombers, and Juneau, once again as anti-aircraft ship, downed six. That evening, the convoy was engaged in what was later named the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. Cruisers Helena, Portland, and Juneau sailed in a close line into the battle; one of the torpedoes of a spread that aimed at the group of three ships struck Juneau on the port side, disabling her almost at the onset of the battle, rendering her useless. On the next day, she sailed for Espiritu Santo for repairs, but was intercepted by Japanese submarine I-26 and was hit by two torpedoes. She exploded, broke in two, and sank. Helena and San Francisco, both damaged from the previous night's battle, continued on without turning back to rescue Juneau's survivors. More than 100 survivors floated on the open waves, waiting for rescue that would not arrive for another eight days; by then, only 10 remain. Captain Swenson also died while waiting for the rescuers.

ww2dbaseThe second Juneau of the Altanta-class was launched during the war (15 Jul 1945) but WW2 ended before she was completed and commissioned; she was designated CL-119 in the US Navy.

Light Cruiser Juneau (CL-52) Interactive Map

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Juneau Operational Timeline

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