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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER
805 KIDDER BREESE SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060
Online Library of Selected Images:
-- U.S. NAVY SHIPS --
USS Little Rock (CLG-4, later CG-4. Previously CL-92),
1945-1977
-- Views taken in 1960-1963
The light cruiser USS Little Rock
(CL-92), laid up in reserve since June 1949, was redesignated
CLG-4 in May 1957, some months after beginning conversion to a
guided missile light cruiser at the Camden, New Jersey, shipyard
of the New York Shipbuilding Corporation. When recommissioned
in June 1960, the ship had been significantly transformed. She
now had huge superstructures forward and aft of her two smokestacks,
the forward one housing command spaces that gave the cruiser a
new mission as a fleet flagship. The after superstructure held
magazines and handling rooms for long-range "Talos"
guided missiles, whose twin-armed launcher dominated Little
Rock's after deck. Only one triple six-inch gun turret and
one twin five-inch gun mount remained of her original battery
of four and six of each. Topsides, two tall lattice masts and
the after superstructure were topped by an elaborate array of
radars to detect and track enemy aircraft and guide "Talos"
missiles to intercept them.
The much-modified Little Rock spent the rest of 1960
shaking down, testing her new systems and training her crew in
their operation. After a brief shipyard overhaul and more training,
she deployed to the Mediterranean in February 1961 to serve as
flagship of the Sixth Fleet. Returning to the U.S. in September
1961, Little Rock operated off the politically unstable
Dominican Republic later in the year. She regularly cruised in
the Mediterranean into the mid-1960s, as well as taking part in
exercises off the U.S. East Coast, in northern European waters
and in the Caribbean. The ship also received updated radars and
other electronic equipment during this time, as well as in later
overhauls.
In January 1967 Little Rock returned to the Mediterranean
for a long deployment as Sixth Fleet flagship. Homeported at Gaeta,
Italy, she remained in the region until August 1970, a time notable
for the brief, intense June 1967 war between Israel and several
Arab Nations, and for increasing Soviet naval activity in the
area. The ship made another Mediterranean cruise from December
1971 to April 1972, then served as Second Fleet flagship in the
Atlantic for much of 1972-1973. Little Rock arrived back
in the "Med" in mid-1973, becoming flagship of the Sixth
Fleet in time for another Arab-Israeli war that October. She retained
the command ship role for four years before steaming home in September
1976. USS Little Rock was decommissioned in November of
that year and promptly stricken from the Naval Vessel Register.
In June 1977 she was donated to the city of Buffalo, New York,
where she is still serving as a memorial and museum.
This page features nearly all the views we have related
to USS Little Rock (CLG-4) between 1960 and 1963, and provides
links to other images concerning the ship.
For more images related to this ship, see:
USS Little Rock (CL-92);
USS Little Rock (CLG-4, later
CG-4) -- Post-1963 Views. USS
Little Rock (CLG-4, later CG-4) -- Views on Board Ship;
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
At the Reopening of the Suez Canal, 5 June 1975;
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
Inclining Experiment Views;
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
Miscellaneous Views; and
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
National Archives Photos.
Click on the small photograph to prompt
a larger view of the same image.
Photo #: NH 98948
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Underway on 13 October 1960.
Photographed by PH1 Kinley.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 81KB; 740 x 605 pixels |
 |
Photo #: NH 98949
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Underway on 13 October 1960.
Photographed by PH1 Kinley.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 137KB; 740 x 610 pixels |
 |
Photo #: NH 98950
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Underway at sea, with her crew paraded on deck, circa November
1960.
The original caption released with this photograph on 8 November
1960 reads:
"USS Little Rock Returns to Philadelphia"
"The U.S.S. Little Rock (CLG-4) returns to Philadelphia
Friday (Nov. 11) after a successful two-month training cruise
in the Caribbean, the Navy announced today."
"The powerful TALOS missile ship and her 1100 man crew will
arrive at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard about 2 p.m."
"Little Rock will be in the yard for a holiday leave
period lasting nearly two months. In January the ship departs
for Norfolk, Va., for Atlantic Fleet Exercises."
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 116KB; 740 x 610 pixels |
 |
Photo #: NH 98951
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Steams off El Morro Fortress, on the northwest tip of San Juan,
Puerto Rico, circa 1960.
Note the old cannon in the fort, including five muzzle-loading
types at left and a late-19th Century breech-loading rifle in
the center.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 111KB; 740 x 600 pixels |
 |
Photo #: NH 98952
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Underway at sea, while operating with a Second Fleet task force,
19 January 1961.
Taken by PHC C.A. Berntsen, USN.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 103KB; 740 x 605 pixels |
 |
Photo #: NH 98953
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Fires a "Talos" guided missile, during exercises in
the Mediterranean Sea, 4 May 1961.
Taken by PH3 D.R. Botts, USN.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 103KB; 740 x 600 pixels |
 |
Photo #: NH 98954
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Fires a "Talos" guided missile while off San Juan,
Puerto Rico, 16 November 1961.
Taken by Seaman Lenhoff.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 84KB; 740 x 595 pixels |
 |
Photo #: NH 98958
USS Little Rock (CLG-4)
Underway on 8 November 1962.
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the
Naval Historical Center.
Online Image: 85KB; 740 x 605 pixels |
 |
For more images related to this ship, see:
USS Little Rock (CL-92);
USS Little Rock (CLG-4, later
CG-4) -- Post-1963 Views. USS
Little Rock (CLG-4, later CG-4) -- Views on Board Ship;
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
At the Reopening of the Suez Canal, 5 June 1975;
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
Inclining Experiment Views;
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
Miscellaneous Views; and
USS Little Rock (CLG-4) --
National Archives Photos.
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Historical Center home page.
Page made 5 December 2003