USS Des Moines (CA-134)
Model By Kaiser The Keyboard
Des Moines was launched 27 September 1946 by Bethlehem Steel Company, Fore River Shipyard, Quincy, Massachusetts; sponsored by Mrs. E. T. Meredith, Jr.; and commissioned 16 November 1948, Captain A. D. Chandler in command. She became the first of her class to mount the semi-automatic Mark 16 8 inch turrets [1] and carry the new Sikorsky HO3S-1 utility helicopters in place of seaplanes. It was named after the capital of the state of Iowa.