The Mighty A: The Short, Heroic Life of the USS Atlanta (CL-51): America's First Warship Commissioned After Pearl Harbor

The attack on Pearl Harbor shocked the nation. With the declaration of war, lines formed outside of recruiting stations as Americans desired to don the uniform and go after the Japanese aggressors. With Margaret Mitchell serving as the ship’s sponsor, Atlanta’s Christmas Eve commissioning in December 1941, served as a rallying point for a country weary of bad news overseas. Some of those new recruits who signed on to fight the Axis after December 7, would find their way to Atlanta’s quarterdeck. For the capital of the Peachtree State, the ship was not only a source of civic pride, but a reason for many young men to join the Navy with the promise of assignment. The Mighty A will be the first book to tell their collective story. Prior to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent loss of the British battleships Repulse and Prince of Wales off Malaysia, the U.S. Navy’s leadership discovered that the surface fleet was highly vulnerable to air attack, thanks to the introduction of drone aircraft that could simulate attacks on its warships. The Navy’s gunners simply did not have the coordinated firepower to knock them down. Hence the development of 1.1 inch, 20 mm, and 5 inch 38 caliber guns married with fire-control radar technology that could rapidly expend ordnance against incoming aircraft. The result of this vulnerability recognition is a new class of warship led by USS Atlanta. Unfortunately, not all of the Navy’s sea commanders will have a full appreciation of the light cruiser designed mission. Lieutenant Commander Mustin terms these tactically inept officers as “Jugheads.” This story reinforces the notion that American military officers during this era are unafraid of taking their own initiatives without the permission of superiors in combating the enemy. Lieutenant Commander Wade McClusky typifies this breed of independent thinkers, who played a hunch to follow the wake of a speeding Japanese destroyer at the Battle of Midway with his bomber squadron that led him and his compatriots to the Japanese carriers. The narrative also covers a part of the war that even the U.S. Navy overlooks. In elevating the Battle of Midway anniversary to join the Navy’s Birthday as an official annual Navy commemoration in 1998, the Chief of Naval Operations Jay Johnson unintentionally slighted the importance of subsequent actions in the southwest Pacific. The Guadalcanal campaign has been a narrative long owned by the Marine Corps who complain they were abandoned by the Navy to forage for themselves against a determined Japanese foe. This storyline has served to build up the lore and enhance the reputation of the Corps. However, not to denigrate the Marines' struggle ashore, the battle for Guadalcanal was predominantly naval. The Navy’s casualties during the six-month campaign were triple that of the Marine Corps.

Table of Contents:
Preface 1. The Construction and Manning of USS Atlanta 2. America Goes to War and Atlanta is Commissioned 3. Enroute To Hawaii 4. Pearl Harbor Out and Back 5. The Battle of Midway 6. Intermission 7. En route to Guadalcanal 8. Cactus and Combat 9. Attrition 10. Action Over the Horizon 11. Engagement 12. Friday the 13th 13. Homecoming 14. Atlanta Reborn

About the Author :
David F. Winkler is a retired Navy commander having received his commission through Penn State NROTC. Having earned his Ph.D. at American University, he served as staff historian at the Naval Historical Foundation for 25 years, has taught at the U.S. Naval Academy and Naval War College, and held the Charles Lindbergh Chair of Aerospace History at the Smithsonian. He has published five books with the Naval Institute Press and writes a monthly historical perspective column for Sea Power Magazine. He is the author of Witness to Neptune’s Inferno, based on the diary of Atlanta’s Assistant Gunnery Officer Lloyd M. Mustin.

Review :
"[Winkler] has done an amazing amount of research for this book. It's highly detailed throughout, from Atlanta's christening to its sinking on November 13, 1942... This is a captivating and informative read."-- "PowerShips" "This is the first book I've read about the warship launching process and the details keep coming throughout the pages. This is a "mighty" fine ship profile."-- "Historical Miniatures Gaming Society" "The author's extensive research also provides discussion of the crew and the naval culture that motivated them."-- "Seapower Magazine" "Winkler's account is totally fresh, using original sources to tell the tragic tale of American sailors in those desperate hours of 1942 during the initial phases of offensive operations against the Axis enemy of World War II."--David Kohnen, author of "King's Navy: Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King and the Rise of American Sea Power, 1897-1947" "This microhistory of the birth, life, and death of an American cruiser offers valuable insight into the early years of World War II, including the procedures, processes, and personnel of the Navy, naval life, and naval warfare. The account of its loss in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal is particularly gripping."--Craig Symonds, author of "Nimitz at War" "The Mighty A brings life to a sometimes-forgotten ship by intertwining the stories of the ship, the crew, the chaotic course of early WWII in the South Pacific, and the desperate struggle for Guadalcanal. It is highly recommended for anyone interested in the history of ships, leadership, and the early days of the war."-- "SeaHistory Magazine" "The book relies primarily on the Atlanta's logs and combat reports, supplemented by material drawn from published and unpublished memoirs, personal accounts, oral histories, press reports and the Navy's historical files. Together, they provide a critical mass of sources to tell the story of the ship and crew beyond that provided by the official sources."-- "The NYMAS Review" "The Mighty A brings life to a sometimes-forgotten ship by intertwining the ship, the crew, the chaotic course of early World War II in the South Pacific, and the desperate struggle for Guadalcanal. It is highly recommended for anyone interested in the history of ships, leadership, and the early days of World War II."-- "National Maritime Historical Society" "As a result of Dr. Winkler's remarkably thorough research, this account is--and will remain--the definitive history of the doomed USS Atlanta. During the combat portions of the book, his narrative crackles with such intensity that it transports readers to the decks of the cruiser and puts them right alongside her officers and enlisted men."--Paul Stillwell, author of "Battleship Commander: The Life of Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee Jr."