U.S.S. Oregon and the Battle of Santiago

The U.S.S. Oregon and the Battle of Santiago, first published in 1958, is an eyewitness account of the famous Spanish-American War sea battle off the coast of Cuba in 1898. Written by crewmember Joseph Gannon, the book describes the Oregon's long voyage of nearly 16,000 miles from Bremerton, Washington, to Peru, around Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America (the Panama Canal was not yet built), Rio de Janeiro (where the ship learned that war with Spain had been declared), and finally on to the Caribbean (where Gannon joined the ship's crew) as part of the blockade fleet on Cuba. On July 3, 1898, the Oregon and the cruiser Brooklyn were the only two ships fast enough to chase down the Spanish cruiser Cristóbal Colón, forcing its surrender. The Oregon's successful long voyage and performance in the war earned her the nickname of "the Bulldog." Also, the length of the voyage around the Americas, requiring more than two months, bolstered public support for the construction of the Panama Canal. The Oregon would go on to serve in the Philippines, China, World War I, and her stripped hull was used in World War II at Guam as an ammunition barge.