USS West Virginia (ACR-5)

USS Huntington (ACR-5), port view, 1919. Showing cage masts installed 1911 and catapult removed.
History
United States
Name:	West Virginia (1905–1916) Huntington (1916–1930)
Namesake:	State of West Virginia City of Huntington, West Virginia
Ordered:	3 March 1899
Awarded:	24 January 1901
Builder:	Newport News Drydock & ShipbuildingCo., Newport News, Virginia
Cost:	$3,885,000 (contract price of hull and machinery)
Laid down:	16 September 1901
Launched:	18 April 1903
Sponsored by:	Miss Katherine V. White
Commissioned:	23 February 1905
Decommissioned:	1 September 1920
Renamed:	Huntington, 11 November 1916
Reclassified:	CA-5, 17 July 1920
Struck:	12 March 1930
Identification:	Hull symbol: ACR-5 Hull symbol: CA-5
Fate:	sold for scrap, 30 August 1930
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type:	Pennsylvania-class armored cruiser
Displacement:	13,680 long tons (13,900 t) (standard) 15,138 long tons (15,381 t) (full load)
Length:	503 ft 11 in (153.59 m) oa 502 ft (153 m) pp
Beam:	69 ft 6 in (21.18 m)
Draft:	24 ft 1 in (7.34 m) (mean)
Installed power:	16 × Babcock & Wilcox boilers 23,000 ihp (17,000 kW)
Propulsion:	2 × vertical triple expansion reciprocating engines 2 × screws
Speed:	22 kn (41 km/h; 25 mph) 22.15 kn (41.02 km/h; 25.49 mph) (Speed on Trials)
Complement:	80 officers 745 enlisted 64 Marines
Armament:	4 × 8 in (203 mm)/40 caliber Mark 5 breech-loading (BL) rifles(2×2) 14 × 6 in (152 mm)/50 cal Mark 6 BL rifles 18 × 3 in (76 mm)/50 cal rapid-fire guns 12 × 3-pounder (47 mm (1.9 in)) Driggs-Schroeder guns 2 × 1-pounder (37 mm (1.5 in)) Driggs-Schroeder saluting guns 2 × 18 in (457 mm) torpedo tubes
Armor:	Belt: 6 in (150 mm) (top & waterline) 5 in (130 mm) (bottom) Deck: 1 1⁄2 in (38 mm)- 6 in (amidships) 4 in (100 mm) (forward & aft) Barbettes: 6 in Turrets: 6 - 6 1⁄2 in (170 mm) Conning Tower: 9 in (230 mm)
General characteristics (Pre-1911 Refit)
Armament:	4 × 8 in/45 cal Mark 6 BL rifles (2×2) 14 × 6 in/50 cal Mark 6 BL rifles 18 × 3 in/50 cal rapid-fire guns 4 × 3-pounder (47 mm) Driggs-Schroeder saluting guns 2 × 18 in torpedo tubes
General characteristics (Pre-1921 Refit)
Armament:	4 × 8 in/45 caliber Mark 6 BL rifles (2×2) 14 × 6 in/50 Mark 6 caliber BL rifles 10 × 3 in/50 caliber rapid-fire guns 2 × 3 in/50 caliber anti-aircraft guns 4 × 3-pounder (47 mm) Driggs-Schroeder saluting guns 2 × 18 in torpedo tubes
Aircraft carried:	4 × floatplanes (1917)
Aviation facilities:	1 × Aft catapult (1917)

The first USS West Virginia (ACR-5/CA-5), also referred to as "Armored Cruiser No. 5", and later renamed Huntington, was a United States Navy Pennsylvania-class armored cruiser.

The ship was launched on 18 April 1903 by Newport News Drydock & ShipbuildingCo., Newport News, Virginia, sponsored by Miss Katherine V. White, and commissioned on 23 February 1905, Captain C. H. Arnold in command.

After shakedown training, West Virginia cruised with the New York Naval Militia as a unit of the Atlantic Fleet until 30 September 1906 when she sailed for duty with the Asiatic Squadron. The ship remained with the Asiatic Squadron on training operations for two years, and after overhaul at Mare Island in 1908 joined the Pacific Fleet for similar exercises along the West Coast of the United States. In 1911–1912, she made a cruise with the Fleet to Hawaiian waters and in 1914 steamed on special duty off the west coast of Mexico for the protection of American interests. She remained off Mexico during the Veracruz crisis, and returned to Bremerton, Washington, to become a part of the Pacific Reserve Fleet.

West Virginia remained at Bremerton until 20 September 1916, when she again sailed to Mexico for the protection of American lives and property and to back up U.S. diplomacy. While on this service, she was renamed Huntington on 11 November to permit the assignment of her old name to a newly authorized battleship, BB-48. After five months service off Mexico, she steamed to Mare Island for the installation of catapult devices on the quarterdeck and equipment to accommodate four seaplanes on the boat deck ways.