May 12, 2026
Cleveland City Council welcomed representatives of the newly christened USS Cleveland at its Monday, May 11, 2026, meeting and presented them with a resolution celebrating the new ship and Cleveland's long history with U.S. Navy ships that have borne its name.
USS Cleveland is a Freedom-class littoral combat ship crewed by 90 sailors and officers. Littoral combat ships are relatively small surface vessels used for near-shore warfare. Their speed and maneuverability allow them to be quickly reequipped to fill different roles.
USS Cleveland was launched in April 2023, and on May 9, the USS Cleveland Welcome Flotilla welcomed it as it docked at its namesake city. On Saturday, May 16, USS Cleveland will be officially placed in active service. USS Cleveland will be the first ship in U.S. history to be commissioned in Ohio.
Three other ships have been named USS Cleveland. The first was a protected cruiser commissioned in 1903 and was active in World War I. The second was a light cruiser commissioned in 1942 and active during World War II. The third was an amphibious transport dock commissioned in 1967 and decommissioned in 2011. It was active during the Vietnam War and was briefly deployed in support of oil spill cleanup efforts following the Exxon Valdez disaster.
Cleveland City Hall's Rotunda proudly displays brass bells from the first two ships named USS Cleveland that were used to sound alarms and signal other ships. The bells and other memorabilia are on loan from the U.S. Navy.
USS Cleveland is the sixteenth and final Freedom-class combat ship.