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President Franklin D. Roosevelt, shown here with a Marine guard, made four voyages on the USS Houston. The ship was fitted with special elevators and handrails to accommodate the President's disability.
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Mary Ellen Bute (maid of honor), Elisabeth Holcombe (ship's sponsor), and Charlotte Williams (special guest) on platform with Va. Gov. Harry F. Bird at ship's launching ceremony, 7 Sept. 1929. At the launching of the USS Houston, Elisabeth Holcombe, the daughter of Houston's former mayor and the ship's sponsor, broke a bottle of Houston Ship Channel water over the bow of the ship.
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The USS Houston (CA-30) was launched on September 7, 1929 in Newport News, VA. She earned the nicknames "The Rambler" for her far-ranging travels during peace time, and "The Galloping Ghost of the Java Coast" for her ability to evade the Japanese during the early months of the war.