Flagship Constellation in Newport during WWII
On June 16, 1933 a Navy Department order placed Constellation in a decommissioned status for preservation as a naval relic. Although numerous surveys were conducted and estimates given for the cost of restoring the vessel as a national historic shrine, no decisions on the ship's fate were taken.
On May 21, 1941, Constellation was designated "relief flagship" of Admiral Ernest J. King, Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. With King's appointment as Chief of Naval Operations at the beginning of America's involvement in World War II, Constellation continued in this capacity under Vice Admiral Royal Ingersoll, and alternately, as relief flagship of Battleship Division Five.
"Personally, I have never had a more enjoyable time on any ship."
Admiral Royal Ingersoll - in the Baltimore Sun, February 28, 1943.
Because the Atlantic Fleet was a large force conducting operations over thousands of miles, Admiral Ingersoll was frequently away directing operations from far-flung naval bases. Use of Constellation for the Admiral's living quarters and for coordinating the fleet's vast communications network allowed the designated flagship, the cruiser Augusta, not to be burdened with such tasks while being actively engaged.
Constellation's World War II skipper was Lieutenant Commander John Davis. A retired officer recalled to active duty, Davis had been awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Spanish - American War.
Following World War II Constellation left her berth in Newport for the last time, and was towed to the Boston Navy Yard to be placed in "ordinary" (the equivalent of a steel ship being put in "mothballs'). In 1954 Constellation, thought by many to be the namesake frigate, was moved to Baltimore in a "floating dry-dock" for restoration and preservation as an historic shrine by a private, non-profit patriotic organization.
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