Congratulations on your orders to this mighty Warship and for joining the ST. LOUIS Family!
The historic relationship of the City of St. Louis and the United States Navy runs the course of nearly 200 years. USS ST. LOUIS (LCS 19) is the latest of seven ships to carry the name, and her namesakes completed missions as varied as fighting on the Mississippi River during the Civil War to evading Japanese submarines and aircraft during the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Our ship was commissioned in the summer of 2020 and is the 19th ship in the United States Navy’s well-connected family of Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) that maneuver in shallow, coastal waters. With speed and agility, the LCS network was designed to be a modular, reconfigurable ship to support various warfare areas.
Our Crew’s Motto incorporates the St. Louis Gateway Arch. Standing 630 feet tall, the Gateway Arch is the world’s tallest arch and the globally recognized symbol of the City of St. Louis. This monument, and the Freedom-class variant of LCS-19, inspired the Crew’s Motto: “Gateway to Freedom!” Additionally, our Crew’s Mascot, “Hellcats”, pays homage to our ship’s sponsor, Mrs. Barbara Broadhurst Taylor, and her father in law, WWII Navy F6F Hellcat Pilot Jack C. Taylor, who heeded the call after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
We are eager to have you join our team. I know you will find your tour onboard to be both challenging and rewarding.
Welcome aboard and we look forward to meeting you!