“Fighter and Freighter – Kodiak, Alaska.” Painting, Oil on Board; by William F. Draper; 1942; Framed Dimensions 24H X 28W.
NHHC 88-189-B
The warship looks to be a Northampton or Pensacola-class heavy cruiser. Of those, just one, USS Louisville (CA-28), was in the Aleutians throughout the summer of 1942. As part of TF 8, she plastered Japanese defenses on Kiska Island. She also likely posed for Draper’s brush.
USS Louisville (CA-28) Steams out of Kulak Bay, Adak, the Aleutian Islands, bound for operations against Attu, 25 April 1943. The photograph looks toward Sweepers Cove. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Catalog #: 80-G-72060
Commissioned 15 January 1931, she earned an impressive 13 battle stars in the Pacific, was laid up in 1946, and sold for scrap in 1959.