It's the 70th anniversary of a lustrous day in San Francisco's maritime history. On this day in 1942, the cruiser San Francisco came home from the war, scarred, battered and victorious.
The arrival of the San Francisco set off a big celebration in the city - a parade up Market Street, a solemn Mass at St. Mary's cathedral to honor those who died, and a ceremony honoring the heroes of the big naval battle off the Solomon Islands and Guadalcanal.
"It was a great day," said Johnny Johnson, who was aboard the San Francisco in the battle and served on the ship throughout World War II. "That ship was San Francisco's ship, and San Francisco was our home."
Johnson was a 19-year-old seaman second class in 1942, and he remembers that homecoming vividly. "The city really turned out for us," he said last week. "You couldn't buy a drink; you couldn't buy anything. It was all free."
Tuesday morning, Johnson and a handful of other survivors of the San Francisco will be on hand for a ceremony at the monument honoring the cruiser and its crew.
