Her primary armament fit were 2 x 8" (203mm) /30 caliber main guns arranged in trainable turrets - one forward and one aft. This was supported by 6 x 6" (152mm) /30 caliber guns and 2 x 6-pounder (57mm) cannons. Close-in work was managed by 2 x 3-pounder (47mm) Hotchkiss revolving cannons, 2 x 1-pounder (37mm) guns, and 2 x 0.45 caliber Gatling gun systems. Well-armed and well-armored, USS Atlanta presented a strong opponent on the high seas.
USS Atlanta's career began in 1887 when she made her way to Atlantic waters as part of the North Atlantic Squadron. She made her home along the American East Coast for some time until 1889 when she was sent to Europe. After a stop in Brazil on the journey home, she ended her travel in New York waters before continuing service along the coast. She then partook in some exercises, training and reviews before seeing her first decommissioning (of several) on July 18th, 1893. She was recommissioned for service as soon as April 2nd, 1894 and operated along the American coast once more. By September of 1895 she was once again decommissioned and spent the next five years in New York waters.
During 1897 into 1899, USS Atlanta underwent a period of refitting which granted her rapid-firing 6" guns (the powder bag approach was done away with in favor of brass case ammunition) and a triple-expansion engine generating 4,030 horsepower to help modernized and improve her performance. This allowed her to be brought back into service on September 15th, 1900 and joined the South Atlantic Squadron near Brazil for October. In late-1902, she was in Caribbean waters and took part in pro-American operations at the Dominican Republic and Panama. After another European tour she returned to home waters for October 1904. She ended this stint in reserve at Annapolis, Maryland for January 1905.
Some months later, she returned to service as part of the Coast Squadron and served as trainer. From the period spanning 1905 to 1912 she took up a post as barracks ship, first at Norfolk and then at Charleston which brought an end to her USN days. On March 23rd, 1912, she was removed from service and her name struck from the Navy Register on April 24th of that year. She was stripped of her useful components and her hulk sold for scrapping in June.
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