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The annual USS St. Lo Association Board Meeting which met on October 25, 1989 voted to investigate the possibility of commissioning an artist to paint a picture of the USS St. Lo. It was decided to contact Richard C. Moore who did a painting of the USS Gambier Bay in action to do a similar one of the USS St. Lo.
“The End Of A Fighting Ship” is the title which was given to the painting of the USS St. Lo. The painting also carries the sub-title, “The Last Moments of the USS St. Lo.” On Tuesday, October 23, 1990 at a morning breakfast meeting of St. Lo shipmates and their guests, the painting was unveiled during the Association’s annual reunion held in Charleston, South Carolina. Richard C. Moore, the artist was on hand for the unveiling. Prints went on sale immediately thereafter.
The USS St. Lo painting was created by Richard C. Moore, an accomplished artist recognized especially for the quality of his works depicting naval vessels. During the Korean War he served with the Navy, including two years as a chaplain for a destroyer squadron in the Pacific.
The painting, as the title suggests, shows the USS St. Lo just before she sank. The artist received photographs of the USS St. Lo and written reports from CAPT McKenna and the navigator. At least forty eyewitnesses also provided information to the artist. From these sources the artist was able to develop the details which give authenticity to the painting.
The USS St. Lo is portrayed from an angle off the starboard bow. It depicts a tremendous explosion on the starboard side aft of the island; smoke billowing upwards; men going down lines from the bridge, flight deck and sponsor levels; the National Ensign flying from the masthead and signal flags from the yardarms; life rafts in the water. In short, it is a pointing of a ship in battle, the whip on which many of you served.
About the Artist - Richard C. Moore
Artist Richard C. Moore’s love of ships and sea had its genesis in visits to the Philadelphia waterfront as a child.
Upon graduation from the University of Pennsylvania, Moore entered the U.S. Navy for a three-year tour of duty on destroyers in the Atlantic fleet. Later, after receiving a degree from Princeton Theological Seminary, he re-entered the Navy for two more years, serving on destroyers in the Pacific fleet.
His life-long love of sketching and painting eventually focused into a particular fondness of marine painting. His desire is to convey the awe he feels for ships, sea, and sky.
Richard C. Moore is a charter member of the American Society of Marine Artists. Prints of his work have been published by the Philadelphia Maritime Museum, the U.S. Naval Institute, The Moshulu Maritime Exhibit, The Cruiser Olympia Association, Matson Navigation Company, M.P.B. Corporation, and Huntington Alloys. His painting of the U.S.S. Intrepid appeared on the cover of the Naval Institute Proceedings. He also executed a series of ship designs for the Franklin Mint.
Moore’s painting of the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Gambier Bay is in the permanent collection of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Museum in Hyde Park, NY. His painting of the U.S.S. St. Lo was recently presented to the National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola. Prints of these paintings are in the collections of numerous museums and war memorials throughout the country. | 
