The third USS Rochester (CA-124), an Oregon City-class heavy cruiser, was laid down 29 May 1944 by Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, Massachusetts; launched 28 August 1945; sponsored by Mrs. M. Herbert Eisenhart, wife of the president of Bausch & Lomb Optical Co., Rochester, New York; and commissioned 20 December 1946 at the Boston Navy Yard, Captain Harry Aloysius Guthrie in command.