USS Denver (C-14/PG-28/CL-16) was the lead ship of her class of protected cruisers in the United States Navy. She was the first Navy ship named for the city of Denver, the capital of Colorado. Denver was launched on 21 June 1902 by Neafie and Levy Ship and Engine Building Company in Philadelphia, sponsored by Miss R. W. Wright, daughter of Robert R. Wright, the mayor of Denver; and commissioned on 17 May 1904, with Commander Joseph Ballard Murdock in command. She was reclassified PG-28 in 1920 and CL-16 on 8 August 1921. Service history Caribbean patrol Between 15 July and 26 July 1904, Denver visited Galveston, Texas, where she was presented a gift of silver service from the people of Denver. She cruised in the Caribbean, investigating disturbances in Haiti, then returned to Philadelphia on 1 October. During the next two and a half years, she cruised the Atlantic Coast and in the Caribbean, joining in target practice and other exercises, and protecting American interests from political disturbance in the West Indies. On 13 September 1906, a landing force consisting of six officers and 124 bluejackets and marines, under the command of Lt. Comdr. M. L. Miller was landed from Denver at Havana, Cuba. This landing force returned on board on 14 September 1906. Crewmembers serving on Denver between 12 September and 2 October 1906 qualified for award of the Cuban Pacification Medal. 1906 ceremonies Non-campaign highlights of this period of her service included her participation at Annapolis between 19 April and 27 April 1906 in the interment ceremonies for John Paul Jones at the United States Naval Academy; a midshipman training cruise to Madeira and the Azores in the summer of 1906; and the Fleet Review off Oyster Bay, Long Island, by President Theodore Roosevelt in September 1906. Asiatic fleet The cruiser sailed from Tompkinsville, New York, on 18 May 1907 for duty with the Asiatic Fleet in the Philippines, sailing through the Mediterranean and Suez Canal to Cavite, where she arrived on 1 August. Denver visited ports in China, Manchuria, and Japan, and joined in the regular exercise schedule of the fleet until 1 January 1910, when she cleared Cavite for Mare Island Naval Shipyard. Arriving there on 15 February, she was placed out of commission on 12 March; she was then placed in reserve commission on 4 January 1912, and placed in full commission on 15 July