USS San Jacinto (CG 56) is the third ship in the United States Navy to bear the name of this important battle. The first, an early experimental propeller driven warship, was commissioned in 1851.

The third San Jacinto is the tenth AEGIS cruiser of the 27 ships in the TICONDEROGA Class. Her construction began October 5, 1984 and her keel was laid July 24, 1985. She was launched November 14, 1986 and christened January 24, 1987 by her sponsor, Dr. Wendy Lee Gramm, wife of Senator Phil Gramm of Texas. San Jacinto was commissioned January 23,1988 by then Vice President George Bush in Houston, Texas.

Since her commissioning, San Jacinto has won several major awards. These include the Battenburg Cup, recognizing her as the best ship in the Atlantic Fleet, and nine consecutive Battle Efficiency Awards for sustained superior performance in all warfare areas. San Jacinto has won and has been a subsequent runner-up in the Atlantic Fleet Golden Anchor competition recognizing her superior quality of life and retention programs. Other awards include the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, the Navy Unit Commendation, and the Meritorious Unit Commendation.

San Jacinto distinguished herself by a 1989 Mediterranean deployment where she provided the strike warfare capability supporting the first Mediterranean aircraft carrier gap in recent history. In August 1990, San Jacinto deployed with only five days notice for Operation Desert Shield, where she served as Red Sea Battle Force Anti-Air Warfare Commander and launched the first Tomahawk Cruise missiles ever fired in combat during the opening salvos of Operation Desert Storm. In 1992, San Jacinto circumnavigated South America during UNITAS XXXIII, a multi-national naval exercise. Many of the littoral warfare tactical initiatives developed during UNITAS were later refined during BALTOPS '93 exercises when San Jacinto embarked the first-ever LAMPS SH60B and SH60F combined detachment.

In early 1999, San Jacinto was assigned to the USS Harry S. Truman Battle Group, accompanying her on her maiden deployment in December 2000 as the Air Warfare Commander for the Battle Group. During this Mediterranean and Arabian Gulf deployment San Jacinto participated in Operation Southern Watch and Maritime Interdiction Operations in the Northern Arabian Gulf. San Jacinto also distinguished herself during the rescue at sea of a stranded Yemeni fishing vessel, becoming the first U.S. warship to return to Yemen since the USS Cole attack.

In December 2002, San Jacinto deployed to the Mediterranean and Red Sea as the Air Defense Commander (ADC) for Harry S Truman and later during Operation Iraqi Freedom to include the USS Theodore Roosevelt Strike Group. As ADC, San Jacinto was responsible for defending the ships of Task Force Sixty against air or missile attack and management of air traffic within an extremely confined area as two aircraft carriers conducted flight operations around the clock. From March 15 to March 28, San Jacinto operated in the Red Sea, supporting the Commander, United States Fifth Fleet. It was during her Red Sea Operations that San Jacinto fired 29 Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles against targets in Iraq?the most missiles launched by any ship in the Red Sea. The ship?s boarding teams conducted a series of inspections designed to ensure that vessels were not involved in the support of Al Quaeda or other terrorist organizations, and to deter other vessels from offering terrorists safe haven or support. The ship returned from the extremely successful deployment May 23.