USS Wichita (CA-45) was a unique heavy cruiser of the United States Navy built in the 1930s. The last American cruiser designed to meet the limits of London Naval Treaty, she was originally intended to be a New Orleans-class heavy cruiser, accordingly with the maximum main armament of three triple 8-inch (200 mm) gun turrets. These were instead placed on an improved hull derived from the Brooklyn-class light cruisers, with increased armoring. This design would go on to form the basis for the later World War II-era heavy cruisers such as the Baltimore-class cruisers. The ship was authorized by the 1929 Cruiser Act, laid down at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in October 1935, launched in November 1937, and commissioned into the US Navy in February 1939.