The USS John Marshall was never meant to be famous. She did not fight great battles or fire weapons in anger. Yet her legacy is important. She shows how the Navy adapted in the Cold War, repurposing old ships for new missions, keeping pressure on adversaries, and supporting allies in ways that never made the papers.

She carried the name of a man who defined the rule of law, and she embodied the paradox of nuclear weapons: built for destruction, but used to keep the peace.