[1] She was designed to provide a range of 10,000 nautical miles (19,000 km; 12,000 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph), but was only capable of 8,460 nautical miles (15,670 km; 9,740 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)[4] Memphis's main armament went through many changes while she was being designed.

Memphis was initially built with the capacity to carry 224 mines, but these were removed early in her career to make way for more crew accommodations.

The lower torpedo tube mounts proved to be very wet and were removed, and the openings plated over, before the start of World War II.

On 13 April, the cruiser participated in the dedication of an American memorial gateway to Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry at Port of Spain, Trinidad.

In June, Memphis joined ships of a scouting fleet off Honolulu, Hawaii, for a cruise to the South Pacific through September, with visits to Australia and New Zealand.

[3] On 3 June 1927, Memphis embarked Captain Charles A. Lindbergh and his aeroplane 'Spirit of St Louis' at Southampton, England, following his nonstop flight from New York to Paris.

[3] In January 1928, Memphis acted as part of an escort group for President Calvin Coolidge on a cruise to the West Indies.

After four months of Caribbean operations,[3] she served in the western Pacific as part of Light Cruiser Division TWO attached to the Asiatic Fleet along with Milwaukee and Trenton.

Memphis operated in a peacekeeping capacity at Corinto, Nicaragua, during the inauguration of President Juan Bautista Sacasa in 1932.

[3] After a good will cruise to Australia in January 1938, Memphis reached Honolulu on 1 April, to rejoin the fleet for operations until she participated in the presidential review off San Francisco on 12 July 1939.

She departed Newport on 24 April 1941, to take part in the neutrality patrol of the ocean triangle Trinidad–Cape San Roque–Cape Verde Islands, arriving Recife, Brazil, on 10 May.

The President and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill outlined plans at that time for the invasion of Sicily and Italy.

[3] On 18 February, Memphis arrived at Algiers for President Roosevelt's last Allied conference before his return to the United States.

She participated in the first anniversary ceremonies of the Allied landings at St. Raphael and St. Tropez, southern France on 15 August, and the Navy Day festivities at Naples, Italy, on 27 October.