Cabot was laid down at Camden, New Jersey, on 16 March 1942 as the cruiser Wilmington (CL-79). She was reclassified CV-28 on 2 June 1942, renamed Cabot on 23 June, launched on 4 April 1943, and became CVL-28 on 15 July. The Navy commissioned her on 24 July 1943. The ship's history names Captain M. F. Shoeffel. The compiled list spells him Malcolm Francis Schoeffel.
She cleared for Majuro on 15 January 1944. Malcolm Francis Schoeffel still had her. Intrepid's history puts her in the 16 January sortie with Essex. Her own history dates strikes on Roi and Namur from 4 February, in the same stretch of operations that went on to Truk.
Stanley John Michael had her from 5 May 1944 to 6 February 1945. Walton Wiley Smith then had her through 18 December 1945, including the weeks off Iwo Jima. From 10 February to 1 March 1945 her planes pounded the Japanese home islands and the Bonins ahead of that landing. On 25 November 1944 a plane crashed on her catwalk and flight deck. She reached Ulithi on 28 November for repairs and was back on 11 December. Planes from Cabot and Intrepid began the 24 October attack in which American carrier planes sank Musashi.
The dates are the NavSource list compiled by Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves. Commander Eugene Tatom and Commander Robert Webster Slye had her at the end. She was decommissioned on 11 February 1947. She was brought back after the war and later served in the Spanish navy as Dedalo.