- USS Wiseman (DE-667)
USS "Wiseman" (DE-667) was a "Buckley"-class
destroyer escort of theUnited States Navy , named in honor ofLieutenant (j.g.) Osborne B. Wiseman (1915–42), anaval aviator who was awarded theNavy Cross posthumously for his heroism in theBattle of Midway ."Wiseman" was laid down on
26 July 1943 atPittsburgh, Pennsylvania , by theDravo Corp. ; launched on6 November 1943 ; sponsored by Mrs. June Holton, the widow of Lt.(jg.) Wiseman; and commissioned atAlgiers, Louisiana , on4 April 1944 , Lt. W. B. McClaran, Jr., USNR, in command.1944 – 1948
Following shakedown in the
Bermuda area and post-shakedown availability in theBoston Navy Yard , "Wiseman" departedBoston on24 May 1944 to rendezvous with Task Force 64 (TF 64) andconvoy UGS-43 on the first of three round-trip convoy escort runs. She escorted convoy GUS-43 fromCasablanca ,French Morocco , toNew York , then leftHampton Roads with TF-64 and convoy UGS-50 on3 August , shepherding convoy GUS-50 fromBizerte to the United States, sailing eastward on29 August . Following repairs and alterations at Boston (19 September –5 October ), "Wiseman" conducted work-ups in the waters of Casco Bay, Maine, before resuming convoy escort work as part of TF-64, shepherding UGS-57 from Hampton Roads to Bizerte, returning eastward with TF-64 and GUS-57; passingGibraltar on11 November , the ship returned toChesapeake Bay with that portion of GUS-57 on30 November , before proceeding toCharleston, South Carolina Subsequently converted to a floating power station — the necessity for ship-to-shore electrical facilities haying been proved during the Pacific war — at the
Charleston Navy Yard , "Wiseman" sailed for thePacific on11 January 1945 . Reporting to Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet, for duty on17 January 1945 upon transiting thePanama Canal , she set course for theHawaiian Islands in company with thehigh speed transport USS|Reeves|APD-52.Making port at
Pearl Harbor on3 February , the destroyer escort operated for a month in the Hawaiian Islands before setting sail for thePhilippines on3 March . Arriving atManila on the 23d, she commenced furnishing power to that nearly demolished city on13 April and, over the next five and one-half months, provided some convert|5806000|kWh|GJ|lk=on of electricity. In addition, "Wiseman"'s evaporators furnished 150,000gallon s (570 m³) of drinking water to Army facilities in the harbor area and to many small craft. Her radios were also utilized to a great extent. Placed at the disposal of the Navy's port director, the ship's communication outfit was used to handle harbor radio traffic until the director's equipment arrived and was installed ashore.Following her vital service at Manila and projected operations at
Ketchikan, Alaska , shelved, "Wiseman" shifted toGuam , arriving on18 December 1945 , where she provided power for the Armydredge "Harris" (YM-25). Departing Guam on26 March 1946 , in company withsister ship USS|Whitehurst|DE-634, she paused atEniwetok , in the Marshalls (28–29 March), then returned to the United States via Pearl Harbor (4–6 April 1946). Decommissioned at San Diego, California on31 May 1946 , "Wiseman" was placed in inactivated status on19 December 1946 , then out of commission, in reserve, on3 February 1947 , and moved to Long Beach. Subsequently, the auxiliaryocean tug USS|Koka|ATA-185 towed "Wiseman" from Long Beach back to San Diego (16–17 November 1948).1950–1961
After the outbreak of hostilities in Korea in the summer of 1950, the
Chief of Naval Operations recommended that "Wiseman" be "reactivated at the earliest practicable [time] for distant duty including use as [an] Electric Power Supply Ship." Accordingly, "Wiseman" was recommissioned at San Diego on11 September 1950 , and, under the command of Lt.Comdr. Jay W. Land, rushed toKorea , reaching the port ofMasan , near the mouth of theNaktong River , at the western anchor-point of the former beachhead atPusan . As she had done at Manila in 1945, "Wiseman" supplied electricity to a city unable to generate its own. Later, the ship provided comforts-of-home to units of the 1st Marine Division quartered on the nearbypier , providing hot showers,cigarette s, and hot meals cooked in the ship's galley. The destroyer escort also provided instruction in seamanship, gunnery,radar ,sonar , and damage control to 80midshipmen from theRepublic of Korea Naval Academy and 120 ROK Navy enlisted men.Late in 1951, "Wiseman" returned to the United States and underwent an extensive overhaul at the
Mare Island Naval Shipyard ,Vallejo, California , before she conducted refresher training out of San Diego through the spring and summer of 1952. The ship then sailed again for Korean waters, reaching the combat zone that autumn.In her second
Western Pacific (WestPac) deployment since recommissioning, "Wiseman" screened light carrier task forces off the west coast of Korea; carried out patrol assignments close inshore; blockaded and bombarded segments of the northeastern Korean coast, and provided antisubmarine screen and escort services for replenishment groups. Later in the deployment, she also participated inhunter-killer operations, trained inantisubmarine warfare (ASW) evolutions, and served as divisionflagship during a goodwill call at Manila.Over the next few years, "Wiseman" conducted four more WestPac deployments and spent the interludes between them in training out of San Diego and upkeep at Mare Island Naval Shipyard or the
San Francisco Naval Shipyard . Upon occasion, she conducted Naval Reserve training cruises — one taking her to the Hawaiian Islands. During the overseas deployments, "Wiseman" operated with units ofSEATO navies — Australian, New Zealand, British, Philippine, Pakistani, and Thai — and visited ports fromAustralia toJapan . Upon completion of her sixth deployment, "Wiseman" was designated as a Group INaval Reserve Training (NRT) ship. Accordingly, on16 May 1959 , the ship was decommissioned and turned over to the11th Naval District . Lt. W. V. Powell was the first officer-in-charge.For the next two years, "Wiseman" operated out of San Diego on NRT duties. Every third weekend of the month, a reserve cruise took her to sea for periods of ASW training; and, during the summers, the destroyer escort made two-week reserve cruises.
1961 – 1973
In 1961, however, the crisis in
Berlin changed "Wiseman"'s routine after the building of theBerlin Wall heightened tensions in August of that year. PresidentJohn F. Kennedy ordered the activation of reserve units — including the Selected Reserve Crew and NRT ships. Recommissioned on2 October 1961 , Lt.Comdr. C. V. Wilhoite, Jr., in command, "Wiseman" was immediately prepared for duty with the 7th Fleet. Since the repair and overhaul facilities at San Diego were overworked, "Wiseman" was overhauled at Long Beach, spending the pre-Christmas holidays in the Bethlehem shipyards there.Deploying to WestPac again in January 1962, "Wiseman" conducted patrol operations off the coast of
South Vietnam and participated in theKennedy Administration 's "People to People " program. She received a "well done" for her performance of duty and in March, while conducting training operations with theSouth Vietnamese Navy , won commendation for giving medical aid to a fisherman with an infected leg on board a South Vietnamese fishing junk. Later that spring, the ship also visitedHong Kong ,Subic Bay , and Japanese ports — including Yokohama, where she hosted celebrations forArmed Forces Day on 19 and 20 May.Returning to San Diego on
17 July , via Midway and Pearl Harbor, "Wiseman" was decommissioned and placed in service on1 August , resuming her duties as NRT ship with the Group II Naval Reserve. Before the end of 1962, the ship was assigned to Reserve Destroyer Division 272 of Reserve Destroyer Squadron 27.Placed in reserve but remaining in service, "Wiseman" was berthed at San Diego through the remainder of the 1960s as part of the Pacific Fleet's reserve units. The veteran of
World War II and Korean service was stricken from the Navy list on15 April 1973 , and sold for scrapping29 April 1974 , to Levin Metals Corp.,San Jose, California for the sum of $65,000. The ship was removed from Navy custody on22 May 1974 ."Wiseman" (DE-667) received six
battle star s for her Korean War service.References
External links
* [http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/w10/wiseman.htm history.navy.mil: USS "Wiseman"] , (revised 2006, by Robert J. Cressman)
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/06/667.htm navsource.org: USS "Wiseman"]
* [http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/escorts/de667.htm hazegray.org: USS "Wiseman"]
* [http://www.sunwestmonograms.com//wiseman/index.htm "Wiseman" veterans' website]
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