- USS Wren (DD-568)
USS "Wren" (DD-568) was a "Fletcher"-class
destroyer of theUnited States Navy , named for SergeantSolomon Wren , USMC, who took part in LieutenantStephen Decatur 's raid intoTripoli harbor during theFirst Barbary War ."Wren" was laid down on
24 April 1943 atSeattle, Wash. , by theSeattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp. ; launched on29 January 1944 , sponsored by Mrs. Jeanne F. Dockweiler; and commissioned on20 May 1944, Commander Edwin A. McDonald in command.World War II
Following commissioning, "Wren" operated out of San Diego, Calif. conducting shakedown training. In August, she reported for duty with the
Northern Pacific Force in theAleutian Islands . Her duties there consisted largely of patrol and escort work between the islands of the Aleutian chain. She did, however, participate in four shore bombardment missions against the JapaneseKuril Islands with Task Force 92 (TF 92) between November 1944 and April 1945. Her first action occurred on21 November 1944 when she participated in the shelling ofMatsuwa . Her second and third bombardment missions took her toParamushiro on5 January and18 February 1945, respectively. Her final bombardment of the Kurils took place on15 March 1945, and Matsuwa again served as the target.On
19 April , she stood out ofKulsk Bay , bound forHawaii . The destroyer arrived atPearl Harbor on the 25th but soon continued her voyage to the WesternCarolines . She stopped atUlithi Atoll until17 May at which time she left the lagoon on her way to join in the six-week old Okinawa campaign. The ship served in theRyukyus from21 May to18 June , performing antisubmarine patrols and standing antiaircraftradar picket watch. She came under air attack on several occasions but sustained no major hits while ending the careers of at least four of her airborne attackers.Departing
Okinawa on18 June , she arrived at Leyte in thePhilippines three days later and remained there until1 July when she joined units of TF 38 for the final series of carrier-based aerial attacks on Japan. "Wren" spent the remaining weeks of the war at sea with TF 38 supporting the carriers while their planes struck theJapan ese homeland.On
26 August , "Wren" enteredTokyo Bay with other elements of the 3d Fleet to begin the occupation of Japan and to prepare for the formal surrender ceremony at which she was present on2 September . She departed Japan that same day and, during the next month, visitedIwo Jima andEniwetok . The warship returned toTokyo on13 October for a visit of just over a month. She departed Japan on18 November and arrived atOahu on the 28th. Resuming her voyage east on1 December , she entered San Diego on the 7th. After a two-day visit, she headed—by way of thePanama Canal —for thePhiladelphia Naval Shipyard where she arrived on23 December . After an inactivation overhaul at Philadelphia, "Wren" moved toCharleston, S.C. , late in March 1946. On13 July 1946, the destroyer was placed out of commission at Charleston.1951 – 1963
A little over five years later, on
7 September 1951 , "Wren" was placed back in commission at Charleston, Comdr. George M. Hagerman in command. For the next two years, she operated along the eastern seaboard and in theWest Indies . During the latter months of 1951, she conducted standardization and vibration tests under the auspices of theBureau of Ships and its research facility at Carderock, Md., theDavid Taylor Model Basin . She returned to Charleston in December and, throughout 1952 and for the first eight months of 1953, performed normal operations and training in the western Atlantic.In August 1953, "Wren" was reassigned to Destroyer Division 61 (DesDiv 61) for deployment to the Far East. She stood out of Norfolk, Va. on
28 August and transited the Panama Canal on2 September . After stops at San Diego, Pearl Harbor, and Midway, she arrived in Yokosuka on3 October . A week later, she put to sea to join Task Force 77 (TF 77) in theSea of Japan . The fast carriers conducted air operations there and in theYellow Sea , and "Wren" provided screen and plane-guard services to them between10 October and26 November . Following that assignment, she joined the Australian carrier HMAS "Sydney" and provided similar services until mid-December when she returned to Japan at Sasebo for the Christmas holidays.The destroyed rejoined TF 77 on
3 January 1954 and cruised with the carriers until the 17th when she became a unit of TF 95. She served along theKorea n coast carrying out cease-fire surveillance missions with TF 95 until1 February , when she returned to Sasebo to prepare for the voyage home. She departed Japan on11 February and, taking a westward route through the Indian andAtlantic Ocean s, completed acircumnavigation of the globe when she arrived in Norfolk on9 April .For the remainder of her active career, "Wren" operated out of Norfolk periodically making overseas deployments. Among her 2d Fleet activities were midshipman summer cruises, some to northern
Europe an ports and others to West Indian and American ports. She also served with the 6th Fleet in theMediterranean Sea on several occasions. Annual "Springboard" exercises took her toPuerto Rico ,Cuba , andPanama each spring. During her 1957 Mediterranean deployment, the ship served with theMid East Force in the Indian Ocean and participated inOperation Crescent with units of thePakistani Navy ."Wren" appeared in the 1959 movie, "
Operation Petticoat ".In December 1963, after almost a decade of duty with the Atlantic Fleet, "Wren" was placed out of commission, in reserve. She spent the next 11 years in the reserve fleet, berthed at Philadelphia. Her name was struck from the
Navy list in December 1974. On22 October 1975 , she was sold to the North American Smelting Co., Wilmington, Del., for scrapping."Wren" earned three
battle star s duringWorld War II .The Wren had 3 blade props instead of 4 making her much faster than most Fletcher Class Destroyers. 39.9 knots instead of the 35 listed above which was the standard Fletcher speed. (Per Raymond Collins BT2 USS Wren 1952-56)References
*DANFS|http://history.navy.mil/danfs/w11/wren.htm
External links
* [http://history.navy.mil/danfs/w11/wren.htm history.navy.mil: USS "Wren"]
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/568.htm navsource.org: USS "Wren"]
* [http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/destroy/dd568txt.htm hazegray.org: USS "Wren"]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.