USS Ward (DD-139)

USS "Ward" (DD-139) was a 1247-ton (1,267 metric ton) "Wickes"-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War I, later APD-16 in World War II. She was the first Navy ship to engage the Japanese during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

History

"Ward" was named in honor of Commander James H. Ward, USN, (1806–1861), the first U.S. Navy officer to be killed in action during the American Civil War. "Ward" was built at the Mare Island Navy Yard, California, being the first ship built and in a record of 17 1/2 days. [ [http://www.visitvallejo.com/about-vallejo/mare-island-history.php "Mare Island History"] . Vallejo Convention & Visitors Bureau website. Accessed August 22 2007. DANFS states 15 days from keel laying to launch.] Under the pressure of urgent First World War needs for destroyers, her construction was pushed rapidly from keel-laying on 15 May 1918 to launching on 1 June and commissioning on 24 July 1918.

"Ward" transferred to the Atlantic late in the year and helped support the trans-Atlantic flight of the NC flying boats in May 1919. She came back to the Pacific a few months later and remained there until she was decommissioned in July 1921. She had received the hull number DD-139 in July 1920.

The outbreak of World War II in Europe brought "Ward" back into active service. She recommissioned in January 1941. Sent to Pearl Harbor shortly thereafter, the destroyer operated on local patrol duties in Hawaiian waters over the next year. On the morning of December 7, 1941, Ward was conducting a precautionary patrol off the entrance to Pearl Harbor when she encountered a Japanese "Ko-hyoteki" class midget submarine, attacked and sank it, thus firing the first American shots of the Pacific War a few hours before Japanese carrier aircraft formally opened the conflict with their attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet inside the harbor. While a minority of academics doubted whether the USS "Ward" had really sunk a Japanese mini-sub--since undersea searches off Pearl Harbor had previously failed to locate the midget submarine--on August 28 2002, a team of scientists from the University of Hawaii finally found the vessel. They discovered that the submarine lies 1,200 feet underneath the sea in American waters about 3 to 4 miles outside of Pearl Harbor. [ [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2002/Aug/29/ln/ln03a.html 1941 Japanese mini sub found off Pearl Harbor] ] The starboard side of the submarine's conning tower exhibits two shell holes--evidence of damage from a 4 inch shell from the USS "Ward's" guns; while the "Ward's" depth charges was sufficient to fully lift the 46 ton, 78 foot midget out of the water, they did no apparent structural damage to the submarine, which sank due to water flooding into the vessel from the two shell holes. [ [http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/HURL/midget.html The Search for the World War II Japanese Midget Submarine Sunk off Pearl Harbor, Dec. 7, 1941] ]

Action after Pearl Harbor

In 1942, "Ward" was sent to the west coast for conversion to a high speed transport. Redesignated APD-16 in February 1943, she steamed to the South Pacific to operate with U.S. forces in the Solomon Islands area. She helped fight off a heavy Japanese air attack off Tulagi on 7 April 1943 and spent most of the rest of that year on escort and transport service. In December, she participated in the Cape Gloucester invasion. During the first nine months of 1944, "Ward" continued her escort and patrol work and also took part in several Southwest Pacific amphibious landings, among them the assaults on Saidor, Nissan Island, Emirau, Aitape, Biak, Cape Sansapor and Morotai.

Fate

As the Pacific War moved closer to Japan, "Ward" was assigned to assist with operations to recover the Philippine Islands. On 17 October 1944, she put troops ashore on Dinagat Island during the opening phase of the Leyte invasion. After spending the rest of October and November escorting ships to and from Leyte, in early December, "Ward" transported Army personnel during the landings at Ormoc Bay, Leyte. On the morning of 7 December 1944, three years to the day after her Number Three Gun fired the opening shot of America's involvement in the War, she was patrolling off the invasion area when she came under attack by several Japanese aircraft. One bomber made a suicide crash into her hull amidships, bringing the ship to a stop. When the resulting fires could not be controlled, "Ward"'s crew was ordered to abandon ship and she was sunk by gunfire from USS "O'Brien" (DD-725), whose Commanding Officer, William W. Outerbridge, had been in command of "Ward" during her action off Pearl Harbor three years before.

The 4" (102 mm)/50 caliber Number Three gun which fired the shot was removed when the destroyer was converted to a high speed transport. It was installed in 1956 as a memorial at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul, as the men who fired it on that fateful morning were members of the Minnesota Naval Reserve. The ship's bell is now displayed in the St. Paul, Minnesota City Hall on the 3rd floor between the council and mayoral offices.

As of 2004, no other ship in the United States Navy has borne this name.

ee also

*List of United States Navy destroyers
* [http://starbulletin.com/2002/08/29/news/story1.html UH finds sub that led Pearl Harbour attack]

References

*DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/w3/ward.htm

External links

* [http://navyarchives.org/8/uss-ward-fires-the-first-shot-of-wwii/ History of the USS Ward in World War II]