USS Bigelow (DD-942)

USS "Bigelow" (DD-942) was a Forrest Sherman class destroyer in the United States Navy. The ship was named for Watertender First Class Elmer Charles Bigelow (1920-1945), who was killed in action extinguishing a magazine fire while serving on board "Fletcher" during action against enemy Japanese forces off Corregidor in the Philippines on February 14, 1945. Bigelow was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. [DANFS]

"Bigelow" was built by the Bath Iron Works Corporation at Bath in Maine. The ship was launched by Mrs. Verna B. Perry, mother of Elmer C. Bigelow. [DANFS]

"Bigelow" was part of Combined Task Group CTG 136.1.1 tasked with blockading Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis. [Naval Historical Center. [http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq90-5a.htm The Naval Quarantine of Cuba, 1962: Quarantine, 22 -26 October] .] "Bigelow" received the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for participating from 24 October 1962 to 21 November 1962. [Naval Historical Center. [http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq90-3.htm U.S. Navy Ships and Units Which Received the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for Participating in the Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962] .]

"Bigelow" saw extensive service in the Vietnam War and also served as a NASA recovery ship for the Mercury and Gemini III programs.fact|date=September 2008

While operating off Vietnam on 20 April 1967, an explosion in a gun mount injured six sailors. [ [http://www.navysite.de/dd/dd942.htm Navysite.de - Bigelow] .]

"Bigelow" served as a test platform for Phalanx CIWS in 1977. The mount was installed just aft of the aft radar gun director. [Navweaps.com [http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_Phalanx.htm 20 mm Phalanx Close-in Weapon System (CIWS)] .] [ [http://www.mediacen.navy.mil/pubs/allhands/jan01/weapons.htm All Hands Magazine January 2001] .] [ [http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/942.htm NavSource.org contains an image of the CIWS mount.] ]

Glenn R. Brindel, commanding officer of USS|Stark|FFG-31 during the 1986 missile attack, was executive officer of "Bigelow" from 1978 to 1980. ["Skipper is veteran of Vietnam;" The Patriot - News. Harrisburg, Pa.: May 19, 1987. pg. A.2]

Fate

"Bigelow" decommissioned 5 November 1982.

She was sold for scrap to the Fore River Shipyard and Iron Works at Quincy, Massachusetts on 11 December 1992. When the Fore River Shipyard went bankrupt she was resold to N. R. Acquisition Incorporated of New York City by the Massachusetts Bankruptcy Court. She was re-acquired by the Navy for disposition as a target ship, stricken 1 June 1990 and was "Disposed of in support of Fleet training exercise" (presumably sunk as a gunnery target) on or before 2 April 2003. [N.V.R. indicates that the ship was disposed of on 2 April 2003. That date may be merely the date on which the N.V.R. updated its records; it is not indicated that the ship was sunk on that date.]

References

*DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/b6/bigelow-i.htm
*NVR|http://www.nvr.navy.mil/nvrships/details/DD942.htm