- USS Du Pont (DD-152)
The second USS "Du Pont" (DD–152) was a "Wickes" class
destroyer in theUnited States Navy during theWorld War II , later reclassified as AG-80. She was named for Rear AdmiralSamuel Francis Du Pont .History
"Du Pont" was launched
22 October 1918 byWilliam Cramp & Sons Ship and Engine Building Company,Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ; sponsored by Miss C. S. Du Pont, great-grandniece of Rear Admiral Du Pont; and commissioned30 April 1919 , CommanderW. Baggaley in command."Du Pont" sailed from Newport
6 May 1919 to patrol off theAzores during the historic first transatlantic airplane flight, made by Navy seaplanes, then visitedBrest, France , before returning to New York15 June . She sailed10 July for theMediterranean and on the 27th reported to Commander, U.S. Naval Forces, European Waters, atConstantinople ,Turkey . She carried mail and passengers in connection with relief in easternEurope , and investigated conditions inLebanon ,Syria ,Egypt , andGreece . Returning to New York21 July 1920 , she was placed in reserve and operated with 50 percent of her complement in training duty along the Atlantic coast until placed out of commission at Philadelphia19 April 1922 .Recommissioned
1 May 1930 "Du Pont" operated along the east coast and in theCaribbean , in practice and exercises and on reserve training cruises. Between13 March and29 March 1931 she escorted "Arizona" (BB-39) with President H. C. Hoover embarked for visits toPonce, Puerto Rico , andSt. Thomas, Virgin Islands , then returned to tactical exercises with the fleet and occasional duty as a plane guard.Between
9 January and22 October 1932 , "Du Pont" cruised to the west coast, returning to Norfolk to joinRotating Reserve Squadron 19. She operated fromBoston trainingNaval Reservists until assigned temporary duty on patrol offCuba from September 1933 until February 1934.On
15 August 1934 "Du Pont" returned to active commission. She leftCharleston, South Carolina ,15 September , served as target vessel and plane guard in the Caribbean, then arrived at San Diego9 November . Based there she served in training and tactical development with the fleet, cruising toAlaska n waters andPearl Harbor on a problem during29 April 1935 –10 June 1935 . She sailed from the west coast27 April 1936 for the annual fleet problem held that year in the Canal Zone, then transited thePanama Canal , and arrived atJacksonville, Florida ,7 June for Naval Reserve training duty along the east coast. Arriving atPhiladelphia Navy Yard 29 September 1936 , "Du Pont" was placed out of commission14 January 1937 .World War II
With the outbreak of war in Europe "Du Pont" was recommissioned
16 October 1939 for duty on theNeutrality Patrol . She patrolled along the east coast, trained reservists, and spent several periods training withsubmarine s out of New London. Between7 July 1941 and26 February 1942 she escorted five vital convoys to NS Argentia, Newfoundland, andIceland , continuing escort and antisubmarine patrol duty in the Atlantic as far north as Argentia and south to the Caribbean. "Du Pont",15 March 1942 , rescued 30 survivors from a torpedoed merchantman. From8 May 1942 to19 January 1943 she guarded convoys from New York and Norfolk toKey West and Guantanamo Bay.After overhaul "Du Pont" returned to the Caribbean to escort tanker convoys between
Aruba ,Netherlands West Indies , and Guantanamo Bay until17 May 1943 when she sailed from Aruba to the Mediterranean. She arrived atAlgiers ,Algeria ,1 June , and put intoCasablanca 5 days later. The destroyer sailed on9 June for New York in the escort for "Card" (CVE-11), rescuing four men from downed aircraft during hunter-killer operations en route. She arrived at New York6 July .Between
17 July and12 September 1943 "Du Pont" made two voyages to theUnited Kingdom on convoy escort duty. On25 September she sailed from Norfolk for an antisubmarine patrol with a hunter-killer group centered on "Card". On6 October she joined the screen for "Bogue" (CVE-9) during exercises inCasco Bay andLong Island Sound . The group sailed from Norfolk14 November to give close support to aGibraltar -bound convoy. On the return passage one of "Bogue's" planes sighted and bombed a surfaced German submarine,U-172 ,12 December . "Du Pont" and "George E. Badger" (DD-196) continued the attack, driving the submarine to the surface on the morning of the following day. The destroyers opened fire and after the submarine's conning tower exploded, rescued 46 survivors including the captain as U-172 sank in coord|26|19|N|29|58|W|. "Du Pont" shared in the Presidential Unit Citation awarded the "Bogue" task group for distinguished success in operations against submarines."Du Pont" escorted a convoy to Gibraltar and back to Boston between
25 January and9 March 1944 , then returned to escort duty in the Caribbean. She left Norfolk11 June in the screen of "Albemarle" (AV-5) sailing by way of Casablanca toAvonmouth, England , arriving28 June . "Du Pont" returned to Boston13 July with "Albemarle" who was carrying casualties from theNormandy invasion.Fate
After overhaul and refresher training, "Du Pont" put into
Charleston Navy Yard 16 September 1944 to undergo conversion to an auxiliary vessel. Reclassified AG-80,25 September 1944 , she sailed from Charleston9 October and arrived at Key West 2 days later to act as target ship for Fleet Air Wing 5. She rescued two downed aviators24 November and 2 days later, transferred her doctor to a Norwegian merchantman to render emergency treatment. She continued to serve offFlorida aiding aviation training until1 April 1946 when she arrived at Boston. "Du Pont" was decommissioned2 May 1946 and sold12 March 1947 .In addition to the Presidential Unit Citation awarded to TG 21.13, "Du Pont" received three
battle star s for World War II service.References
*DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/d6/du_pont-ii.htm
External links
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/152.htm NavSource Photos]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.