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USS Howorth (DD-592)
Encyclopedia
USS Howorth (DD-592) was a Fletcher-class
destroyer
built for the United States Navy
during World War II
. She was laid down on 26 November 1941, launched on 10 January 1943, and commissioned
on 3 April 1944 at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
in Bremerton, Washington
. She was the 161st ship of her class. Howorth was named after William L. Howorth, a US Navy sailor who participated in the sinking of the CSS Albemarle
during the Civil War
.
carrying Marines
to Pearl Harbor
. The convoy arrived after seven days at sea, and Howorth remained in Hawaii
until 25 August, at which point she sailed for Hollandia
, along with the ammunition ship
Sangay
(AE-10). Howorth was assigned to Destroyer Division 41 (DesDiv 41), of the 7th Fleet. Her first combat experience was in the Solomon Islands
on anti-submarine and escort duty.
, and did not see direct action during the battle. Howorth made several convoy trips to Kossol Roads, Guam
, and Manus, before returning to the Philippines for the battle at Ormoc
on 7 December 1944. Howorth also participated in the Battle of Mindoro
, during which she was attacked by several kamikaze
s, one of which slightly damaged Howorths mast before the plane crashed into the sea.
On 9 January 1945, the Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
began. Howorth arrived with the first reinforcement group four days later on the 13th, which came under kamikaze attacks while en route. Howorth provided fire support to the invasion forces, provided anti-aircraft support for the invasion fleet, and patrolled the flanks of the fleet.
Howorth also took part in the invasion of Iwo Jima
, arriving on 19 February. Howorth again provided fire support and anti-aircraft protection during the invasion and subsequent fighting on Iwo Jima
. On 14 March, Howorth departed Iwo Jima for a short rest at Ulithi
.
bound for Okinawa, arriving on 1 April. After arrival at Okinawa, she again provided fire support and anti-aircraft defense. On her first day off Okinawa, Howorth was moving to her station with the cruiser
St. Louis
(CL-49) and destroyer Newcomb
(DD-586), when she was attacked by eight kamikazes. One made it through the ships' anti-aircraft fire and struck Howorth in her superstructure, killing nine men and causing a fire that was quickly put out.
Following the damage sustained at Okinawa, Howorth returned to the United States for repairs. She arrived at Mare Island Naval Shipyard
in California
on 2 May 1945. Repairs were completed by early July, and after a brief shakedown cruise in July, she set sail for Pearl Harbor on 15 July. The ship was en route to Adak
, Alaska
on 15 August, when the news of the Japanese surrender reached the ship.
Howorth arrived in Yokohama
, Japan
on 17 September, where she escorted convoys back from Japan. Her final trip from Japan was on 11 November, and arrived in San Francisco on the 28th of that month. The ship was decommissioned on 30 April 1946, and was placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet. She remained in reserve until 1962 when she was sunk off San Diego as a torpedo
target. Howorth received five battle stars for her service during World War II
.
Fletcher class destroyer
The Fletcher class were a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. The class was designed in 1939 as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
built for the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. She was laid down on 26 November 1941, launched on 10 January 1943, and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on 3 April 1944 at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...
in Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. The population was 38,790 at the 2011 State Estimate, making it the largest city on the Olympic Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerton Annex of Naval Base Kitsap...
. She was the 161st ship of her class. Howorth was named after William L. Howorth, a US Navy sailor who participated in the sinking of the CSS Albemarle
CSS Albemarle
CSS Albemarle was an ironclad ram of the Confederate Navy , named for a town and a sound in North Carolina and a county in Virginia...
during the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
World War II service
After a shakedown cruise, Howorth was assigned to Destroyer Squadron 21 (DesRon 21). The flotilla set sail on 22 July 1944, as part of the escort for a convoyConvoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
carrying Marines
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
to Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
. The convoy arrived after seven days at sea, and Howorth remained in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
until 25 August, at which point she sailed for Hollandia
Jayapura
Jayapura City is the capital of Papua province, Indonesia, on the island of New Guinea. It is situated on Yos Sudarso Bay . Its approximate population in 2002 was 200,000....
, along with the ammunition ship
Ammunition ship
An ammunition ship is a warship specially configured to carry ammunition, usually for Navy ships and aircraft. Their cargo handling systems, designed with extreme safety in mind, include ammunition hoists with airlocks between decks, and mechanisms for flooding entire compartments with sea water in...
Sangay
USS Sangay (AE-10)
The USS Sangay was a ship of the United States Navy which saw service during World War II in the Pacific. A munitions carrier, the Sangay was named after the Sangay volcano in Ecuador, a tongue-in-cheek reference to what would happen if a munitions ship was hit by enemy fire...
(AE-10). Howorth was assigned to Destroyer Division 41 (DesDiv 41), of the 7th Fleet. Her first combat experience was in the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
on anti-submarine and escort duty.
The Philippines
Howorth arrived off Leyte on 22 October, three days after the initial landings began. She guarded the transport anchorages during the Battle of Leyte GulfBattle of Leyte Gulf
The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the "Battles for Leyte Gulf", and formerly known as the "Second Battle of the Philippine Sea", is generally considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history.It was fought in waters...
, and did not see direct action during the battle. Howorth made several convoy trips to Kossol Roads, Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
, and Manus, before returning to the Philippines for the battle at Ormoc
Battle of Ormoc Bay
The Battle of Ormoc Bay was a series of air-sea battles between Imperial Japan and the United States in the Camotes Sea in the Philippines between 11 November and 21 December 1944, part of the Battle of Leyte in the Pacific campaign of World War II. The battles resulted from Japanese operations to...
on 7 December 1944. Howorth also participated in the Battle of Mindoro
Battle of Mindoro
The Battle of Mindoro was a battle in World War II between forces of the United States and Japan, in Mindoro Island in the central Philippines, from 13-16 December 1944, during the Philippines campaign....
, during which she was attacked by several kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
s, one of which slightly damaged Howorths mast before the plane crashed into the sea.
On 9 January 1945, the Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
The Liberation of Lingayen Gulf was an Allied amphibious operation in the Philippines during World War II. In the early morning of 9 January 1945, an Allied force commanded by Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf began approaching the shores of Lingayen. U.S...
began. Howorth arrived with the first reinforcement group four days later on the 13th, which came under kamikaze attacks while en route. Howorth provided fire support to the invasion forces, provided anti-aircraft support for the invasion fleet, and patrolled the flanks of the fleet.
Iwo Jima
Howorth also took part in the invasion of Iwo Jima
Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima , or Operation Detachment, was a major battle in which the United States fought for and captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Empire of Japan. The U.S...
, arriving on 19 February. Howorth again provided fire support and anti-aircraft protection during the invasion and subsequent fighting on Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
. On 14 March, Howorth departed Iwo Jima for a short rest at Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
.
Okinawa
Howorth was assigned to screen a convoy from UlithiUlithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
bound for Okinawa, arriving on 1 April. After arrival at Okinawa, she again provided fire support and anti-aircraft defense. On her first day off Okinawa, Howorth was moving to her station with the cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
St. Louis
USS St. Louis (CL-49)
USS St. Louis , the lead ship of her class of light cruiser, was the fifth ship of the United States Navy named after the city of St. Louis, Missouri. In January 1951, she was commissioned into the Brazilian Navy as Almirante Tamandaré....
(CL-49) and destroyer Newcomb
USS Newcomb (DD-586)
USS Newcomb was a Fletcher-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was the only ship named for Commodore Frank H. Newcomb of the United States Revenue Cutter Service, Congressional Gold Medal recipient from the Spanish-American War.Newcomb was laid down 19 March 1943 by...
(DD-586), when she was attacked by eight kamikazes. One made it through the ships' anti-aircraft fire and struck Howorth in her superstructure, killing nine men and causing a fire that was quickly put out.
Following the damage sustained at Okinawa, Howorth returned to the United States for repairs. She arrived at Mare Island Naval Shipyard
Mare Island Naval Shipyard
The Mare Island Naval Shipyard was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located 25 miles northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates the peninsula shipyard from the main portion of the...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
on 2 May 1945. Repairs were completed by early July, and after a brief shakedown cruise in July, she set sail for Pearl Harbor on 15 July. The ship was en route to Adak
Adak, Alaska
Adak , formerly Adak Station, is a city in the Aleutians West Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 326. It is the westernmost municipality in the United States and the southernmost city in Alaska. The city is the former location of the Adak Army Base and Adak...
, Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
on 15 August, when the news of the Japanese surrender reached the ship.
Post-war
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on 17 September, where she escorted convoys back from Japan. Her final trip from Japan was on 11 November, and arrived in San Francisco on the 28th of that month. The ship was decommissioned on 30 April 1946, and was placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet. She remained in reserve until 1962 when she was sunk off San Diego as a torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
target. Howorth received five battle stars for her service during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.