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USS John Rodgers (DD-574)
Encyclopedia
USS John Rodgers (DD-574) was a of the United States Navy
. She was the second Navy ship of that name, in honor of three members of the Rodgers family who served in the Navy from the War of 1812
through World War I
. Later, John Rodgers served in the Mexican Navy
(1968–2001) as BAM Cuitlahuac, becoming the last of the Fletcher-class in active service.
John Rodgers was laid down by Consolidated Steel Corporation
, Orange, Texas
, 25 July 1941; launched
7 May 1942, sponsored by Miss Helen Perry Rodgers, daughter, great grandniece, and great granddaughter of the ship's namesakes; and commissioned
9 February 1943, Commander
H. O. Parish in command.
, John Rodgers departed Norfolk, Virginia
on 13 May escorting a convoy
through the Panama Canal
to Pearl Harbor
. Following a short training period there, the destroyer joined the screen of a fast carrier
task force
in August during damaging raids on Marcus Island, Tarawa
, and Wake Island
which also gathered invaluable information for future landings.
Then, in a joint cruiser
-destroyer force, she sailed for Empress Augusta Bay
to support landings on Bougainville
on 1 November. While screening the transports there a week later, she assisted in splashing a Japanese
torpedo plane.
From this action she joined the destroyer screen of the Southern Attack Force for the invasion of the Gilbert Islands
. She protected the transports during the landings on Betio Island
on 20 November and remained in the area supporting the brave marines ashore until Tarawa Atoll was secure.
. Profiting from experience gained in previous engagements, the Navy launched a well-coordinated attack on Kwajalein Atoll
on 31 January. In addition to providing antiaircraft and antisubmarine protection, John Rodgers supported the landing forces with gunfire which knocked out enemy troop concentrations and pill boxes. After the last resistance disappeared on 7 February, the destroyer patrolled the Marshall Island area until late March.
During April, she acted as escort for ships bringing men and weapons as American forces surprised the enemy at Hollandia
. Naval fire support helped ground troops to secure airfields giving the United States a closer base for future attacks on the remaining Japanese-held islands.
In May, John Rodgers operated out of Guadalcanal
screening convoys and bombarding enemy positions. Early in June she sailed to the Marshall Islands to prepare for the Marianas Campaign and departed Eniwetok on 17 July with the Guam
invasion force. Beginning on 21 July, John Rodgers fired more than 3,600 rounds at targets on Guam helping to knock out enemy troop concentrations and defensive works. The destroyer remained in the Mariana Islands
until 4 August and provided antisubmarine screen for transports bringing reinforcements.
In August, John Rodgers began preparations for the Morotai Invasion and departed Humboldt Bay
on 14 September to support and screen the landings there. After this operation, which provided the only Allied base from which to stage short-range fighters and bombers to Leyte, she remained on patrol duty in the area.
John Rodgers returned to Hollandia on 2 October to prepare for the long-awaited invasion of the Philippines. She got under way for Leyte on 13 October and arrived to support landings
7 days later. Now commanded by Commander J. G. Franklin, she screened the ships carrying General
Douglas MacArthur
and his troops back to the Philippines. As American fighting men moved inland and took two important airfields, the destroyer provided fire support and patrolled the area.
Meanwhile, risking all to save the Philippines, Japan committed her entire remaining naval force to battle. The U.S. Navy met this challenge by routing the Japanese in the decisive Battle for Leyte Gulf, and reducing their once powerful navy to a mere shadow of its former strength.
, California
, and a badly needed overhaul. Rejuvenated by early January 1945, the destroyer sailed west to join Admiral Raymond Spruance's Task Force 58 (TF 58) on 7 February for final offensive operations against the enemy. Carrier strikes on the Japanese homeland began 16 February and, in 2 days of relentless air attacks, destroyed nearly 800 enemy planes.
John Rodgers turned toward the Bonin Islands to screen a fast carrier task force
covering the invasion of Iwo Jima
on 19 February. Although air raids and heavy guns knocked out many enemy defensive works, the island was well enough fortified to make the Navy pay a high price in lives and weapons for this vital stopover for B-29 Superfortress
es raiding Tokyo
.
Following Iwo Jima
, John Rodgers resumed duty with the fast carrier task force raiding Japan while awaiting the invasion of Okinawa
, last and greatest amphibious operation of the Pacific war. John Rodgers operated with the carriers as they continued to bomb both Japan and Okinawa. She began screening operations as the first assault wave hit the beach on 1 April. She stood by protecting the carriers and splashed two kamikaze
s as they dived toward the flattops. She remained in the area supporting operations until Okinawa was finally secure on 21 June.
As the war closed, John Rodgers screened the 3rd Fleet during almost continuous raids on Japan. As the Flagship of Destroyer Squadron 25 (DesRon 25) since September 1943, the USS John Rodgers lead DesRon 25 in late July on the Suruga Wan antishipping sweep and penetrated to within 1½ miles of the Japanese shoreline, probably the closest approach made by any Allied surface ships during the entire war. Admiral William Halsey congratulated the division commander who had led the sweep on board John Rodgers: "Loud applause to you and your boys for a well planned sweep conducted in the best destroyer tradition. You have been enrolled on the emperor's blacklist."
Following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the subsequent collapse of Japan
, the indefatigable destroyer screened transports carrying occupation troops into Tokyo Bay
on 6 September. The triumphant entry into Tokyo was a fitting and well-deserved climax for John Rodgers who had fought in almost every major offensive campaign of the Pacific war
without losing a single man.
Her stay was brief, however, as she sailed for home and arrived Boston, Massachusetts
on 17 October. She moved to Charleston, South Carolina
on 3 November, decommissioned there on 25 May 1946, and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. She was moved to Philadelphia in 1954, and Orange, TX, in 1968.
19 Aug 1970. She served in the Mexican Navy
as ARM Cuitlahuac, named after Cuitláhuac
(?-1520), the second-to-last Aztec
emperor of the Mexica.
Cuitlahuac was retired by the Mexican Navy 16 July 2001, bringing to an end the 60-year history of the Fletcher-class ships.
Rodgers was acquired by Beauchamp Tower Corp., a small non-profit foundation based in Florida, in late 2006 with the stated purpose of returning her to the states as a museum in Mobile, Alabama. As of February 2009 Rodgers was moored unattended at a granary pier in Mexico and is subject to nearly $1 million in liens and penalties for unpaid towing and wharfage. The Mexican Government in 2008 announced plans to seize and dispose of her as a derelict.
On 2 August 2010, the Mexican Government declared the John Rodgers was abandoned property, and ordered her to be scrapped.
On 30 November 2010, John Rodgers was donated by the Mexican government to a civilian institution, that will turn the ship into a museum ship in Tampico, Mexico. As of January 2011, official transfer of John Rodgers had not occurred, as the Mexican government is awaiting security guarantees for the ship.
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...
. She was the second Navy ship of that name, in honor of three members of the Rodgers family who served in the Navy from the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
through World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Later, John Rodgers served in the Mexican Navy
Mexican Navy
The Mexican Navy is the naval branch of the Mexican military responsible for conducting naval operations. Its stated mission is "to use the naval force of the federation for the exterior defense, and to help with internal order". The Navy consists of about 56,000 men and women plus reserves, over...
(1968–2001) as BAM Cuitlahuac, becoming the last of the Fletcher-class in active service.
John Rodgers was laid down by Consolidated Steel Corporation
Consolidated Steel Corporation
Consolidated Steel Corporation was an American steel and shipbuilding business. Consolidated built ships during World War II in two locations: Wilmington, California and Orange, Texas...
, Orange, Texas
Orange, Texas
Orange is a city in Orange County, Texas, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 18,643. It is the county seat of Orange County, and is the easternmost city in Texas. Located on the Sabine River at the border with Louisiana, it is part of the Beaumont–Port Arthur...
, 25 July 1941; launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
7 May 1942, sponsored by Miss Helen Perry Rodgers, daughter, great grandniece, and great granddaughter of the ship's namesakes; 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...
9 February 1943, Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
H. O. Parish in command.
1943
After shakedown in the CaribbeanCaribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, John Rodgers departed Norfolk, Virginia
Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk, in Norfolk, Virginia, is a base of the United States Navy, supporting naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command, those operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean...
on 13 May escorting a convoy
Convoy
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...
through the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
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...
. Following a short training period there, the destroyer joined the screen of a fast carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
task force
Task force
A task force is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology...
in August during damaging raids on Marcus Island, Tarawa
Tarawa Atoll
Tarawa is an atoll in the central Pacific Ocean, previously the capital of the former British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands. It is the location of the capital of the Republic of Kiribati, South Tarawa...
, and Wake Island
Wake Island
Wake Island is a coral atoll having a coastline of in the North Pacific Ocean, located about two-thirds of the way from Honolulu west to Guam east. It is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States, administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior...
which also gathered invaluable information for future landings.
Then, in a joint 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...
-destroyer force, she sailed for Empress Augusta Bay
Empress Augusta Bay
Empress Augusta Bay is a major bay on the western side of the island of Bougainville, in Papua New Guinea, at . It is a major subsistence fishing area for the people of Bougainville. It is named after Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein, wife of German Emperor William II.In November 1943, the...
to support landings on Bougainville
Bougainville Island
Bougainville Island is the main island of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville of Papua New Guinea. This region is also known as Bougainville Province or the North Solomons. The population of the province is 175,160 , which includes the adjacent island of Buka and assorted outlying islands...
on 1 November. While screening the transports there a week later, she assisted in splashing a Japanese
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
torpedo plane.
From this action she joined the destroyer screen of the Southern Attack Force for the invasion of the Gilbert Islands
Gilbert Islands
The Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...
. She protected the transports during the landings on Betio Island
Battle of Tarawa
The Battle of Tarawa, code named Operation Galvanic, was a battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II, largely fought from November 20 to November 23, 1943. It was the first American offensive in the critical central Pacific region....
on 20 November and remained in the area supporting the brave marines ashore until Tarawa Atoll was secure.
1944
Late in December the destroyers sailed to Pearl Harbor to prepare for the next major offensive. John Rodgers departed Pearl Harbor on 22 January 1944, headed for the Marshall IslandsMarshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
. Profiting from experience gained in previous engagements, the Navy launched a well-coordinated attack on Kwajalein Atoll
Battle of Kwajalein
The Battle of Kwajalein was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought from 31 January-3 February 1944, on Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Employing the hard-learned lessons of the battle of Tarawa, the United States launched a successful twin assault on the main islands of...
on 31 January. In addition to providing antiaircraft and antisubmarine protection, John Rodgers supported the landing forces with gunfire which knocked out enemy troop concentrations and pill boxes. After the last resistance disappeared on 7 February, the destroyer patrolled the Marshall Island area until late March.
During April, she acted as escort for ships bringing men and weapons as American forces surprised the enemy at 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....
. Naval fire support helped ground troops to secure airfields giving the United States a closer base for future attacks on the remaining Japanese-held islands.
In May, John Rodgers operated out of Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
screening convoys and bombarding enemy positions. Early in June she sailed to the Marshall Islands to prepare for the Marianas Campaign and departed Eniwetok on 17 July with the 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...
invasion force. Beginning on 21 July, John Rodgers fired more than 3,600 rounds at targets on Guam helping to knock out enemy troop concentrations and defensive works. The destroyer remained in the Mariana Islands
Mariana Islands
The Mariana Islands are an arc-shaped archipelago made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the north-western Pacific Ocean between the 12th and 21st parallels north and along the 145th meridian east...
until 4 August and provided antisubmarine screen for transports bringing reinforcements.
In August, John Rodgers began preparations for the Morotai Invasion and departed Humboldt Bay
Teluk Yos Sudarso
Yos Sudarso Bay also known earlier as Humboldt Bay is a small bay in Indonesia. It is on the north coast of New Guinea, about 50 kilometers west of the border between Indonesia's province of Papua and the country of Papua New Guinea...
on 14 September to support and screen the landings there. After this operation, which provided the only Allied base from which to stage short-range fighters and bombers to Leyte, she remained on patrol duty in the area.
John Rodgers returned to Hollandia on 2 October to prepare for the long-awaited invasion of the Philippines. She got under way for Leyte on 13 October and arrived to support landings
Battle of Leyte
The Battle of Leyte in the Pacific campaign of World War II was the invasion and conquest of the island of Leyte in the Philippines by American and Filipino guerrilla forces under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, who fought against the Imperial Japanese Army in the Philippines led by...
7 days later. Now commanded by Commander J. G. Franklin, she screened the ships carrying General
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
and his troops back to the Philippines. As American fighting men moved inland and took two important airfields, the destroyer provided fire support and patrolled the area.
Meanwhile, risking all to save the Philippines, Japan committed her entire remaining naval force to battle. The U.S. Navy met this challenge by routing the Japanese in the decisive Battle for Leyte Gulf, and reducing their once powerful navy to a mere shadow of its former strength.
1945
Following this historic action, John Rodgers departed the Philippines 30 October for Mare Island Naval ShipyardMare 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...
, 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...
, and a badly needed overhaul. Rejuvenated by early January 1945, the destroyer sailed west to join Admiral Raymond Spruance's Task Force 58 (TF 58) on 7 February for final offensive operations against the enemy. Carrier strikes on the Japanese homeland began 16 February and, in 2 days of relentless air attacks, destroyed nearly 800 enemy planes.
John Rodgers turned toward the Bonin Islands to screen a fast carrier task force
Fast Carrier Task Force
The Fast Carrier Task Force was the main striking force of the United States Navy in the Pacific Ocean theatre of World War II.The Fast Carrier Task Force was known under two designations. The Navy made use of two sets of upper command structures for planning the upcoming operations...
covering 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...
on 19 February. Although air raids and heavy guns knocked out many enemy defensive works, the island was well enough fortified to make the Navy pay a high price in lives and weapons for this vital stopover for B-29 Superfortress
B-29 Superfortress
The B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States Air Forces in late-World War II and through the Korean War. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II...
es raiding Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
.
Following 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...
, John Rodgers resumed duty with the fast carrier task force raiding Japan while awaiting the invasion of Okinawa
Battle of Okinawa
The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was fought on the Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa and was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific War of World War II. The 82-day-long battle lasted from early April until mid-June 1945...
, last and greatest amphibious operation of the Pacific war. John Rodgers operated with the carriers as they continued to bomb both Japan and Okinawa. She began screening operations as the first assault wave hit the beach on 1 April. She stood by protecting the carriers and splashed two 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 as they dived toward the flattops. She remained in the area supporting operations until Okinawa was finally secure on 21 June.
As the war closed, John Rodgers screened the 3rd Fleet during almost continuous raids on Japan. As the Flagship of Destroyer Squadron 25 (DesRon 25) since September 1943, the USS John Rodgers lead DesRon 25 in late July on the Suruga Wan antishipping sweep and penetrated to within 1½ miles of the Japanese shoreline, probably the closest approach made by any Allied surface ships during the entire war. Admiral William Halsey congratulated the division commander who had led the sweep on board John Rodgers: "Loud applause to you and your boys for a well planned sweep conducted in the best destroyer tradition. You have been enrolled on the emperor's blacklist."
Following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the subsequent collapse of Japan
Surrender of Japan
The surrender of Japan in 1945 brought hostilities of World War II to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy was incapable of conducting operations and an Allied invasion of Japan was imminent...
, the indefatigable destroyer screened transports carrying occupation troops into Tokyo Bay
Tokyo Bay
is a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
on 6 September. The triumphant entry into Tokyo was a fitting and well-deserved climax for John Rodgers who had fought in almost every major offensive campaign of the Pacific war
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
without losing a single man.
Her stay was brief, however, as she sailed for home and arrived Boston, Massachusetts
Boston Navy Yard
The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. Established in 1801, it was officially closed as an active naval installation on July 1, 1974, and the property was...
on 17 October. She moved to Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston Naval Shipyard
Charleston Naval Shipyard was a U.S. Navy ship building and repair facility located along the west bank of the Cooper River, in North Charleston, South Carolina and part of Naval Base Charleston...
on 3 November, decommissioned there on 25 May 1946, and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. She was moved to Philadelphia in 1954, and Orange, TX, in 1968.
Mexican Navy
The ship was sold as-is to MexicoMexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
19 Aug 1970. She served in the Mexican Navy
Mexican Navy
The Mexican Navy is the naval branch of the Mexican military responsible for conducting naval operations. Its stated mission is "to use the naval force of the federation for the exterior defense, and to help with internal order". The Navy consists of about 56,000 men and women plus reserves, over...
as ARM Cuitlahuac, named after Cuitláhuac
Cuitláhuac
Cuitláhuac or Cuitláhuac was the 10th tlatoani of the Aztec city of Tenochtitlan for 80 days during the year Two Flint ....
(?-1520), the second-to-last Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
emperor of the Mexica.
Cuitlahuac was retired by the Mexican Navy 16 July 2001, bringing to an end the 60-year history of the Fletcher-class ships.
Rodgers was acquired by Beauchamp Tower Corp., a small non-profit foundation based in Florida, in late 2006 with the stated purpose of returning her to the states as a museum in Mobile, Alabama. As of February 2009 Rodgers was moored unattended at a granary pier in Mexico and is subject to nearly $1 million in liens and penalties for unpaid towing and wharfage. The Mexican Government in 2008 announced plans to seize and dispose of her as a derelict.
On 2 August 2010, the Mexican Government declared the John Rodgers was abandoned property, and ordered her to be scrapped.
On 30 November 2010, John Rodgers was donated by the Mexican government to a civilian institution, that will turn the ship into a museum ship in Tampico, Mexico. As of January 2011, official transfer of John Rodgers had not occurred, as the Mexican government is awaiting security guarantees for the ship.
External links
- navsource.org: USS John Rodgers
- hazegray.org: USS John Rodgers
- Beauchamp Tower corp
- Locate USS John Rodgers in GoogleEarth