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USS Pruitt (DD-347)
Encyclopedia
USS Pruitt (DD-347/DM-22/AG–101) was a Clemson-class
destroyer
in the United States Navy
following World War I
. She was named for Cpl. John H. Pruitt
, USMC, World War I
Medal of Honor
recipient.
, Bath, Maine
; launched 2 August 1920; sponsored by Mrs. Belle Pruitt; and commissioned 2 September 1920, Lt. M. R. Derx in command.
During the interwar period, Pruitt operated in the Western Pacific, protecting American interests in the Far East
. She was converted to a light minelayer
and according redesignated DM-22 on 30 June 1937. LTJG Richard O'Kane
, who would win the Medal of Honor
as the most successful United States submarine officer of World War II, served aboard Pruit from 1935 through shipyard conversion to a minelayer.
A unit of Mine Division 1, she was undergoing overhaul at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard on 7 December 1941, with future Rear Admiral
George Stephen Morrison
onboard. At 0753 Japanese planes flew over the base at low altitude and within minutes some of Pruitt's crew had sprinted to other ships and fired their first bullets under war conditions. Others manned fire hoses and helped distribute ammunition during the attack on Pearl Harbor
. At the end of January 1942, Pruitt completed overhaul and took up offshore patrol and minelaying duties with the Hawaiian Sea Frontier
. Continuing operations there into June, she sailed, on the 19th, for Bremerton, Washington
, from where she steamed to the Aleutian Islands for minelaying operations and escort assignments out of Kodiak. Into the fall she continued operations in the Aleutians, interrupted by regular runs back to the Hawaiian Islands, and then took up escort duties along the west coast.
With the new year, 1943, Pruitt shifted south and trained with the 4th Marine Raider Battalion off Southern California
. Further escort assignments followed and on 24 April she departed San Francisco, California
to return to the Aleutians. Sailing with TF 51, she steamed to Cold Bay, thence to Attu
. On 11 May she arrived off the latter, escorted landing craft into Massacre Bay
, and then dispatched the boat waves. After the initial assault she took up antisubmarine and anti-aircraft patrols. Later shifting to Holtz Bay
, she continued to perform patrol duties and to escort smaller craft from Amchitka
and Adak until the end of the month.
On 6 June Pruitt returned to San Francisco and coastal escort duties. Through the summer she steamed along the coast from Alaska to Southern California and in September got underway for the Solomon Islands
. At the end of October she arrived at Purvis Bay
, Florida Island, whence she steamed to Bougainville
.
Taking on mines at Acre, New Hebrides
, she planted mines along Bougainville’s southern coast on the 2nd, 8th, and 24 November in support of operations on Cape Torokina
, then in December shifted to escort assignments between and among the Solomons, New Hebrides
, New Caledonia
, and the Societies.
Pruitt returned to San Francisco 18 July 1944, underwent overhaul, and in October sailed back to Pearl Harbor where she began submarine training operations. Detached toward the end of November, she patrolled off Midway
29 November – 15 January 1945. On 22 January she resumed operations with the Training Command, Submarine Force and for the remainder of World War II trained submarines southwest of Oahu
.
Redesignated AG–101, 5 June 1945, she was ordered inactivated three months later and on 21 September she sailed east, arriving at Philadelphia in October.
5 December 1945. She was later scrapped at the Philadelphia Navy Yard.
Clemson class destroyer
The Clemson class was a series of 156 destroyers which served with the United States Navy from after World War I through World War II.The Clemson-class ships were commissioned by the United States Navy from 1919 to 1922, built by Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, New York Shipbuilding...
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...
in 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...
following 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...
. She was named for Cpl. John H. Pruitt
John H. Pruitt
-External links:...
, USMC, 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...
Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient.
History
Pruitt was laid down 25 June 1919 by Bath Iron WorksBath Iron Works
Bath Iron Works is a major American shipyard located on the Kennebec River in Bath, Maine, United States. Since its founding in 1884 , BIW has built private, commercial and military vessels, most of which have been ordered by the United States Navy...
, Bath, Maine
Bath, Maine
Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 9,266. It is the county seat of Sagadahoc County. Located on the Kennebec River, Bath is a port of entry with a good harbor. The city is popular with tourists, many drawn by its...
; launched 2 August 1920; sponsored by Mrs. Belle Pruitt; and commissioned 2 September 1920, Lt. M. R. Derx in command.
During the interwar period, Pruitt operated in the Western Pacific, protecting American interests in the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
. She was converted to a light minelayer
Minelayer
Minelaying is the act of deploying explosive mines. Historically this has been carried out by ships, submarines and aircraft. Additionally, since World War I the term minelayer refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines...
and according redesignated DM-22 on 30 June 1937. LTJG Richard O'Kane
Richard O'Kane
Rear Admiral Richard Hetherington “Dick” O'Kane was a United States Navy submarine commander in World War II, who received a Medal of Honor for his service on the...
, who would win the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
as the most successful United States submarine officer of World War II, served aboard Pruit from 1935 through shipyard conversion to a minelayer.
A unit of Mine Division 1, she was undergoing overhaul at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard on 7 December 1941, with future Rear Admiral
Rear admiral (United States)
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. The uniformed services of the United States are unique in having two grades of rear admirals.- Rear admiral :...
George Stephen Morrison
George Stephen Morrison
George Stephen Morrison was a Rear Admiral and naval aviator in the United States Navy. Morrison was commander of the U.S. naval forces in the Gulf of Tonkin during the Gulf of Tonkin Incident of August 1964...
onboard. At 0753 Japanese planes flew over the base at low altitude and within minutes some of Pruitt's crew had sprinted to other ships and fired their first bullets under war conditions. Others manned fire hoses and helped distribute ammunition during the attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
. At the end of January 1942, Pruitt completed overhaul and took up offshore patrol and minelaying duties with the Hawaiian Sea Frontier
Hawaiian Sea Frontier
The Hawaiian Sea Frontier was a formation of the United States Navy established during World War II. It was organized to defend the island of Oahu. Vice Admiral David W. Bagley served as COMHAWSEAFRON from 4 April 1942 until July 1943....
. Continuing operations there into June, she sailed, on the 19th, for 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...
, from where she steamed to the Aleutian Islands for minelaying operations and escort assignments out of Kodiak. Into the fall she continued operations in the Aleutians, interrupted by regular runs back to the Hawaiian Islands, and then took up escort duties along the west coast.
With the new year, 1943, Pruitt shifted south and trained with the 4th Marine Raider Battalion off Southern 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...
. Further escort assignments followed and on 24 April she departed San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
to return to the Aleutians. Sailing with TF 51, she steamed to Cold Bay, thence to Attu
Attu Island
Attu is the westernmost and largest island in the Near Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, making it the westernmost point of land relative to Alaska and the United States. It was the site of the only World War II land battle fought on the incorporated territory of the United States ,...
. On 11 May she arrived off the latter, escorted landing craft into Massacre Bay
Massacre Bay
Massacre Bay is an inlet on the southeast coast of the island of Attu in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska.Massacre Bay was among the landing sites of United States Army troops in the Battle of Attu in May 1943, which led to the recapture of the island from the Japanese during World War...
, and then dispatched the boat waves. After the initial assault she took up antisubmarine and anti-aircraft patrols. Later shifting to Holtz Bay
Holtz Bay
Holtz Bay is an inlet on the northeast coast of the island of Attu in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska.Holtz Bay was among the landing sites of United States Army troops in the Battle of Attu on 11 May 1943, which led to the recapture of the island from the Japanese during World War...
, she continued to perform patrol duties and to escort smaller craft from Amchitka
Amchitka
Amchitka is a volcanic, tectonically unstable island in the Rat Islands group of the Aleutian Islands in southwest Alaska. It is part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. The island is about long, and from wide...
and Adak until the end of the month.
On 6 June Pruitt returned to San Francisco and coastal escort duties. Through the summer she steamed along the coast from Alaska to Southern California and in September got underway for 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...
. At the end of October she arrived at Purvis Bay
Purvis Bay
Purvis Bay is located in the Florida Islands, which are part of the Solomon Islands. The bay was used by the US Navy during World War Two....
, Florida Island, whence she steamed to 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...
.
Taking on mines at Acre, New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
, she planted mines along Bougainville’s southern coast on the 2nd, 8th, and 24 November in support of operations on Cape Torokina
Cape Torokina
Cape Torokina is a promontory at the north end of Empress Augusta Bay, along the central part of the southeastern coast of Bougainville, in Papua New Guinea....
, then in December shifted to escort assignments between and among the Solomons, New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, and the Societies.
Pruitt returned to San Francisco 18 July 1944, underwent overhaul, and in October sailed back to Pearl Harbor where she began submarine training operations. Detached toward the end of November, she patrolled off Midway
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way between Honolulu, Hawaii, and Tokyo, Japan. Unique among the Hawaiian islands, Midway observes UTC-11 , eleven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and one hour...
29 November – 15 January 1945. On 22 January she resumed operations with the Training Command, Submarine Force and for the remainder of World War II trained submarines southwest of Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
.
Redesignated AG–101, 5 June 1945, she was ordered inactivated three months later and on 21 September she sailed east, arriving at Philadelphia in October.
Fate
Decommissioning 16 November 1945, she was struck from the Navy ListNaval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
5 December 1945. She was later scrapped at the Philadelphia Navy Yard.