USS Redhead (AMS-34)
Encyclopedia
USS Redhead (AMS-34/YMS-443) was a 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 the first U.S. Navy ship to be named for the Redhead duck
Redhead (duck)
The Redhead is a medium-sized diving duck, 37 cm long with an 84 cm wingspan.The adult male has a blue bill, a red head and neck, a black breast, yellow eyes and a grey back. The adult female has a brown head and body and a darker bluish bill with a black tip.The breeding habitat is...
.
History
YMS-443 was laid down 21 October 1943 by the Hiltebrant Dry Dock Co., Kingston, New YorkKingston, New York
Kingston is a city in and the county seat of Ulster County, New York, USA. It is north of New York City and south of Albany. It became New York's first capital in 1777, and was burned by the British Oct. 16, 1777, after the Battles of Saratoga...
; launched 5 May 1944; and commissioned 15 December 1944, Lt. (jg.) John P. Hanna in command.
World War II service
Following shakedownShakedown (testing)
A shakedown is a period of testing or a trial journey undergone by a ship, aircraft or other craft and its crew before being declared operational. Statistically, a proportion of the components will fail after a relatively short period of use, and those that survive this period can be expected to...
, YMS-443 operated off the U.S. East Coast until the spring when she transited 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...
10 April. She served briefly at 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...
, Eniwetok, and 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...
, then steamed further west for her initial combat duty, at Okinawa. Arriving 26 June 1945, she remained in the Ryukyus, engaged in minesweeping and antisubmarine patrol duties, with one interruption for availability in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
until 6 September 1945. Then ordered to Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
, she swept the Kochi Channel
Kochi, Kochi
is the capital city of Kōchi Prefecture on Shikoku island of Japan.Kōchi is the main city of the prefecture with over 40% of its population. As of May 31, 2008, the city had an estimated population of 340,515 and a density of...
, Wakayama and Hiro Wan areas until 12 February 1946 when, with a crew of men eligible for discharge, she departed Kobe
Kobe
, pronounced , is the fifth-largest city in Japan and is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture on the southern side of the main island of Honshū, approximately west of Osaka...
for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Arriving at 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...
, 27 March, she headed west again 27 November and operated at 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...
, Johnston Island, Eniwetok, 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 Woleai
Woleai
Woleai is a coral atoll of twenty-two islands in the eastern Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia and is located approximately west-northwest of Ifalik and northeast of Eauripik...
for the remainder of the year. Named Redhead and reclassified AMS-34, 18 February 1947, she continued her postwar clearing operations at Truk, Satawan
Satawan
Satawan Atoll is part of the Mortlock Islands in the Caroline Islands, administratively part of Chuuk State in the Federated States of Micronesia. Captain James Mortlock discovered two sets of islands on 19 and 27 November 1795. Confusingly, both were later called Mortlock Islands...
, 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...
, Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
, Ngulu Island, Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
, Malakal
Malakal
-Location:The city of Malakal is located in Malakal County, Upper Nile State, in the northeast of South Sudan, close to the International borders with the Republic of Sudan and with Ethiopia...
, Karor Island, Chichi Jima, and Yokosuka.
Korean War service
Remaining in Japanese waters throughout 1948, 1949, and into 1950, Redhead steamed for KoreaKorea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
on 12 July 1950 to help defend South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. A unit of Mine Division 31, Redhead served in 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...
TF 95 and, during the latter part of 1950 and the early months of 1951, operated off both coasts of the Korean Peninsula, sweeping moored mines with "O" type gear, acting as a mine destruction vessel and as a minesweep gear retriever.
Redhead receives the Presidential Unit Citation
Redhead received the Presidential Unit Citation for operations against enemy forces in Korea from 11 to 24 October 1950. Operating as part of task unit TU 95.61, Redhead assisted in sweeping and buoying a channel 2,000 yards wide and 14 miles in length, to the outer limits of WonsanWonsan
Wŏnsan is a port city and naval base in southeastern North Korea. It is the capital of Kangwŏn Province. The population of the city is estimated to have been 331,000 in 2000. Notable people from Wŏnsan include Kim Ki Nam, diplomat and Secretary of the Workers' Party.- History :The original name of...
Harbor, during which time heavy concentrations of enemy contact mines were swept. On 12 October, after aiding in the clearance of a channel through two heavily mined contact-type minefields, Redhead encountered a third field of extreme density and immediately conducted rescue operations for the survivors of and which had both been sunk by mines. Straddled continually by enemy shore battery fire for approximately a half hour, Redhead assisted in silencing at least three of the hostile shore batteries and successfully evaded many mines to carry out rescue activities. She then returned to the minesweeping assignment and completed the clearance of an area through "one of the heaviest concentrations of enemy mines ever encountered in naval history.
Varied minesweeping operations in Korean waters
During the latter part of 1951 and the early months of 1952, Redhead's operations took her to Pukhan Suido; Yasu, South KoreaSouth Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
; and Wonsan
Wonsan
Wŏnsan is a port city and naval base in southeastern North Korea. It is the capital of Kangwŏn Province. The population of the city is estimated to have been 331,000 in 2000. Notable people from Wŏnsan include Kim Ki Nam, diplomat and Secretary of the Workers' Party.- History :The original name of...
. There, in addition to her "O" type gear, she now streamed the acoustic hammerbox and "open and closed jigs" for use in sweeping acoustic and magnetic minefields, while incidental duties included air-sea rescue, night patrols, and investigation of suspicious fishing vessels and junks, which were often used by the Communists for minelaying.
Clearing mines under enemy fire
From 7 May until 3 June 1952, Redhead penetrated deep into WonsanWonsan
Wŏnsan is a port city and naval base in southeastern North Korea. It is the capital of Kangwŏn Province. The population of the city is estimated to have been 331,000 in 2000. Notable people from Wŏnsan include Kim Ki Nam, diplomat and Secretary of the Workers' Party.- History :The original name of...
Harbor to clear mines while close to heavy shore guns and permit entry of friendly bombardment vessels. Redhead conducted magnetic, acoustic, and moored check sweeps off Inchon during June and July 1952, and patrolled a night picket station off Songjin during August. Participating in operations off the east coast of Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, 12 August to 8 September, Redhead dispersed a concentration of enemy sampan
Sampan
A sampan is a relatively flat bottomed Chinese wooden boat from long. Some sampans include a small shelter on board, and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. Sampans are generally used for transportation in coastal areas or rivers, and are often used as traditional fishing boats...
s by scoring hits on two of the craft in the face of heavy enemy shore battery fire. Then from 12 to 15 October, she led her formation close to the shore at Kojo
Kojo
Kojo may refer to:* A variant for the Akan name for males born on Monday* The servant of Nandywog in Ruth Plumly Thompson's The Purple Prince of Oz* King Kojo, a novel by Ruth Plumly Thompson with illustrations by Marge...
, where, under intense enemy fire, they successfully completed their mission.
During 1953 Redhead continued minesweeping and night identification patrol duties off Wonsan, the Yang Do Islands, Cho To, Po Hang, and Daengyong Do.
Post-Korean War operations
Remaining in Korea after the July 1953 truce, Redhead continued to carry out night patrol duties off the eastern coast of Korea into the later summer of 1954. On 1 September 1954, she reported to the Yokosuka Ship Repair Facility and was reclassified minehunter AMCU-48. She was again reclassified, to MHC-48, on 7 February 1955. On 28 April 1955 she got underway for Long Beach, CaliforniaLong Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
, arriving 25 May.
She then proceeded to Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, where she joined the Harbor Defense unit, 13th Naval District. Through 1956 and into 1957 she carried out channel investigation in the Straits of Juan De Fuca
Juan de Fuca
Ioánnis Fokás , better known by the Spanish transcription of his name, Juan de Fuca , was a Greek-born maritime pilot in the service of the king of Spain, Philip II...
and Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
. In October 1957, however, she shifted to Astoria, Oregon
Astoria, Oregon
Astoria is the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Situated near the mouth of the Columbia River, the city was named after the American investor John Jacob Astor. His American Fur Company founded Fort Astoria at the site in 1811...
, where she decommissioned 6 December 1957 and joined the Columbia River Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet, where she remained until struck from the Navy list
Navy List
A Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a country....
1 November 1959.