USS ''Calcaterra'' (DE-390) was an built for the U.S. Navy during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. She served in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

and the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

and provided destroyer escort protection against

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

and air attack for Navy vessels and convoys. Post-war she was called up again for duty, this time as a radar picket ship.

Namesake

Herbert A. Calcaterra was born on 7 April 1920 in

Escalon, California Escalon (Spanish: ''Escalón'', meaning "Step") is a city in San Joaquin County, California, United States. The population was 7,132 at the 2010 census, up from 5,963 at the 2000 census. Escalon is a Spanish word meaning "stepping stones." The na ...

. He enlisted in the Navy on 14 December 1939. Motor Machinist's Mate First Class Calcaterra was commended 7 July 1942 for his performance as a member of the crew of the , and was posthumously awarded the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

for conspicuous gallantry as a member of a 3" gun crew until fatally wounded during an action against an armed enemy patrol ship on 4 September 1942.

Construction and commissioning

She was launched 18 August 1943 by

Brown Shipbuilding The Brown Shipbuilding Company was founded in Houston, Texas, in 1942 as a subsidiary of Brown and Root (now KBR) by brothers Herman and George R. Brown to build ships for the U.S. Navy during World War II. Brown Shipbuilding Company ranked 68th ...

Co.,

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas; sponsored by Mrs. G. M. Stites; commissioned 17 November 1943 and reported to the Atlantic Fleet.

World War II North Atlantic operations

Assigned to the vital duty of escorting convoys between the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

, ''Calcaterra'' made eight round trips between 13 February 1944 and 10 June 1945. The ships she guarded provided the men and equipment which insured the success of the invasions of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Twice the escort vessel met the challenge of enemy opposition when she

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...

d a suspected

contact and fired on two

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...

. Her alert action helped prevent damage or loss to the ships under convoy.

Transfer to the Pacific Fleet

On 9 July 1945 ''Calcaterra'' headed for the Pacific to tackle a new job, but the war ended shortly before her arrival at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...

. She lifted passengers back to the west coast, then sailed on to the Atlantic. ''Calcaterra'' was placed out of commission in reserve at Green Cove Springs, Florida on 1 May 1946. Reclassified DER-390 on 28 October 1954, ''Calcaterra'' was converted to a radar picket ship at

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, and recommissioned on 12 September 1955. Based on

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

, the radar picket ship almost continuously served in the violent weather of the North Atlantic once lost all life lines and ready service box's, 5" gun mount was lifted of her gimbals that a crane had to be used to remount it, to maintain her link in the extension of the Distant Early Warning system. Except for exercises with the fleet in the Atlantic and

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

, and a cruise to Europe Ship would go out on picket 30 days than 2 weeks in the states (For the married men,) out for 30 days picket than 2 weeks in Europe ended up once in Antwerp Belgium(August–October 1958), ''Calcaterra'' continued this duty through 1960.

Final decommissioning

''Calcaterra'' was struck from the

Navy list A Navy Directory, formerly the 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 author ...

on 2 July 1973, sold on 14 May 1974, and broken up for scrap. The pickets north of Cuba, Dog Rocks, were 30 days out, two days in Key West or Miami, 30 days out then 28 days in Newport, year after year. On many pickets the ship was used as a halfway point for people escaping from Cuba. They were fed then picked up by the Coast Guard. When the ship hit heavy seas headed south for a picket the forward 3-inch gun was ripped off the deck and thrown up onto the 01 level and the forward spaces were flooded. The gun was lashed down, the deck covered with beams and canvas, the water pumped out and the ship proceeded south. About a month later the ship was repaired at a private yard in Boston. During the years 1965 - 1966 and 1967 - 1968 Calcaterra was assigned to Operation Deep Freeze Task Force 43. Operating out of Dunedin, New Zealand Calcaterra regularly sailed into the Southern Ocean, 60 degrees South, 162 degrees East and performed weather picket duties. Calcaterra circumnavigated the world twice during these deployments. After the Pueblo incident Calcaterra was refitted as a communications ferret and served in that capacity for several years.

References

External links

NavSource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive - USS Calcaterra (DE 390)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Calcaterra (DE-390) Edsall-class destroyer escorts World War II frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States Ships built in Houston 1943 ships