USS ''Black'' (DD-666) was a ''Fletcher''-class

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

of the United States Navy.

Namesake

Hugh David Black was born on 29 June 1903 in

Oradell, New Jersey Oradell is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the borough's population was 8,244,, an increase of 266 from the 2010 United States census, 2 ...

. He was appointed to the United States Naval Academy in 1922, graduated in 1926, and served on board , mainly in the Far East, between 1926 and 1928. During the next few years, he was an officer on board the

battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

, the gunboat and the

s , and . Lieutenant (junior grade) Black was assigned to the Naval Training Station, San Diego, California, in 1933 then served on board the destroyer and from 1935 to 1938 commanded the minesweeper . Lieutenant Black had duty with the Navy's Bureau of Navigation, in Washington, D.C., in 1938 and attended Harvard University for two years, beginning mid-1938. He was executive officer of the new destroyer in 1940 into 1941. In March 1941, he took command of the destroyer . Lieutenant Commander Black was killed when ''Jacob Jones'' was sunk by the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

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 ...

''U-578'' on 28 February 1942.

Construction and commissioning

''Black'' was launched 28 March 1943 by

Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. The Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company was a United States shipyard, active from 1917 to 1948. It was founded during World War I to build ships for the United States Shipping Board. During World War II, it built ships as part of the U.S. Gov ...

Kearny, N.J. Kearny ( ) is a town in the western part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States and a suburb of Newark. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 40,684,commissioned 21 May 1943.

Service history

World War II

''Black'' proceeded to Pearl Harbor, via San Diego, Calif., and reported for duty on 15 November 1943. Shortly thereafter, she steamed to Tarawa and was assigned screening duty off Tarawa Lagoon entrance. She continued this duty until 22 January 1944, with occasional diversion as escort for transports to the 180th meridian. On 15 January 1944 she rescued 22 survivors of two downed patrol aircraft 50 miles (95 km) south of

Jaluit Jaluit Atoll ( Marshallese: , , or , ) is a large coral atoll of 91 islands in the Pacific Ocean and forms a legislative district of the Ralik Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its total land area is , and it encloses a lagoon with an area of . Most ...

. After seeing her first combat during the invasion of Majuro Atoll, Marshall Islands (29 January–8 February 1944), ''Black'' rendered fine service in *the

Aitape Aitape is a small town of about 18,000 people on the north coast of Papua New Guinea in the Sandaun Province. It is a coastal settlement that is almost equidistant from the provincial capitals of Wewak and Vanimo, and marks the midpoint of the ...

and

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, New Guinea, landings (22 April – 7 May); * Saipan invasion (11 June – 4 July); * capture of Guam (21 July – 10 August); *and Leyte operation (20–21 October and 13–14 November). The destroyer then returned to San Francisco, Calif. for repairs which lasted until February 1945. Repairs completed, she sailed to Ulithi where, upon arrival on 13 March, she reported to the Fast Carrier Task Force (then TF 58) for duty. Between 17 March and 30 May ''Black'' participated in the

5th Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash tha ...

and 3rd Fleet raids in support of the Okinawa operation. After a period of rest and upkeep at Leyte Gulf, ''Black'' took part in the 3rd Fleet operations against Japan (10 July – 15 August 1945) and, on 15 August, the day Japan agreed to surrender, was present during one of the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...

's final '' kamikaze'' attacks. After the cessation of hostilities ''Black'' remained off

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

assisting in the occupation until 1 September when, as a unit of TF 72, she departed with the occupation forces for Inchon, Korea. She served in the Far East on occupation duty until 10 November 1945, when she left Tsingtao, China, for the United States. Upon arrival, ''Black'' reported for inactivation and was placed out of commission in reserve on 5 August 1946 at

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1951-1969

''Black'' was recommissioned on 18 July 1951 and reported to the Atlantic Fleet. She participated in type and fleet operations along the eastern seaboard and in the

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 ...

until 10 January 1953 when she departed Norfolk, Va. for the Pacific, via the Panama Canal, on a round-the-world cruise. She arrived off the coast of Korea on 4 March and two days later commenced harassing fire on the beach. ''Black'' continued her Korean operations until 4 June 1953. On 9 June, ''Black'' departed for Norfolk, via the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...

, arriving on the east coast 6 August. Until January 1955, she conducted type training, fleet operations, and plane guard duties along the east coast and in the Caribbean. In January 1955 ''Black'' transferred to the Pacific Fleet arriving at Long Beach 26 January. Over the next decade and a half, ''Black'' regularly crossed the great ocean to take her place as a unit of the 7th Fleet, serving as an

aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...

escort, taking part in

antisubmarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typic ...

exercises, patrolling in the Taiwan Strait and visiting ports throughout the Far East. Her tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth post-World War II Western Pacific deployments, beginning in early 1965, included Vietnam War service. Among her duties during this time were early participation in

Operation Market Time Operation Market Time was the United States Navy, Republic of Vietnam Navy and Royal Australian Navy operation begun in 1965 to stop the flow of troops, war material, and supplies by sea, coast, and rivers, from North Vietnam into parts of Sout ...

coastal patrol and interdiction operations, providing naval gunfire support for forces ashore and screening carriers as they took the war to the North Vietnamese enemy. ''Black''s last overseas cruise ended in July 1969. She was decommissioned in late September of that year and sold for scrapping in February 1971.

Awards

''Black'' received six battle stars for her World War II service and two battle stars for service off Korea.

References

* *

External links

history.navy.mil/photos: USS ''Black''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black (Dd-666) World War II destroyers of the United States Cold War destroyers of the United States Korean War destroyers of the United States Vietnam War destroyers of the United States Ships built in Kearny, New Jersey 1943 ships Fletcher-class destroyers of the United States Navy