USS ''Hickox'' (DD-673) was a of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, named for Lieutenant Commander Ralph Hickox (1903–1942). ''Hickox'' was launched 4 July 1943 by Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company,

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 10 September 1943.

Namesake

Ralph Hickox was born in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

on 29 August 1903. Enlisting in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

on 23 September 1921, he was appointed to the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...

on 18 July 1923 and commissioned Ensign on 2 June 1927. Hickox served in a variety of ships and stations and was finally appointed commanding officer of the destroyer on 3 October 1941. He had been commissioned

Lieutenant Commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

on 1 July, of that year. ''Truxtun'' went aground in heavy seas off St. Lawrence, Newfoundland in

Placentia Bay Placentia Bay (french: Baie de Plaisance) is a body of water on the southeast coast of Newfoundland, Canada. It is formed by Burin Peninsula on the west and Avalon Peninsula on the east. Fishing grounds in the bay were used by native people long ...

on 18 February 1942, Hickox remained on the bridge directing rescue operations and was instrumental in effecting the rescue of many of the members of his crew. However, Hickox was swept from the bridge by the pounding seas and lost.

World War II

After shakedown 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 ...

, ''Hickox'' departed

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 ...

21 November and reported to

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 ...

12 December. Joining Admiral

Marc Mitscher Marc Andrew "Pete" Mitscher (January 26, 1887 – February 3, 1947) was a pioneer in naval aviation who became an admiral in the United States Navy, and served as commander of the Fast Carrier Task Force in the Pacific during the latter half of ...

's Fast Carrier Task Force (then

U.S. Fifth Fleet The Fifth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It has been responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean since 1995 after a 48-year hiatus. It shares a commander and headq ...

's TF 58, later

U.S. Third Fleet The United States Third Fleet is one of the numbered fleets in the United States Navy. Third Fleet's area of responsibility includes approximately fifty million square miles of the eastern and northern Pacific Ocean areas including the Bering ...

's TF 38) as part of the destroyer screen, ''Hickox'' sailed 16 January 1944 to participate in the first "neutralization" raids against

Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...

airfields. In the next few months she helped shepherd the powerful

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 ...

s through raids on Truk, the Marshalls, and

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

. On 1 April ''Hickox'' teamed up with the destroyer to destroy two small Japanese cargo vessels off

Woleai Woleai, also known as Oleai, is a coral atoll of twenty-two islands in the western Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in the Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia and is located approximately west-n ...

Island. She chalked up another enemy ship, a small picket boat, 13 June in the

Marianas The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...

. After guarding the carriers as their planes launched initial strikes on both

Wake Island Wake Island ( mh, Ānen Kio, translation=island of the kio flower; also known as Wake Atoll) is a coral atoll in the western Pacific Ocean in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, east of Guam, west of Honolulu, southeast of To ...

and

Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...

in early June, ''Hickox'' accompanied other units of the task force in patrolling western Marianas waters in anticipation of engagement with a large enemy surface force. These anticipations were met 19 June as the Battle of the Philippine Sea was joined. In this 2-day air struggle, the

Japanese fleet The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

lost 395 (92%) of its carrier planes, 31 (72%) of its

float plane A floatplane is a type of seaplane with one or more slender floats mounted under the fuselage to provide buoyancy. By contrast, a flying boat uses its fuselage for buoyancy. Either type of seaplane may also have landing gear suitable for land, m ...

s, and an estimated 50 land-based planes. During the famed "Marianas Turkey Shoot", as the Navy fondly termed it, ''Hickox'' was in on the kill of at least five aircraft and also rescued three splashed fliers. Japanese naval air never recovered from this defeat. For the rest of the summer she remained with TF 58 as the carriers launched preliminary air strikes against enemy positions on

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

and

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

. On 11 September ''Hickox'' joined Admiral

William F. Halsey William Frederick "Bull" Halsey Jr. (October 30, 1882 – August 16, 1959) was an American Navy admiral during World War II. He is one of four officers to have attained the rank of five-star fleet admiral of the United States Navy, the others ...

's Third Fleet in Philippine waters to protect carriers whose planes two days later launched initial strikes against the former American islands. After raids on

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

and

Formosa Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territorie ...

12–13 October, ''Hickox'' turned back to Philippine waters to participate in the Battle for Leyte Gulf, Japan's last desperate effort to resist the overwhelming American advance across the Pacific. In four separate battles 24–26 October the once-proud Japanese fleet was devastated by the loss of three

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 ...

s, 10

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

s, 4 carriers, 9 destroyers, and a

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 ...

. Through 7 November ''Hickox'' remained with the Third Fleet, under almost constant Japanese air attack, to screen air strikes against

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

before retiring to

Ulithi Ulithi ( yap, Wulthiy, , or ) is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about east of Yap. Overview Ulithi consists of 40 islets totaling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest i ...

. Rejoining the carriers 14 November, ''Hickox'' escorted them to further strikes in the Philippines and 11 December support of the

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...

landings. In the savage typhoon which struck the Philippines 17 December, ''Hickox'' lost steering control in howling winds estimated at , but regained power and control in time to shepherd a group of tankers to safety at Ulithi 23 December. Rejoining Task Force 58 1 February 1945, ''Hickox'' screened the carriers 16 February as they launched the first raids against

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

since the famed Halsey-Doolittle raid of April 1942. Further strikes against the Japanese home islands and in support of the already-launched Iwo Jima invasion kept ''Hickox'' at sea well into the spring. On 19 March the carrier was severely damaged by a a dive bomber and ''Hickox'' lowered her

whaleboat A whaleboat is a type of open boat that was used for catching whales, or a boat of similar design that retained the name when used for a different purpose. Some whaleboats were used from whaling ships. Other whaleboats would operate from the sh ...

and steamed in the listing ship's wake to rescue her crew. After rescuing some 70 men from the water, the daring destroyer sailed directly under the flaming carrier's fantail to rescue 18 men from the ship and 3 more from the water. In addition, ''Hickox''s effective antiaircraft fire drove off two more kamikaze attacks on the damaged ''Franklin''. After escorting the carrier to Ulithi 24 March, ''Hickox'' sailed 5 April to join support forces off Okinawa, where battle had been raging four days as American forces sought to take the Japanese bastion, last obstacle before invasion of the home islands. Off Okinawa ''Hickox'' engaged in screening and radar picket duties. While coming under fierce air attack, the battle-hardened DD gave as good as she received, downing and assisting in the kill of several Japanese planes. Detached from duty there 29 May, ''Hickox'' proceeded to Guam and from there sailed for home via San Pedro and Pearl Harbor. Steaming under the

Golden Gate Bridge The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The structure links the U.S. city of San Francisco, California—the northern tip of the San Francisco Pen ...

6 July, the veteran warrior underwent repairs, her first since departing the States 18 months earlier, and was still there when the long Pacific war ended 2 September with the signing of the armistice in

Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous a ...

. ''Hickox'' decommissioned and went into reserve at San Diego 10 December 1946.

1951–1957

''Hickox'' recommissioned 19 May 1951, following the outbreak of the

Korea War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...

that accelerated the need for seapower. She arrived

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, ...

, her new home port, 13 October to join the Atlantic Fleet. After tactical exercises along the coast and in the Caribbean, she and the other destroyers of Destroyer Squadron 20 (DesRon 20) sailed 6 September on what was to become an around-the-world cruise. ''Hickox'' spent two winter months on duty off Korea screening the fast carriers of Task Force 77, furnishing gunfire support, and patrolling along the peninsula. She and her sister ships returned to Newport in April 1953 via

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, and

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

to terminate their 7½-month cruise. Further exercises occupied her until 8 September 1954, when ''Hickox'' sailed for a 5-month cruise to Northern and

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 ...

Europe.

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

and fleet maneuvers as well as good-will visits consumed most of ''Hickox''s tour, see inset pics. Returning to the States 7 February 1955, ''Hickox'' made one more Mediterranean cruise in the summer of 1957 during which she stood by in the eastern Mediterranean to prevent further unrest and bloodshed in the wake of an attempted coup against King Hussein of

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

. Returning to the States 30 August, ''Hickox'' sailed to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

two weeks later and decommissioned there to join the Atlantic Reserve Fleet 20 December 1957.

ROKS ''Pusan''

''Hickox'' was transferred to

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

15 November 1968, where she served in the

Republic of Korea Navy The Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN; ko, 대한민국 해군), also known as the ROK Navy or South Korean Navy, is the naval warfare service branch of the South Korean armed forces, responsible for naval and amphibious operations. The ROK Navy in ...

as ROKS ''Pusan'', named after the city of

Pusan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...

. ''Pusan'' was stricken and broken up for scrap in 1989.

Awards

''Hickox'' received nine

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

s for

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 ...

service and two for

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

service.

References

External links

navsource.org: USS ''Hickox''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hickox (DD-673) Fletcher-class destroyers of the United States Navy Ships built in Kearny, New Jersey 1943 ships World War II destroyers of the United States Cold War destroyers of the United States Korean War destroyers of the United States Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the Republic of Korea Navy