USS ''Black Hawk'' (AD-9) was a destroyer tender.

Construction and commissioning

''Black Hawk'' was launched in 1913 as by William Cramp & Sons Ship and Engine Building Co., Philadelphia; purchased by the U.S. Navy on 3 December 1917; and commissioned 15 May 1918.

Service history

Post World War I operations

Assigned as tender and

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

to the Mine Force, ''Black Hawk'' departed Boston in June 1918 to take station at

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

, Scotland. She remained there until the end of World War I and then shifted her base to Kirkwall,

Orkney Islands Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north ...

, for the North Sea mine sweep. She returned to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

in November 1919 and served as

and tender for the Atlantic Fleet

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 ...

s in reserve at Philadelphia. After the installation of a torpedo workshop and other equipment she was designated a destroyer tender (AD-9) in November 1920 and reported as

of the Operative Squadron, Destroyer Flotillas, Atlantic Fleet. She served mainly in

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 Panamanian waters until June 1922 when she left Newport, Rhode Island, 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 ...

, for the

Asiatic Fleet The United States Asiatic Fleet was a fleet of the United States Navy during much of the first half of the 20th century. Before World War II, the fleet patrolled the Philippine Islands. Much of the fleet was destroyed by the Japanese by Februar ...

. ''Black Hawk'' remained in the Far East for twenty years during which she tended Destroyer Squadrons 5 (1922–40) and 29 (1940–42).

World War II

On 7 December 1941 ''Black Hawk'' was at Balikpapan, Borneo. She operated as a tender and repair ship at Java until 31 December 1941; at Darwin, Australia (January-3 February 1942); Java (3–20 February); and in Australian waters (26 February-29 May). Leaving

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

she steamed to Pearl Harbor, arriving 15 June 1942. She was assigned tender duty in Alaskan waters and arrived at

Kodiak Kodiak may refer to: Places *Kodiak, Alaska, a city located on Kodiak island * Kodiak, Missouri, an unincorporated community *Kodiak Archipelago, in southern Alaska *Kodiak Island, the largest island of the Kodiak archipelago ** Kodiak Launch Com ...

on 29 July 1942. Remaining there until 4 November 1942 she then returned to San Francisco, California, for repairs and overhaul. Completing her overhaul 16 March 1943, ''Black Hawk'' returned to Alaskan waters, arriving 10 April 1943. Except for a short stay at Pearl Harbor (30 September 1943 – 1 February 1944), she remained at

Adak Adak may refer to: Places *Adak Island, one of the Aleutian Islands ** Adak, Alaska, a town on the above island ** Adak Airport, airport serving the town ***Adak Army Airfield, original name of the airport (1942–c.1943) *** Davis Army Airfield, ...

until 21 March 1945. Following repairs at Alameda, California, she arrived at Pearl Harbor 30 May 1945; remained there until 11 September; and then proceeded to Okinawa. ''Black Hawk'' served in the Far East tending vessels at Okinawa and in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(specifically at Tsingtao)My father, Sherwin "Buddy" Eller, served as communications officer aboard the Black Hawk in 1946. I have a picture from an old photo album notated "Aboard the USS Blackhawk at Tsingtao, China in Spring, 1946 until 20 May 1946 when she headed home for the last time. Decommissioned on 15 August 1946, she was transferred to Maritime Commission on 4 September 1947.

Awards

* Victory Medal with "MOBILE BASE" clasp * American Defense Service Medal with "FLEET" clasp * American Campaign Medal * Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with one battle star * World War II Victory Medal * Navy Occupation Medal with "ASIA" clasp * China Service Medal

References

External links

NavSource Online: USS ''Black Hawk'' (AD-9)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black Hawk (AD-9) 1913 ships World War I mine warfare vessels of the United States World War II auxiliary ships of the United States Destroyer tenders of the United States Navy Tenders of the United States Navy Destroyer tenders of the United States Ships built by William Cramp & Sons Ships of the Aleutian Islands campaign