USS ''Clemson'' (DD-186/AVP-17/AVD-4/APD-31) was the lead ship of her class of

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 which served in the United States Navy during World War II. She was named for

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

Henry A. Clemson (1820–1846), who was lost at sea when the brig capsized in a sudden squall off Vera Cruz on 8 December 1846 while chasing a blockade runner. Entering service in 1919, the ship had a brief active life before placed in reserve in 1922. Converted to an aircraft tender in 1939, the ship reactivated in 1940. In 1943, ''Clemson'' reconverted to a destroyer and served in the

Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade ...

during World War II. In 1944, the ship was converted into a high speed transport and transferred to the Pacific taking part in several invasions. Following the end of the war, the ship was taken out of service again and sold for scrapping in 1946. As of 2019, she is the only ship in the United States Navy to have received the name ''Clemson''.

Construction and commissioning

''Clemson'' was launched 5 September 1918 by

Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS), a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, is the largest industrial employer in Virginia, and sole designer, builder and refueler of United States Navy aircraft carriers and one of two providers of U.S. Navy ...

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...

; sponsored by Miss M. C. Daniels. The ship was commissioned on 29 December 1919.

Service history

1919–1922

''Clemson'' cruised in United States East Coast and Cuban waters until placed in reserve with 50% complement at Norfolk Navy Yard o 13 June 1920. She lay there and later at the Charleston Navy Yard and Boston Navy Yard until she steamed to the Philadelphia Navy Yard, where she was decommissioned 30 June 1922.

World War II

In the Atlantic

Reclassified AVP-17, 15 November 1939, and converted into a small aircraft tender, ''Clemson'' was recommissioned 12 July 1940. On 6 August, she was again reclassified, becoming AVD-4, and on 18 August reported to Commander, Aircraft, Scouting Force, Atlantic Fleet 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 ...

. From 29 August 1940 to 28 November 1941 she tended patrol planes 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 ...

and at the Galapagos Islands. ''Clemson'' then sailed south arriving at Recife, Brazil, 6 December. She remained on the coast of Brazil until 22 January 1942 when she returned to the Galapagos Islands. For the next year the tender shuttled between there and the Caribbean as her services was required. She returned to Norfolk, 2 March 1943 and then moved to Charleston, for reconversion to a destroyer (although not reclassified DD-186 until 1 December 1943). On 30 May 1943, she joined the pioneer American hunter-killer group built around . ''Clemson'' made eight patrols with the group during which it sank eight German

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 ...

s, a major contribution to victory in the

. ''Clemson'' shared in the credit for the sinking of on 13 December at 26° 19' N., 29° 58' W. After an overhaul at New York early in 1944, she escorted a convoy to

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

and back between 25 January and 9 March. Once more, ''Clemson'' underwent conversion, this time to a high speed transport at Charleston Navy Yard (reclassified APD-31, 7 March 1944). ''Clemson'' shared in the Presidential Unit Citation awarded the ''Bogue'' hunter-killer group.

In the Pacific

Clearing Charleston on 1 May 1944, the transport reached Pearl Harbor on 24 May and embarked Underwater Demolition Team 6 (UDT 6). She then sailed westward to act as a mother ship for UDT 6 as it prepared beaches immediately before the invasions of Saipan, Guam, Peleliu, Leyte and of Luzon. While entering

Lingayen Gulf The Lingayen Gulf is a large gulf on northwestern Luzon in the Philippines, stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central. The Agno River and the Balili ...

5 January 1945, she drove off a

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 ...

ese air attack. ''Clemson'' escorted convoys to Ulithi,

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 ...

, and Okinawa before returning to

San Pedro, Los Angeles San Pedro ( ; Spanish: " St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wi ...

, 6 July. Re-designated DD-186, 17 July, she was still undergoing reconversion when World War II ended. She was decommissioned 12 October 1945 and sold 21 November 1946. The ship's bell is privately owned in Clemson, South Carolina.

Awards

''Clemson'' received nine battle stars for World War II service.

References

* * Richard Worth (2001). ''Fleets of World War II''. Da Capo Press. .

External links

navsource.org: USS ''Clemson''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clemson (Dd-186) Clemson-class destroyers World War II auxiliary ships of the United States World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States World War II destroyers of the United States 1918 ships Ships built in Newport News, Virginia