USS ''Cowie'' (DD-632) (later DMS-39), a , is the only ship 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 ...
to be named for
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...
Thomas Jefferson Cowie.
''Cowie'' was
launched on 27 September 1941
Liberty Fleet Day at the
Boston Navy Yard
The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. It was established in 1801 as part of the recent establishment of t ...
; sponsored by Mrs. C. R. Robinson, daughter of Rear Admiral Cowie and wife of Captain C. R. Robinson. The ship was
commissioned on 1 June 1942 and reported to the
U.S. Atlantic Fleet
The United States Fleet Forces Command (USFF) is a service component command of the United States Navy that provides naval forces to a wide variety of U.S. forces. The naval resources may be allocated to Combatant Commanders such as United Stat ...
.
Service history
Departing New York 5 October 1942, ''Cowie'' escorted the
escort carrier
The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft ...
to
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
, then cruised on
antisubmarine
An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...
patrol off
Cape Hatteras
Cape Hatteras is a cape located at a pronounced bend in Hatteras Island, one of the barrier islands of North Carolina.
Long stretches of beach, sand dunes, marshes, and maritime forests create a unique environment where wind and waves shape ...
until 23 October when she sailed from Norfolk with Task Force 34 (TF 34) for the
invasion of North Africa. She screened transports off
Safi,
French Morocco
The French protectorate in Morocco (french: Protectorat français au Maroc; ar, الحماية الفرنسية في المغرب), also known as French Morocco, was the period of French colonial rule in Morocco between 1912 to 1956. The prote ...
, from 8 to 13 November, and 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
* '' ...
on 25 November for repairs and upkeep. After training exercises with
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 off
New London
New London may refer to:
Places United States
*New London, Alabama
*New London, Connecticut
*New London, Indiana
*New London, Iowa
* New London, Maryland
*New London, Minnesota
*New London, Missouri
*New London, New Hampshire, a New England town
* ...
, ''Cowie'' sailed on escort duty, screening two
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
s 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 ...
between 12 December 1942 and 28 April 1943.
Sailing from Norfolk for
North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
again 8 June 1943, ''Cowie'' sortied from
Oran
Oran ( ar, وَهران, Wahrān) is a major coastal city located in the north-west of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria after the capital Algiers, due to its population and commercial, industrial, and cultural ...
on 22 June for the
invasion of Sicily
The Allied invasion of Sicily, also known as Operation Husky, was a major campaign of World War II in which the Allied forces invaded the island of Sicily in July 1943 and took it from the Axis powers ( Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany). It bega ...
. In the van of the invading forces, she contacted the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
navigational marker
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 ...
on 9 July to guide the invasion landings at
Scoglitti
Scoglitti ( scn, Scugghitti) is a fishing village and hamlet () of Vittoria, a municipality in the Province of Ragusa, Sicily, Italy. In 2011 it had a population of 4,175.
History
Scoglitti found a niche in history after being selected by the All ...
,
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
, from 9 to 13 July, then took station to give fire support to the assault troops ashore. ''Cowie'' was one of those response to calls for fire support broke up the counterattack by German
tank
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engin ...
s against the
180th Regimental Combat Team on 11 July. Returning to Oran 16 July, ''Cowie'' sailed on local escort duty out of that port until 20 July when she arrived at Bizerte to patrol. She sortied 28 July for the invasion landings at
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
, screening the
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 ...
to provide fire support to the Army landing forces, and then swept from Palermo to
Cape Milazzo hunting
Axis
An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis
*Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinate ...
shipping between 31 July and 1 August. ''Cowie'' returned to Oran 4 August and cleared for New York 8 days later, arriving 22 August.
After escorting a convoy to
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
between 5 and 30 September 1943, ''Cowie'' was overhauled at New York before returning to convoy escort duty. She made 18 transatlantic voyages to United Kingdom and Mediterranean ports until 5 May 1945, when she entered
Boston Navy Yard
The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. It was established in 1801 as part of the recent establishment of t ...
for conversion to a high-speed minesweeper; ''Cowie'' was reclassified DMS-39 on 30 May 1945.
Sailing from Boston 24 June 1945, ''Cowie'' joined in minesweeping exercises at Norfolk until 18 July when she departed for San Diego, arriving 3 August. Following the cessation of hostilities, she sailed from San Diego 29 August for
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 ...
, arriving 27 September. Sweeping
mines in the
Yellow Sea
The Yellow Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula, and can be considered the northwestern part of the East China Sea. It is one of four seas named after common colour terms ...
and off
Kobe
Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...
and
Wakayama, Japan
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture ...
, ''Cowie'' remained in the Far East until 25 March 1946 when she departed Yokosuka for San Francisco, arriving 11 April 1946. ''Cowie'' was placed out of commission in reserve 21 April 1947, berthed at San Diego. She was reclassified DD-632, 15 July 1955. ''Cowie'' was stricken from the naval register on 1 December 1970 and sold 22 February 1972 and broken up for scrap.
''Cowie'' received three
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 service.
References
External links
navsource.org: USS ''Cowie''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowie (DD-632)
World War II destroyers of the United States
Ships built in Boston
1941 ships
Gleaves-class destroyers of the United States Navy