Makin in the
Marshalls
Marshalls is an American chain of off-price department stores owned by TJX Companies. Marshalls has over 1,000 American stores, including larger stores named Marshalls Mega Store, covering 42 states and Puerto Rico, and 61 stores in Canada. Mar ...
and
Gilberts
The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...
. The destroyer escort returned to Pearl Harbor on 24 March.
Continuing in her role as an escort vessel, ''Waterman'' sailed from Hawaiian waters on 9 April, bound again for the Marshalls in company with and escorting
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 ...
4152-A which was made up of merchant tankers. ''Waterman'' arrived at Majuro one week later and then performed local escort missions out of that base through May.
On 1 June, ''Waterman'' joined
Task Group (TG) 50.17, a fleet service group made up of vital support ships – particularly fleet
oilers
Oiler may refer to:
Ships
* Replenishment oiler
* Tanker (ship)
Sports
* Cape Breton Oilers, a former American Hockey League team
* City Oilers, Ugandan basketball team
* Edmonton Oilers, a National Hockey League team based in Edmonton, Alberta, ...
, tugs, ammunition ships, supply ships, and the like – that allowed the fast carrier task forces to remain at sea for prolonged periods of time. Those ships provided the carriers and their escorts with the vital necessities of life – food, fuel, ammunition, mail, etc. – anything the fleet needed to keep up the pressure on the Japanese.
''Waterman's'' first assignment in that role was operating in support of 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 ...
operation. She departed Majuro on 6 June and protected the task group for a
fortnight
A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (two weeks). The word derives from the Old English term , meaning "" (or "fourteen days," since the Anglo-Saxons counted by nights).
Astronomy and tides
In astronomy, a ''lunar fortnight'' is h ...
before completing her mission at
Eniwetok
Enewetak Atoll (; also spelled Eniwetok Atoll or sometimes Eniewetok; mh, Ānewetak, , or , ; known to the Japanese as Brown Atoll or Brown Island; ja, ブラウン環礁) is a large coral atoll of 40 islands in the Pacific Ocean and with it ...
on the 20th. She then steamed to the Marianas and picked up an oiler at
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 ...
– while fighting was still in progress ashore – and screened her back to the Marshalls.
Underway again from Eniwetok on 26 July, ''Waterman'' rendezvoused with the fleet service group east of the Marianas and protected the oilers as they refueled the ships supporting the landings on
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 ...
.
After returning to the Marshalls, the destroyer escort sailed from Eniwetok on 26 August, bound for the
Admiralties
The Admiralty Islands are an archipelago group of 18 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago, to the north of New Guinea in the South Pacific Ocean. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, after the largest island.
These rainforest-cov ...
, and arrived at
Manus five days later. Soon thereafter, she returned to the open sea with a Service Force unit, TU 30.8.7, supporting the invasion of the Western
Carolines. During that time, the destroyer escort operated west of the
Philippine Islands
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, supporting carrier strikes. ''Waterman'' – operating out of Manus through September – weighed anchor on 4 October and stood out to sea, escorting the fleet service group to points east of the Philippines, where they replenished carriers launching air strikes smashing Japanese positions on the island of
Leyte
Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census.
Since the accessibility of land has be ...
.
After escorting Service Force units which were supporting the Leyte landings, ''Waterman'' operated between 2 November and 23 December with TG 30.8 – the task group servicing carrier forces operating east of the Philippine Islands; planes from those fast carriers largely neutralized Japanese air and sea power in the Philippines 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 ...
.
While operating with TG 30.8, ''Waterman'' encountered the worst weather of her career – the infamous
Typhoon Cobra
Typhoon Cobra, also known as the Typhoon of 1944 or Halsey's Typhoon (named after Admiral William 'Bull' Halsey), was the United States Navy designation for a powerful tropical cyclone that struck the United States Pacific Fleet in December 1944 ...
of 18 December 1944. For approximately 36 hours, the fierce storm battered
Admiral Halsey Admiral Halsey may refer to:
*U.S. Fleet Admiral William Halsey Jr., (1882–1959)
**The Paul McCartney song "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey
"Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" is a song by Paul and Linda McCartney from the album ''Ram''. Released in the ...
's fleet – large and small ships alike. Winds of threw almost solid clouds of spume and spray and whipped up waves of about 80 feet in height, making life aboard ''Waterman'' decidedly "uncomfortable." Upon occasion, the ship rolled as much as 65 degrees. As her commanding officer recounted: "This day was a never to be forgotten one and was indelibly impressed in the minds of the crew."
Before the typhoon had spent itself, three ships – all lightly loaded destroyers, low on fuel – had been sunk and others damaged. On 23 December, two days before
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...
, ''Waterman'' steamed back 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 ...
"somewhat battered but in much better condition than a majority of the larger ships."
1945
One week later, the destroyer escort was at sea again, bound for Guam. From 4 January 1945 to 3 March, ''Waterman'' saw continuous service screening the fleet service group. She spent much of January supporting the occupation of Luzon from the fueling areas east of the Philippines and, in February, escorted the vital auxiliaries to a rendezvous with the fleet that soon commenced the pre-invasion bombardment of
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.
...
.
While thus engaged, ''Waterman'' distinguished herself. On 17 February, an internal explosion ripped through the forward section of the oiler , leaving gaping holes in her bow and fires that raged over the forward part of the ship, endangering part of the cargo of volatile
aviation gas
Avgas (aviation gasoline, also known as aviation spirit in the United Kingdom, UK) is an aviation fuel used in aircraft with spark-ignited internal combustion engines. ''Avgas'' is distinguished from conventional gasoline (petrol) used in moto ...
. ''Waterman'' promptly left her screening station and was the first of two escorts to come alongside and lend a hand. She closed the endangered ship from one side while approached her from the other. The destroyer escort's repair parties, operating under extremely hazardous conditions, streamed thousands of gallons of water on ''Patuxent''s blaze and finally extinguished it. For his part in directing the destroyer escort's effort, Lt. Comdr. J. H. Stahle, USNR, the ship's commanding officer, received the
Bronze Star Medal
The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone.
Wh ...
.
After upkeep and logistics back at Ulithi, ''Waterman'' departed the Carolines on 22 March for a fueling area east of
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 ...
. During the first two weeks of April, ''Waterman'' escorted as she ferried replacement planes to the fast carrier task forces on two round trips between Okinawa and Guam.
For the remainder of the war in the Pacific, ''Waterman'' screened Fleet Service Force units steaming a few hundred miles off the Japanese homeland while the fleet's
carriers,
battleships
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 ...
, and
cruisers carried out devastating attacks on the enemy's very doorstep.
On 21 August, less than a week after Japan capitulated, ''Waterman'' was assigned to TG 35.80, a special support group set up to enter
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 ...
as part of the initial occupation force. With their "battle colors" flying, she and – the first destroyer escorts to reach
Sagami Wan
lies south of Kanagawa Prefecture in Honshu, central Japan, contained within the scope of the Miura Peninsula, in Kanagawa, to the east, the Izu Peninsula, in Shizuoka Prefecture, to the west, and the Shōnan coastline to the north, while t ...
– entered that body of water just southwest of the erstwhile enemy's capital city of
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 ...
on 28 August and dropped anchor less than a mile off shore from the town of
Katase
Katase is a village in Alutaguse Parish, Ida-Viru County, in northeastern Estonia. It's located on the northern shore of Lake Peipus
Lake Peipus ( et, Peipsi-Pihkva järv; russian: Чудско-Псковское озеро, Псковск ...
. On 31 August, she moved into Tokyo Bay proper and, two days later, hauled down her "battle flag" as surrender terms were signed on board the battleship .
On 4 September, Waterman was assigned to TG 30.6, whose duty it was to evacuate Allied
prisoners of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold priso ...
(POW's) from nearby prison camps. That afternoon, the destroyer escort entered the harbor at
Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...
and transported POW's to nearby
hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital. Most are operated by the military forces (mostly navies) of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones. ...
s, receiving ships, and
Kizarazu airfield. ''Waterman'' continued that work of mercy until 10 September, when she departed the Tokyo area with TU 30.6.3—four
LSM
In molecular biology, LSm proteins are a family of RNA-binding proteins found in virtually every cellular organism. LSm is a contraction of 'like Sm', because the first identified members of the LSm protein family were the Sm proteins. LSm pro ...
's and sister ship – bound for
Shiogama
is a city located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 52,662, and a population density of 3,032 persons per km² in 23,270 households. The total area of the city is .
Geography
Shiogama is in north-central Miya ...
, on the eastern coast of
Honshū
, historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separa ...
, through which port the POW's from the
Sendai
is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, desig ...
camp were being evacuated.
The following morning, ''Waterman'' entered Shiogama harbor and joined other units of TG 30.6 who were already in the process of evacuating the Allied POW's there. On 14 September, the destroyer escort sailed for
Kamaishi
is a city located on the Sanriku rias coast in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 32,609, and a population density of 74 persons per km2, in 16,230 households. The total area of the city is
Geography
Kamaishi is ...
, arriving there the following morning for further evacuation of POW's.
Upon completion of that operation, TG 30.6 returned to Tokyo Bay where it was dissolved; ''Waterman'' was assigned to escort duties with TG 16.5 (of Service Squadron 6) for duty. In that role, the destroyer escort remained moored in
Yokosuka
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
harbor from 19 to 29 September.
On the afternoon of 29 September, ''Waterman'' received homeward-bound orders after 20 months of duty in the Pacific war zone; and she stood out of Tokyo Bay on 2 October.
After steaming via Pearl Harbor, she arrived at San Pedro, California, on 20 October and remained there until 6 November, when she got underway for the
Panama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...
and
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 ...
. Arriving there on 22 November, the ship remained at Philadelphia until 10 December, undergoing availability. Soon thereafter, ''Waterman'' shifted to
Green Cove Springs, Florida
Green Cove Springs is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, Florida, United States. The population was 5,378 at the 2000 census. As of 2010, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 6,908.
The city is named after the portio ...
, where she was laid-up in reserve at the
Atlantic Reserve Fleet
The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and s ...
berthing area on 31 May 1946.
Transfer to Peru
''Waterman'' never again saw active service under the Stars and Stripes. She was transferred to the government of
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
on 21 February 1952 under the
Mutual Defense Assistance Pact
The Mutual Defense Assistance Act was a United States Act of Congress signed by President Harry S. Truman on 6 October 1949. For US Foreign policy, it was the first U.S. military foreign aid legislation of the Cold War era, and initially to Euro ...
(MDAP) and was struck from the
Navy List
A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval author ...
on 18 April of that same year.
Arriving in Peruvian waters on 24 May 1952, ''Waterman'' was renamed ''
Aguirre'' and classified as a destroyer, D-2. Reclassified a destroyer escort, DE-2 in 1959 and DE-62 in 1960, ''Aguirre'' served the
Peruvian Navy
The Peruvian Navy ( es, link=no, Marina de Guerra del Perú, abbreviated MGP) is the branch of the Peruvian Armed Forces tasked with surveillance, patrol and defense on lakes, rivers and the Pacific Ocean up to from the Peruvian littoral. Addit ...
until she was disposed of in 1974 by being used as a target during an
Exocet
The Exocet () is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.
Etymology
The missile's name was given by M. Guillot, then the technical director ...
missile test.
Awards
''Waterman'' received eight
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 her World War II service.
References
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waterman (DE-740)
Cannon-class destroyer escorts of the United States Navy
Ships built in Los Angeles
1943 ships
World War II frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States
Cannon-class destroyer escorts of the Peruvian Navy