USS ''Delphy'' (DD-261) was a in 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 ...

following

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It was the flagship of the destroyer group involved in the

Honda Point Disaster The Honda Point disaster was the largest peacetime loss of U.S. Navy ships. On the evening of September 8, 1923, seven destroyers, while traveling at 20 knots (37 km/h), ran aground at Honda Point (also known as Point Pedernales; the cliffs ...

Namesake

Richard Delphy was born c. 1795. He was appointed Midshipman on 18 May 1809 and served during the engagement with on 25 October 1812. He was killed in the action in which lost to on 14 August 1813.

History

''Delphy'' was launched on 18 July 1918 by

Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation Bethlehem Steel Corporation Shipbuilding Division was created in 1905 when the Bethlehem Steel Corporation of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, acquired the San Francisco shipyard Union Iron Works. In 1917 it was incorporated as Bethlehem Shipbuilding C ...

, Squantum, Massachusetts; sponsored by Mrs. W. S. Sims, wife of Rear Admiral

William Sims William Sowden Sims (October 15, 1858 – September 28, 1936) was an admiral in the United States Navy who fought during the late 19th and early 20th centuries to modernize the navy. During World War I, he commanded all United States naval force ...

; and commissioned on 30 November 1918. Before joining the Atlantic Fleet ''Delphy'' tested submarine detection devices at

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decade ...

, from 23 to 31 December 1918 and aided survivors from ''Northern Pacific'', stranded off

Fire Island, New York Fire Island is the large center island of the outer barrier islands parallel to the South Shore of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York. Occasionally, the name is used to refer collectively to not only the central island, but also Long ...

, on New Year's Day, 1919. ''Delphy'' sailed from New York on 13 January for winter maneuvers and torpedo practice in the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

. Returning to New York on 14 April with the Fleet, she sailed for

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Massachusetts, on the last day of the month for operations in preparation for the first transatlantic seaplane flight. ''Delphy'' sailed 19 November 1919 from Boston for the west coast, arriving at

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...

, on 22 December. She joined Destroyer Squadrons, Pacific Fleet, at San Diego for torpedo practice and recovery until placed in reserve on 12 June. ''Delphy'' lay at San Diego until 27 December when she sailed with the other ships of Reserve Destroyer Division for

Bremerton, Washington Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington. The population was 37,729 at the 2010 census and an estimated 41,405 in 2019, making it the largest city on the Kitsap Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremer ...

, arriving on 4 January 1921 for an extended overhaul at

Puget Sound Navy Yard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, officially Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres (0.7 km2) on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington in uninterrupted u ...

Honda Point

Between 22 July 1921 and 20 March 1922 ''Delphy'' operated from San Diego with 50 percent of her

complement A complement is something that completes something else. Complement may refer specifically to: The arts * Complement (music), an interval that, when added to another, spans an octave ** Aggregate complementation, the separation of pitch-clas ...

, and then was overhauled. She cruised with the

Battle Fleet The United States Battle Fleet or Battle Force was part of the organization of the United States Navy from 1922 to 1941. The General Order of 6 December 1922 organized the United States Fleet, with the Battle Fleet as the Pacific presence. This f ...

for exercises off Balboa from 6 February to 11 April 1923, and then carried out experiments with torpedoes off San Diego. On 25 June she got underway with Destroyer Division 31 for a cruise to

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

for summer maneuvers with the Battle Fleet on the return passage. ''Delphy'', under the command of

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 ran ...

Donald T. Hunter, was the leading destroyer of seven which were stranded on the rocks of the

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

coast in dense fog on 8 September 1923. , 184. This event became known as the

Honda Point disaster The Honda Point disaster was the largest peacetime loss of U.S. Navy ships. On the evening of September 8, 1923, seven destroyers, while traveling at 20 knots (37 km/h), ran aground at Honda Point (also known as Point Pedernales; the cliffs ...

. ''Delphy'' crashed broadside and broke in half, her stern below the surface. Three of her crew died and 15 were injured. She was decommissioned as of 26 October 1923, and sold as a wreck 19 October 1925. As of 2007, no other US Navy ships have been named ''Delphy''.

Notes

References

External links

Navsource
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delphy (DD-261) Delphy Shipwrecks of the California coast Ships built in Quincy, Massachusetts 1918 ships Maritime incidents in 1923