USS ''Diploma'' (AM-221) was an built for 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 ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. She was awarded 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 service in the Pacific during World War II. She was decommissioned in September 1946 and placed in reserve. While she remained in reserve, ''Diploma'' was reclassified as MSF-221 in February 1955 but never reactivated. In 1962, she was sold to the

Mexican Navy The Mexican Navy is one of the two independent armed forces of Mexico. The actual naval forces are called the ''Armada de México''. The ''Secretaría de Marina'' (''SEMAR'') (English: Naval Secretariat) includes both the ''Armada'' itself and ...

and renamed ARM ''DM-17''. In 1994 she was renamed ARM ''Cadete Francisco Márquez'' (C59). She was stricken in 2000, in 2004 she was cleaned of contaminants and sunk as an artificial reef on the west coast of Isla Espiritu Santo, off La Paz BCS, Mexico. She is a popular local dive site, The C59, and is resting on her side at 70'/20m to 30'/9m of depth.

U.S. Navy career

''Diploma'' was launched 21 May 1944 by

Tampa Shipbuilding Tampa Shipbuilding Company, or TASCO, was one of a number of shipyards in Tampa, Florida. It operated from 1917 to after World War II, closing in 1947. History Origins Originally Tampa Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, founded in 1917, the y ...

Co., Inc.,

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

; sponsored by Mrs. F. J. Erwin, Jr.; and commissioned 15 July 1944. ''Diploma'' arrived at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

12 January 1945 with the disabled

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

freighter '' FS-318'' in tow. The next day she sailed on

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 ...

escort duty to

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 ...

and

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 i ...

, returning to Pearl Harbor 17 February. ''Diploma'' was underway from Pearl Harbor 23 February for

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 larges ...

where she conducted minesweeping exercises in preparation for the invasion 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 ...

. On 19 March she got underway for Okinawa to engage in pre-invasion minesweeping from 24 March until 1 April and then patrolled during the initial landings. From 17 April to 15 May she was in Ulithi for repairs. After escorting convoys to

and Saipan, ''Diploma'' returned to Okinawa the last day of May to resume patrolling. From 4 July to 31 July she swept mines in support of the final U.S. 3rd Fleet raids on the

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

mainland. After the cessation of hostilities she continued sweeping in the East China Sea-

Ryukyus The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Taiwan: the Ōsumi, Tokara, Amami, Okinawa, and Sakishima Islands (further divided into the Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), with Yonaguni ...

area and in the

Tsugaru Tsugaru (津軽) may refer to: * Tsugaru, Aomori, a city of Aomori Prefecture, Japan * Tsugaru Peninsula * Tsugaru Strait, between Honshū and Hokkaidō ** Tsugaru Kaikyō Ferry, a ferry crossing this strait * Tsugaru-jamisen, a traditional style of ...

Straits A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean chan ...

into Ominato Naval Base at the northern tip of Honshū. ''Diploma'' received three

battle stars 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 ...

for World War II service. On 20 November ''Diploma'' sailed 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 ...

, 20 December. She was underway on 5 January 1946 for Mobile, Alabama, and after visits there and at

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, arrived at

Orange, Texas Orange is a city and the county seat of Orange County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 19,324. It is the easternmost city in Texas, located on the Sabine River at the border with Louisiana, and is from Hous ...

, 12 May. ''Diploma'' was placed out of commission in reserve there 3 September 1946. She was reclassified MSF-221, 7 February 1955. Transferred to Mexico as DM-17, later renamed ''Cadete Francisco Marquez'' (C-59)

Mexican Navy career

The former ''Diploma'' was acquired by the

in 1962 and renamed ARM ''DM-17''. In 1994, she was renamed ARM ''Cadete Francisco Márquez'' (C59) after Francisco Márquez. She was stricken in 2000, in 2004 she was cleaned of contaminants and sunk as an artificial reef on the west coast of Isla Espiritu Santo, off La Paz BCS, Mexico. She is a popular local dive site, The C59, and is resting on her side at 70'/20m to 30'/9m of depth.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Diploma (Am-221) Admirable-class minesweepers Ships built in Tampa, Florida 1944 ships World War II minesweepers of the United States Admirable-class minesweepers of the Mexican Navy