USS ''Orleck'' (DD-886), is a that was in service with 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 ...

from 1945 to 1982. In October 1982 she was sold to

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...

and renamed ''Yücetepe'' (D 345). After her final decommissioning the Turkish government transferred ''Yücetepe'' to the Southeast Texas War Memorial and Heritage Foundation 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 ...

, where she was berthed as a museum ship. The Orleck Foundation then decided to move the ship to the

Calcasieu River The Calcasieu River ( ; french: Rivière Calcasieu) is a river on the Gulf Coast in southwestern Louisiana. Approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 20, ...

Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcas ...

. On 26 March 2022, she arrived in

Jacksonville, FL Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

, where she will serve as a Naval Museum on the downtown riverfront.

Namesake

Joseph Orleck was born on 22 January 1906 in Columbus, Ohio. He enlisted in the Navy on 23 June 1924. Rising through the enlisted ranks, he was warranted Boatswain on 14 December 1938, and appointed

Ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

on 15 June 1942. He assumed command of on 28 May 1943 with the rank of

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

. He went down with his ship after a

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

bomber attack in the

Gulf of Salerno The Gulf of Salerno (Italian: ''Golfo di Salerno'') is a gulf of the Tyrrhenian Sea in the coast of the province of Salerno in south-western Italy. The northern part of this coast is the Costiera Amalfitana, which ends at Punta di Campanella an ...

on 9 September 1943. A recipient of the

Navy and Marine Corps Medal The Navy and Marine Corps Medal is the highest non-combat decoration awarded for heroism by the United States Department of the Navy to members of the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The medal was established by an act of Congr ...

for rescue work during the Casablanca invasion, he was posthumously awarded the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...

for his firefighting and flood control efforts to prevent total loss of his ship during the Salerno assault.

Service history

United States Navy (1945–1982)

''Orleck'' was laid down by the

Consolidated Steel Corporation Consolidated Steel Corporation (formed 18 December 1928) was an American steel and shipbuilding business. Consolidated built ships during World War II in two locations: Wilmington, California and Orange, Texas. It was created in 1929 by the mer ...

, on 28 November 1944, launched on 12 May 1945 by Mrs. Joseph Orleck, widow of Lieutenant Orleck, and commissioned on 15 September 1945. Her original cost was $6,313,000 US$. USS Orleck (DD-886) underway in heavy seas, in the 1950s

USS Orleck (DD-886) underway in heavy seas, in the 1950s

''Orleck'' operated with the

7th Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of ...

in support of United Nations Forces during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. ''Orleck'' underwent an extensive

FRAM I The Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) program of the United States Navy extended the lives of World War II-era destroyers by shifting their mission from a surface attack role to that of a submarine hunter. The FRAM program also covere ...

overhaul in 1962. On 7 June 1965, ''Orleck'' assisted in the recovery of the

Gemini IV Gemini 4 (officially Gemini IV) With Gemini IV, NASA changed to Roman numerals for Gemini mission designations. was the second crewed spaceflight in NASA's Project Gemini, occurring in June 1965. It was the tenth crewed American spaceflight (in ...

space capsule. During the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

, ''Orleck'' served as

plane guard A plane guard is a warship (commonly a destroyer or frigate) or helicopter tasked to recover the aircrew of planes or helicopters which ditch or crash in the water during aircraft carrier flight operations. Ships For ships, the plane guard is po ...

for aircraft carriers on "

Yankee Station Yankee Station (officially Point Yankee) was a fixed coordinate off the coast of Vietnam where U.S. Navy aircraft carriers and support ships operated in open waters over a nine-year period during the Vietnam War. The location was used primar ...

" in the Gulf of Tonkin, participated in " Operation Sea Dragon", patrolled on search and rescue duties, and carried out

naval gunfire support Naval gunfire support (NGFS) (also known as shore bombardment) is the use of naval artillery to provide fire support Fire support is defined by the United States Department of Defense as " Fires that directly support land, maritime, amphibiou ...

missions. ''Orleck'' was decommissioned on 1 October 1982 and stricken from the

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...

on 6 August 1987.

Turkish Navy (1982–2000)

''Orleck'' was transferred to

for service in the

Turkish Navy The Turkish Naval Forces ( tr, ), or Turkish Navy ( tr, ) is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The modern naval traditions and customs of the Turkish Navy can be traced back to 10 July 1920, when it was establis ...

. She was renamed TCG Yücetepe (D 345) in Turkish service.

Museum ship (since 2000)

On 12 August 2000, the Turkish government transferred ''Yücetepe'' to the Southeast Texas War Memorial and Heritage Foundation at

, for use as a memorial and museum under her old name, USS ''Orleck''. When Hurricane Rita struck the Texas coast in September 2005, ''Orleck'' was severely damaged. After repairs, ''Orleck'' was ready to return to her

pier Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...

at Ochiltree-Inman Park; however, the City of Orange refused to allow her to return. ''Orleck'' was temporarily relocated to Levingston Island, then moored north of Orange Harbor Island. On 6 May 2009, the

, City Council voted in favor of an ordinance authorizing the city to enter into a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with USS ''Orleck''. On 20 May 2010 it moved to Lake Charles, Louisiana. The grand opening in Lake Charles occurred on 10 April 2011. In 2019, the ship was either going to be moved, sunk, or scrapped; however, the museum remained operational. In 2019, following the failure of the USS ''Adams'' Association and the Jacksonville Naval Museum to acquire as a museum ship in

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, it was proposed to acquire ''Orleck'' and move her to the proposed berth that was obtained for the ''Charles F. Adams.'' The USS ''Adams'' Association studied ''Orleck'' and deemed that she would survive the tow from Lake Charles to Jacksonville. USS Orleck (DD-886) aground at Orange, Texas (USA), on 5 October 2005

USS Orleck (DD-886) aground at Orange, Texas (USA), on 5 October 2005

On 30 August 2019, the Jacksonville Naval Museum announced that the transfer of ''Orleck'' to Jacksonville has been approved and are waiting on finalizing plans with the Jacksonville city council. In February 2020, the move to Jacksonville was confirmed. She would remain open in Lake Charles until 1 March 2020, before closing in preparation for an inspection by the US Coast Guard for towing to dry dock in Texas for repairs before making the tow to Jacksonville. The tow to Jacksonville was delayed by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. She broke loose from her mooring in the

during

Hurricane Laura Hurricane Laura was a deadly and destructive Category 4 hurricane that is tied with the 1856 Last Island hurricane and 2021's Hurricane Ida as the strongest hurricane on record to make landfall in the U.S. state of Louisiana, as measu ...

, drifting a mile down stream before drifting aground with some damage. In August 2021, the Jacksonville City Council unanimously approved the ship to be moored in downtown Jacksonville. In December 2021, she was towed from Lake Charles, Louisiana to Port Arthur, Texas to be drydocked. Over the next few weeks she was deemed to be in much better shape than expected and restoration work was done which extended the ship's life by 15 years. On 11 January 2022, ownership was officially transferred to the museum association in preparation for its tow and set-up in Jacksonville. With restoration work completed, she passed all inspections by the US Coast Guard, on 17 March 2022, she left Port Arthur, Texas under tow to Jacksonville. She arrived in Jacksonville on 26 March 2022

References

* * http://www.cityoflakecharles.com/council/

External links

USS ORLECK NAVAL MUSEUM

Historic Naval Ships Association (HNSA): USS ''Orleck''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orleck (DD-886) Gearing-class destroyers of the United States Navy Ships built in Orange, Texas 1945 ships Cold War destroyers of the United States Korean War destroyers of the United States Vietnam War destroyers of the United States Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the Turkish Navy Gearing-class destroyers of the Turkish Navy Museum ships in Louisiana Museums in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana Lake Charles, Louisiana Museum ships in Florida