USS ''Quail'' (AM-377/MSF-377) was an acquired by 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 ...

for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing. ''Quail'' was named after the "

quail Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally placed in the order Galliformes. The collective noun for a group of quail is a flock, covey, or bevy. Old World quail are placed in the family Phasianidae, and New ...

," a migratory game bird. It was the second ship in the U.S. Navy to be named USS ''Quail'', and was laid down by the Savannah Machine and Foundry Co.,

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...

, 12 April 1944; launched 20 August 1944; sponsored by Miss Vivian Rahn; and commissioned 5 March 1945.

Pacific Ocean operations

After fitting out and

shakedown Shakedown may refer to: * Shakedown (continuum mechanics), a type of plastic deformation * Shakedown (testing) or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft before being declared operational * Extortion, ...

, ''Quail'' got underway 10 May for Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to conduct

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 ...

exercises. She then transited the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...

to arrive in

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 ...

. She departed for the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

theater of operation on 4 June, arriving Saipan on 28 August, where she was assigned to the Marianas Group. ''Quail'' sailed 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 19 September, and then for Wakayama Wan, south coast of Honshū, Japan. She conducted minesweeping operations in the

until 4 April 1946, when she reported for inactivation at

Decommissioning

Decommissioned, ''Quail'' later returned to active duty with the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. Redesignated MSF-377, 7 February 1955, she was placed out of commission, in reserve, and berthed at

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 ...

, 12 August 1955. She was struck 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 ...

1 December 1966, and was disposed of by scrapping.

Awards

''Quail'' received one

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 ...

for

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 ...

service.

References

External links

*
Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1940-1945 AM-377 USS ''Quail''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quail (AM-377) Auk-class minesweepers of the United States Navy Ships built in Savannah, Georgia 1944 ships World War II minesweepers of the United States