The first USS ''S. P. Lee'' (DD-310) was a
''Clemson''-class destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort
larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...
in the
United States Navy following
World War I. She was named for
Samuel Phillips Lee
Samuel Phillips Lee (February 13, 1812 – June 5, 1897) was an officer of the United States Navy. In the American Civil War, he took part in the New Orleans campaign, before commanding the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, covering the co ...
.
History
''S. P. Lee'' was laid down on 31 December 1918 by the
Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation,
San Francisco, California; launched by Mrs. Thomas J. Wyche; and commissioned on 30 October 1920.
Assigned to Reserve Destroyer Division,
Pacific Fleet, ''S. P. Lee'' spent most of her first two years in the
San Diego, California area with a reduced complement. She sailed on 6 February 1923 as part of Destroyer Squadron 11 for combined fleet operations in 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 ...
. Arriving
Balboa 20 days later following exercises en route, the destroyer engaged in tactical and strategic maneuvers through the end of March and returned to San Diego on 11 April. From 25 June to 30 August, ''S. P. Lee'' and DesRon 11 cruised the coast of
Washington, putting in at
Tacoma,
Port Angeles
Port Angeles ( ) is a city and county seat of Clallam County, Washington, United States. With a population of 19,960 as of the 2020 census, it is the largest city in the county. The population was estimated at 20,134 in 2021.
The city's har ...
, and
Seattle and serving as escort to
President Warren G. Harding in on his arrival at Seattle on 27 July. She then participated in squadron maneuvers through the end of August with Battleship Division 3, putting in at San Francisco on the 31st.
''S. P. Lee'' sailed for her homeport at 0830, 8 September, in company with most of DesRon 11 under Captain E. H. Watson in leading the way. Engaged in a high-speed engineering run down the Pacific Coast, the squadron changed course 95° at 2100 as inaccurate navigation indicated it appropriate to make the approach to
Santa Barbara Channel. At 2105, ''Delphy'' stranded on the rocks of Point Pedernales, known to sailors as Honda, or the Devil's Jaw; though warning signals were sent up by the flagship, the sheltering configuration of the coast line prevented their recognition by the remaining ships of DesRon 11; and, in the ensuing confusion, six other destroyers including ''S. P. Lee'' ran aground also in what is known as the
Honda Point Disaster.
Valiant efforts by the crew to save the ship proved futile, and the ship was abandoned the following day and declared a total loss. ''S. P. Lee'' and her sister destroyers were struck from the Navy list on 20 November. Her wreckage was sold on 19 October 1925 to Robert J. Smith of
Oakland, California. He removed some of the destroyer's equipment but was unable to salvage her.
References
*
External links
*http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/310.htm
{{DEFAULTSORT:S. P. Lee (DD-310)
Clemson-class destroyers
Ships built in San Francisco
1919 ships
Shipwrecks of the California coast
Maritime incidents in 1923