U.S.S. TRUMPETER
AND
U.S.S. STRAUB
LAUNCHING
SEPTEMBER 19, 1943

THE WHITEHEAD & HOAG CO.
NEWARK, N.J.
BUTTONS, BADGES, NOVELTIES AND SIGNS

U.S.S. Trumpeter (DE-180)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Career

Laid down: 7 June 1943
Launched: 19 September 1943
Commissioned: 16 October 1943
Decommissioned: 5 December 1947
Struck: 1 August 1973
Fate: Unknown

General characteristics

Class: Cannon class destroyer escort
Type: DET (diesel electric tandem motor drive, long hull)
Displacement: 1,240 tons (std) 1,620 tons (full)
Dimensions: 306' (oa), 300' (wl) x 36' 10'' x 11' 8'' (max)
Range: 10,800 nm at 12 knots
Speed: 21 knots
Complement: 15 officers, 201 enlisted
Armament: 3 x 3''/50 Mk22 (1x3), 1 twin 40mm Mk1 AA, 8 x 20mm Mk 4 AA, 3 x 21'' Mk15 TT (3x1), 1 Hedgehog Projector Mk10 (144 rounds), 8 Mk6 depth charge projectors, 2 Mk9 depth charge tracks.
Propulsion: 4 GM Mod. 16-278A diesel engines with electric drive, 6000 shp, 2 screws.

U.S.S. Trumpeter (DE-180) was a Cannon class destroyer escort built for the U.S. Navy during World War II. She served in the Atlantic Ocean and provided escort service against submarine and air attack for Navy vessels and convoys. She was named in honor of George Nelson Trumpeter who was killed in action. The ship was laid down on 7 June 1943 at Kearny, New Jersey, by the Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Co.; launched on 19 September 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Hazel Vivian Trumpeter, mother of Lt. Trumpeter; and commissioned on 16 October 1943, Comdr. John R. Litchfteld in command.

World War II Atlantic Ocean operations
While Trumpeter was completing outfitting at New York Navy Yard only three days after her commissioning, sparks from a workman's burner set off a small fire on a line between the dock and the port side of the ship. An alert fire watch at the scene quickly extinguished the fire, and damage to the new destroyer escort was averted. On the 28th, she underwent dock trials and deperming and finished the month with underway trials in New York harbor. Early in November, Trumpeter departed New York, setting her course for Bermuda. She moored in Port Royal Bay on the 6th and in the following weeks participated in extensive shakedown and indoctrination exercises. Antisubmarine tactics, convoy escort technique, gunnery, night illumination, cruising and screening exercises occupied her days. Each evening, she returned to Bermuda to anchor in Great Sound. Antisubmarine runs, practice fueling at sea, towing, mail passing and emergency steering drills readied the new destroyer escort and her crew for the rigors of wartime Atlantic operations.

At last, on 2 December, Trumpeter got underway for New York where she underwent alterations and voyage repairs. On 16 December, she departed New York and set her course northeast. The same day, she moored at Quonset Point Naval Air Station and reported for temporary duty with the Antisubmarine Development Detachment, Atlantic Fleet (ASDEVLANT). There she took part in testing newly developed antisubmarine gear until 17 January when she departed Narragansett Bay for New York. After repairs to one of her main propulsion generators, she resumed her duties at Quonset Point, Rhode Island, remaining there until 13 February when she detached from ASDEVLANT and made way for New York. Following routine upkeep, she got underway with Task Group (TG) 27.2 on the 20th, steaming southward with two escort carriers and two destroyer escorts, bound for Brazil.

Brazilian operations
Late in the morning on the first day of March, she arrived at Recife, Brazil, reported for duty with the U.S. 4th Fleet; then continued on to arrive at Rio de Janeiro on the 7th. She moored at Bahia, Brazil, on the 17th for 10 days availability and routine upkeep. On the 28th, she got underway with the U.S.S. Straub (DE-181) and U.S.S. Gustafson (DE-182); then, on the 31st, she rendezvoused with the U.S.S. Solomons (CVE-67) and reported to Commander, Task Group (CTG) 41.6 for her first antisubmarine patrol.

Submarine Sighted and Sunk
For the next five months, Trumpeter conducted patrols out of Brazilian ports with antisubmarine task groups. The escort carrier hunter killer group was an innovation in antisubmarine warfare which effectively blunted the efficiency of German submarines in the Atlantic shipping lanes. Each group, composed of one escort carrier and its screen of destroyer escorts or old destroyers, aggressively sought out and destroyed enemy submarines in Atlantic waters with notable success. When Trumpeter began patrols in March 1944, however, German submarine activity was not so extensive as it had been earlier in the war; and many of her patrols were uneventful. In June, while Trumpeter was patrolling in mid-Atlantic with Solomons, a plane from the carrier detected the presence of a German submarine. Planes dispatched from Solomons eventually sank the submarine. While Trumpeter remained behind to screen the carrier, U.S.S. Straub and U.S.S. Herzog (DE-178) set out for the area of the sinking, some 40 miles away, to rescue survivors. The two DE's picked 23 Germans from the waters, but the flier, whose bold low altitude bombing run had finished off the U-boat, was still missing when the search was ended.

Escorting Brazilian Troops to Europe
Trumpeter's routine of patrol interspersed with periods of repair and upkeep was varied in August with four days of antisubmarine exercises and night battle practice out of Recife. She departed on 1 September and, on the 3d, joined the U.S.S. Memphis (CL-13) and U.S.S. Cannon (DE-99) en route to Rio de Janeiro. During two weeks in that port, she underwent availability and prepared for her first Atlantic crossing. Finally, on 22 September 1944, she departed Brazilian waters escorting transports U.S.S. General M. C. Meigs (AP-16) and U.S.S. General W. A. Mann (AP-112) carrying troops of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force bound for the European theater of war.

On 4 October, she anchored in Gibraltar Bay but, less than six hours later, was again underway for the east coast. Arriving at New York on 13 October, she commenced 30 days of availability and drydocking; then, on 14 November, she set her course for South America, conducting firing practice as she steamed southward. At 1700 on the 23d, she saw the welcome sight of the Fortaleza, Brazil, harbor blimp, proceeded to that Brazilian port, paused briefly, and then steamed on to arrive at Recife on 25 November. In December, she engaged in gunnery practice and, later in the month, made routine patrols out of Recife with U.S.S. Marblehead (CL-12) and U.S.S. Micka (DE-176). On the 24th, she moored at Bahia, Brazil, and remained there undergoing availability until 2 January when she got underway again for patrol. In the next three months, she continued Atlantic patrols; then, early in March, she escorted U.S.S. Omaha (CL-4) from Recife to Montevideo, Uruguay.

Departing Uruguay to the United States
Trumpeter departed Uruguay on 22 March 1945, steamed northward, and arrived at New York on 8 April. Following availability and dry-docking, she took part in antisubmarine exercises in Casco Bay. On 24 April, while patrolling off the New England coast, she struck an underwater object which damaged her sonar gear, making it necessary for her to detach from the task group (TG 22.6) and put in to Norfolk, Virginia, for repairs. She rejoined the task group on the 26th and into May continued antisubmarine patrols. On 8 May, she arrived at New London, Connecticut, to begin antisubmarine warfare exercises. Later in the month, she proceeded to New York where she joined the screen of UGS 94 when it departed the United States on the 22d. Stopping briefly in the Azores, Trumpeter steamed for Mediterranean ports. The convoy members dispersed to their various destinations on 7 and 8 June, and the destroyer escort continued on to Oran for a short stay before departing the Mediterranean. After refueling at Horta, she steamed on, arrived at Boston, Massachusetts, on 19 June, and began a prolonged period of availability.

Pacific Ocean operations
Underway again on 23 July, she set her course for the Caribbean and, on the 27th, arrived at Guantanamo Bay for refresher training in gunnery, antisubmarine warfare, damage control, and shore bombardment. On 10 August, she departed Cuba and steamed, via the Panama Canal Zone, to San Diego, California. Following a period of availability, Trumpeter departed the west coast on the 27th on orders from the 11th Naval District. She arrived at Pearl Harbor on 2 September and alternated exercises with carrier rescue duties until late in October when she began weather station patrols in the North Pacific.

Returning to East Coast Inactivation
She returned to the Hawaiian Islands in December and, on the 18th, got underway for the Panama Canal Zone. She arrived at Boston early in January 1946 and remained in east coast ports until February when she reported to the U.S. 16th Fleet at Green Cove Springs, Florida, to await inactivation.

Post War Decommissioning
She was decommissioned on 14 June 1946. Her disposal was deferred pending a possible transfer to a foreign government, but the transaction failed to materialize, and Trumpeter's inactivation was completed in December 1947. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 1 August 1973, and her hulk was authorized for sinking as a target in Atlantic Fleet tests.

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U.S.S. Straub (DE-181)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Career

Laid down: 7 June 1943
Launched: 19 September 1943
Commissioned: 25 October 1943
Decommissioned: 17 October 1947
Struck: 1 August 1973
Fate: Sold 17 July 1974, scrapped

General characteristics

Class: Cannon class destroyer escort
Type: DET (diesel electric tandem motor drive, long hull)
Displacement: 1,240 tons (std) 1,620 tons (full)
Dimensions: 306' (oa), 300' (wl) x 36' 10'' x 11' 8'' (max)
Range: 10,800 nm at 12 knots
Speed: 21 knots
Complement: 15 officers, 201 enlisted
Armament: 3 x 3''/50 Mk22 (1x3), 1 twin 40mm Mk1 AA, 8 x 20mm Mk 4 AA, 3 x 21'' Mk15 TT (3x1), 1 Hedgehog Projector Mk10 (144 rounds), 8 Mk6 depth charge projectors, 2 Mk9 depth charge tracks.
Propulsion: 4 GM Mod. 16-278A diesel engines with electric drive, 6000 shp, 2 screws.

U.S.S. Straub (DE-181) was a Cannon class destroyer escort built for the U.S. Navy during World War II. She served in the Atlantic Ocean and provided escort service against submarine and air attack for Navy vessels and convoys. She was laid down on 7 June 1943 by the Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., at Kearny, New Jersey. Sponsored by Mrs. Margaret H. Straub, the escort was launched on 19 September and commissioned on 25 October 1943 at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Lt. Comdr. James T. Kilbreth, USNR, in command.

World War II Atlantic Ocean operations
Straub remained in New York until 11 November, then departed for Great Sound Bay, Bermuda, and shakedown. The shakedown exercises in waters around Bermuda lasted for approximately one month, and Straub returned to New York on 13 December. There she joined elements of convoy UGS 28, escorted them to Norfolk, Virginia, and thence across the Atlantic as far as the Azores. The convoy arrived at Bahia Angra, Terceira, Azores, on 8 January 1944; and Straub conducted antisubmarine patrols among the islands until detached on 16 January to join Task Group TG 21.11 in screening the escort aircraft carrier U.S.S. Mission Bay (CVE-59) to Casablanca.

The task group made Casablanca on 25 January and, the same day, Straub began her voyage home. She arrived at New York on 6 February and began a period of availability which lasted until her embarkation on the 20th for Recife, Brazil Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil. As a part of the antisubmarine screen of Task Group TG 27.2, she was reunited with Mission Bay as escort to her and U.S.S. Wake Island (CVE-65). The task group called at Recife, where Straub reported for duty with the U.S. 4th Fleet, and then moved on to Rio de Janeiro, entering port on the 7th. Straub was detached the next day and steamed out of Rio de Janeiro bound for Montevideo, Uruguay.

Searching for German Submarines
Straub put in at Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, for three days and, instead of making for Montevideo, visited Bahia, Brazil, from 17 to 28 March. From there, she put to sea and joined TG 41.6 on the 31st. Led by escort carrier U.S.S. Solomons (CVE-67), Straub and the rest of TG 41.6 plied the ocean searching for enemy submarines until 12 April. The task group returned to Recife for two days and sortied on 14 April for another U-boat hunt. This second patrol, on 14 to 30 April, and the third, from 4 to 20 May, were both fruitless. After an 11 day repair period at Recife, Straub exited the harbor with TG 41.6 on 31 May 1944 for their fourth patrol.

Recovering German U-Boat Survivors
At the end of two weeks of quiet cruising, Straub picked up a report of a submarine sighting sent by one of the U.S.S. Solomons' pilots. In company with U.S.S. Herzog (DE-178), she sped off to the U-boat's reported position to initiate a box search and engage the marauder if possible. In the meantime, six other planes found the submarine, attacked, and sank her. That evening, Straub entered the area of the sinking to pick up survivors. She was able to recover the submarine's commanding officer, her executive officer, and 18 other crewmen. Late that night, she was forced by darkness to give up the search for Lt. (jg.) Chamberlain, the pilot whose depth charges had finished off both the U-boat and his own aircraft. The prisoners were transferred to Solomons on the next day, 16 June, and TG 41.6 returned to Recife on the 23d. Straub continued patrols with Solomons and TG 41.6 until 22 August. At that time, she joined TG 41.7 and carrier U.S.S. Tripoli (CVE-64) and patrolled out of Recife for U-boats until sailing for New York on 15 November. The escort remained in New York from 26 November to 27 December. She then moved via Key West, Florida, to Trinidad. There, between 11 and 30 January 1945, she participated in various tests and exercises.

Visiting Montevideo, Uruguay
Returning to Recife on 30 January, she stayed in that port until 5 February when she got underway to escort U.S.S. Omaha (CL-4) on an official visit to Montevideo, Uruguay. Straub escorted her back to Recife between 22 to 28 March and sailed the next day for New York, arriving on 8 April. Following a week's availability at New York, she set sail for Casco Bay, Maine, where she arrived on 15 April. From there, Straub set out for antisubmarine patrols in which she was engaged until 8 May. On that date, the escort reported at New London, Connecticut, for two weeks' duty as a target ship for submarine exercises off New London.

Convoy Operations to North Africa
Moving from New London to Norfolk, Virginia, Straub joined convoy UGS 94 as part of its antisubmarine screen. She sailed with the convoy all the way to Mers-el-Kebir, Algeria, and, after stopping along the way at Horta in the Azores, returned to the United States on 19 June 1945. She underwent repairs at Boston, Massachusetts, from 19 June to 25 July and, after exercises out of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, sailed westward. She transited the Panama Canal on 13 and 14 August and arrived in San Diego, California, on the 24th. During her passage from Panama, Japan capitulated.

Transition to the Pacific Theatre at War's End
Three days later, she sailed from San Diego, rendezvoused with U.S.S. Wisconsin, and escorted her to Hawaii. Upon arrival in Pearl Harbor on 4 September 1945, Straub was employed in various patrols and as an escort to carriers conducting flight operations. On 4 November, she was assigned duty as a weather station vessel in the Hawaii area. She spent just over two months alternating between Pearl Harbor and weather station duty.

Post War Inactivation and Decommissioning
Straub weighed anchor on 12 January 1946, transited the Panama Canal on 26 and 27 January, and arrived at New York on 1 February. At the completion of pre-inactivation overhaul, she sailed from New York on 20 February bound for Green Cove Springs, Florida, and there remained with the Atlantic Reserve Fleet until October 1958 when she was shifted to Charleston, South Carolina. Straub was struck from the Navy list in 1 August 1973, sold on 17 July 1974 and subsequently scrapped. DE 181 was used in the 1957 film The Enemy Below starring Robert Mitcham.