USS Greer
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Namesake | James A. Greer |
| Builder | William Cramp & Sons, Philadelphia |
| Yard number | 460 |
| Laid down | 24 February 1918 |
| Launched | 1 August 1918 |
| Commissioned | 31 December 1918 |
| Decommissioned | 22 June 1922 |
| Recommissioned | 31 March 1930 |
| Decommissioned | 13 January 1937 |
| Recommissioned | 4 October 1939 |
| Decommissioned | 19 July 1945 |
| Stricken | 13 August 1945 |
| Fate | Sold for scrapping, 30 November 1945 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Wickes-class destroyer |
| Displacement | 1,165 tons |
| Length | 314 ft 4 in (95.81 m) |
| Beam | 30 ft 11 in (9.42 m) |
| Draft | 9 ft (2.74 m) |
| Speed | 35 knots (65 km/h) |
| Complement | 133 officers and enlisted |
| Armament | 4 × 21 inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes . |
USS Greer (DD–145) was a
Greer was
Service history
1919 to 1941
 |
Greer's shake down took her to
Six months' duty with the Pacific Fleet terminated 25 March 1920, when Greer sailed to join the
Greer recommissioned 31 March 1930. Operating with the
As war swept across Europe, Greer recommissioned 4 October 1939 and joined Destroyer Division 61 as
The Greer incident, September 1941
The "Greer incident" occurred 4 September. By all accounts, a German submarine (later identified as U-652) fired upon the Greer, but made no contact. When news of the encounter reached the United States, public concern ran high. Initial reports reported that a British aircraft aided in repelling the attack.
In response, Germany claimed "that the attack had not been initiated by the German submarine; on the contrary, ... the submarine had been attacked with depth bombs, pursued continuously in the German blockade zone, and assailed by depth bombs until midnight."[2] The communique implied that the US destroyer had dropped the first depth bombs.[2] Germany accused President Roosevelt of "endeavoring with all the means at his disposal to provoke incidents for the purpose of baiting the American people into the war."[3]
The United States Department of the Navy replied that the German claims were inaccurate and that "the initial attack in the engagement was made by the submarine on the Greer."[4] Roosevelt made the Greer incident the principal focus of one of his famed "fireside chats", where he explained a new order he issued as commander-in-chief that escalated America nearer to outright involvement in the European war. In Roosevelt's words:
The Greer was flying the
American flag. Her identity as an American ship was unmistakable. She was then and there attacked by a submarine. Germany admits that it was a German submarine. The submarine deliberately fired a torpedo at the Greer, followed by another torpedo attack. In spite of what Hitler's propaganda bureau has invented, and in spite of what any American obstructionist organisation may prefer to believe, I tell you the blunt fact that the German submarine fired first upon this American destroyer without warning, and with the deliberate design to sink her.[5]
Declaring that Germany had been guilty of "an act of piracy,"[5] President Roosevelt announced what became known as his "shoot-on-sight" order: that Nazi submarines' "very presence in any waters which America deems vital to its defense constitutes an attack. In the waters which we deem necessary for our defense, American naval vessels and American planes will no longer wait until Axis submarines lurking under the water, or Axis raiders on the surface of the sea, strike their deadly blow—first."[5] He concluded:
The aggression is not ours. [Our concern] is solely defense. But let this warning be clear. From now on, if German or Italian vessels of war enter the waters, the protection of which is necessary for American defense, they do so at their own peril. … The sole responsibility rests upon Germany. There will be no shooting unless Germany continues to seek it.[5]
Senator
At 0840 that morning, Greer, carrying mail and passengers to Iceland, "was informed by a British plane of the presence of a submerged submarine about 10 miles [(16 km)] directly ahead. … Acting on the information from the British plane the Greer proceeded to search for the submarine and at 0920 she located the submarine directly ahead by her underwater sound equipment. The Greer proceeded then to trail the submarine and broadcast the submarine's position. This action, taken by the Greer, was in accordance with her orders, that is, to give out information but not to attack." The British plane continued in the vicinity of the submarine until 1032, but prior to her departure the plane dropped four depth charges in the vicinity of the submarine. The Greer maintained [its] contact until about 1248. During this period (three hours 28 minutes),the Greer manoeuvred so as to keep the submarine ahead. At 1240 the submarine changed course and closed the Greer. At 1245 an impulse bubble (indicating the discharge of a torpedo by the submarine) was sighted close aboard the Greer. At 1249 a torpedo track was sighted crossing the wake of the ship from starboard to port, distant about 100 yards [(100 m)] astern. At this time the Greer lost sound contact with the submarine. At 1300 the Greer started searching for the submarine and at 1512 … the Greer made underwater contact with a submarine. The Greer attacked immediately with depth charges.[6]
Stark went on to report that the result of the encounter was undetermined,[6] although most assumed from the German response that the sub had survived. In fact, U-652 had indeed survived and promptly headed west to participate in the devastating U-boat pack attack on convoy SC 42 in early September.[7]
Historian Charles A. Beard would later write that Admiral Stark's report to the Senate Committee "made the President's statement... appear in some respects inadequate, and, in others, incorrect."[8] In his postwar summary of the Stark report, Beard emphasised that (1) the Greer had chased the sub and held contact with the sub for 3 hours and 28 minutes before the sub fired its first torpedo; (2) the Greer then lost contact with the sub, searched, and after re-establishing contact two hours later, attacked immediately with depth charges, then (3) searched for three more hours before proceeding to its destination.[8]
The Stark report's account of how the Greer's engagement began caused
A 2005 book concluded that Senator Walsh's "very aggressive actions in the USS Greer case prevented war from breaking out in the Atlantic."[11]
The episode did not escalate into war because both Hitler and Roosevelt were being very cautious. Hitler concentrated his resources on defeating the Soviet Union, while Roosevelt was building up a broad base of support for aggressive patrols of the North Atlantic.[12]
1941 to 1945
Greer remained in the North Atlantic through 1941, shepherding convoys to and from
to sea.Sailing from Guantanamo Bay 23 January 1943, Greer sailed to Boston then headed for the Atlantic convoy duty. Departing NS Argentia, Newfoundland 1 March 1943, she escorted merchantmen for Northern Ireland. During heavy North Atlantic gales, Convoy SC 121 lost seven ships to three separate U-boat attacks before reaching Londonderry Port on 13 March. Greer then escorted 40 merchantmen on the return voyage without incident, and continued on to Hampton Roads 15 April with tanker Chicopee.
After exercises in Casco Bay, Greer departed New York City 11 May with a convoy of 83 ships. Reaching Casablanca, Morocco, 1 June, the destroyer patrolled off the North African port and then recrossed the Atlantic, arriving New York 27 June. After another run to Northern Ireland, Greer returned to New York 11 August.
After steaming to
After repairs, the destroyer escorted the
Convoys escorted
| Convoy | Escort Group | Dates | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
ON 24
|
13–15 Oct 1941[13] | from Iceland to Newfoundland prior to US declaration of war | |
| SC 48 | 16–17 Oct 1941[14] | battle reinforcement prior to US declaration of war | |
ON 37
|
22–30 Nov 1941[13] | from Iceland to Newfoundland prior to US declaration of war | |
| HX 165 | 17–24 Dec 1941[15] | from Newfoundland to Iceland | |
ON 51
|
2–11 Jan 1942[13] | from Iceland to Newfoundland | |
| HX 170 | 16–17 Jan 1942[15] | from Newfoundland to Iceland | |
| SC 121 | MOEF group A3
|
3–12 March 1943[14] | from Newfoundland to Northern Ireland |
ON 175
|
MOEF group A3 | 25 March-8 April 1943[13] | from Northern Ireland to Newfoundland |
Auxiliary service
The veteran destroyer spent the remainder of her long career performing a variety of necessary tasks in American waters. After a tour of submarine training duty at New London, Greer became plane guard for several new aircraft carriers during the summer of 1944. Operating from various New England ports, she served with Ranger,
Greer decommissioned 19 July 1945. Her name was stricken from the
Awards
- American Defense Service Medal with "A" device
- American Campaign Medal
- battle star
- World War II Victory Medal
As of 2017, no other ship in the United States Navy has borne this name.
References
- ^ "USS Greer (DD-145)". public2.nhhcaws.local. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
- ^ a b "Sub Raid in Self Defense, Say Nazis". Standard-Examiner. Ogden, Utah. 6 September 1941. p. 1.
- ISBN 978-1412831840.
- Waterloo Sunday Courier. Waterloo, Iowa. 7 September 1941. p. 1.
- ^ a b c d Franklin Delano Roosevelt. "Fireside Chat 18: On The Greer Incident (September 11, 1941)". Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia. Archived from the original on 16 January 2010. Retrieved 27 February 2011.
- ^ a b Associated Press, "Navy Reports on Greer Attack: Official Account Given Senate Committee," 15 October 1941 at p. 1.
- ISBN 0195061683.
- ^ a b Charles A. Beard (1948). President Roosevelt and the Coming of the War, 1941. p. 141.
- ^ New York Times.
- ^ Charles A. Beard (1948). President Roosevelt and the coming of the war, 1941. p. 150.
- ISBN 0-9771970-0-X. (self published)
- ^ Frank Freidel, "FDR vs. Hitler: American Foreign Policy, 1933–1941" Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society Vol. 99 (1987), pp. 25–43 online p. 39
- ^ a b c d "ON convoys". Andrew Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
- ^ a b "SC convoys". Andrew Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
- ^ a b "HX convoys". Andrew Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
External links
- USS Greer website at Destroyer History Foundation
- history.navy.mil: USS Greer Archived 13 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine
- navsource.org: USS Greer
