USS Sigsbee

History
United States
Namesake	Charles D. Sigsbee
Builder	Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Kearny, New Jersey
Laid down	22 July 1942
Launched	7 December 1942
Commissioned	23 January 1943
Decommissioned	31 March 1947
Stricken	1 December 1974
Fate	Sold for scrap, 31 July 1975
General characteristics
Class and type	Fletcher-class destroyer
Displacement	2,050 tons
Length	376 ft 6 in (114.7 m)
Beam	39 ft 8 in (12.1 m)
Draft	17 ft 9 in (5.4 m)
Propulsion	60,000 shp (45 MW); 2 propellers
Speed	35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph)
Range	6,500 nmi. (12,000 km) at 15 kt
Complement	336
Armament	5 × single 5 in (127 mm)/38 guns 5 × twin AA guns 7 × single 20 mm (0.8 in) AA guns 2 × quintuple 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes 6 × single depth charge throwers 2 × depth charge racks

USS Sigsbee (DD-502), a Fletcher-class destroyer, was a ship of the United States Navy named for Rear Admiral Charles D. Sigsbee (1845–1923).

Construction and service

Sigsbee was laid down on 22 July 1942 by

on 23 January 1943.

1943

Sigsbee completed outfitting three weeks later and sailed to

(CV-16) to Trinidad arriving on 16 May.

On 8 June, the destroyer was detached from the group and proceeded independently to New York. Sigsbee operated between New York, Casco Bay, and Norfolk until 22 July. On that date, the destroyer, with

. The canal was transited on 27 July, and Sigsbee arrived at Pearl Harbor on 9 August.

In mid-August, Sigsbee joined the task group built around carriers

Marcus Island

in which considerable damage was done to enemy installations. Sigsbee returned to Pearl Harbor on 8 September 1943.

Sigsbee was off Wake Island three weeks later and participated in the bombardment of that island on 5 October.

On 21 October, the destroyer stood out of Pearl Harbor en route to

. She then returned to Pearl Harbor on 14 December for a yard availability period.

1944

On 22 January 1944, Sigsbee sailed out of Pearl Harbor with Task Force 52 (TF 52) to participate in the assault and capture of Kwajalein, Marshall Islands. The destroyer bombarded Ennylabegan Island on the morning of 31 January and, that evening, Sigsbee and Ringgold (DD-500) entered the lagoon to protect American shipping and provide call-fire for troops ashore. The destroyer remained in the Marshall Islands until 1 March when she departed for Efate. Sigsbee sortied from there, on 20 March, with TF 37 to participate in the bombardment of Kavieng, New Ireland.

In April, Sigsbee patrolled the entrance to

in mid-September.

Sigsbee returned to Humboldt Bay and was assigned to

.

1945

On 16 February, the task force launched air strikes against Japan and

and direct anti-aircraft fire, while at the same time directing damage control parties that saved his ship. Twenty-three sailors were killed in the attack.

Sigsbee was towed south to Guam (out of the battle area) where she was sufficiently repaired for the long tow back to Pearl Harbor (via Eniwetok). The destroyer arrived there on 7 June 1945 and had a complete new 60-foot stern installed. Ready for sea again, the ship sailed out of port on 28 September en route to the east coast of the United States. On 22 October, she arrived at Philadelphia. The following week, the ship moved to Charleston to prepare for inactivation.

Post WWII

On 1 May 1946, the destroyer was placed in commission, in reserve. On 31 March 1947, Sigsbee was placed in reserve, out of commission, with the

, and on 31 July 1975 the ship was sold and broken up for scrap.

Awards

Sigsbee was awarded 11

service.

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

External links

• navsource.org: USS Sigsbee
• hazegray.org: USS Sigsbee