USS Tarbell
![]() USS Tarbell underway in Charleston harbor on 17 December 1942
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History | |
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Name | Tarbell |
Namesake | Joseph Tarbell |
Builder | William Cramp & Sons, Philadelphia |
Yard number | 457 |
Laid down | 31 December 1917 |
Launched | 28 May 1918 |
Commissioned | 27 November 1918 |
Decommissioned | 8 June 1922 |
Identification | DD-142 |
Recommissioned | 29 May 1930 |
Decommissioned | 1936 |
Recommissioned | September 1939 |
Decommissioned | 20 July 1945 |
Stricken | 13 August 1945 |
Fate | Sold for scrapping 30 November 1945 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Wickes-class destroyer |
Displacement | 1,090 tons |
Length | 314 ft 4+1⁄2 in (95.8 m) |
Beam | 30 ft 11+1⁄4 in (9.4 m) |
Draft | 9 ft 10+1⁄4 in (3.0 m) |
Speed | 35 knots (65 km/h) |
Complement | 122 officers and enlisted |
Armament |
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USS Tarbell (DD–142) was a Wickes-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War I. She was the first ship named for Captain Joseph Tarbell.
Tarbell was
Service history
Tarbell operated along the eastern seaboard until September 1919, when she was reassigned to the
On 29 May 1930, Tarbell was recommissioned and assigned to Destroyer Division 11, Destroyer Squadron 10, Destroyer Squadrons,
She remained there until after war broke out in Europe in September 1939. To keep the war out of the Americas, President
World War II
Tarbell's duties remained much the same after the United States entered the conflict. The destroyer continued to escort convoys and perform antisubmarine work in the northern Atlantic. She shuttled merchant ships back and forth across the ocean and operated out of the east coast ports on rescue missions to pick up survivors of torpedoed ships.
One such rescue mission occurred on 26 March 1942. A Socony tanker,
In May 1942, the destroyer began helping in the surveillance of
Her rescue missions continued along with observation missions. On 16 May, she rescued 24 members of the crew of
Following additional escort duty in the Caribbean and in the Gulf of Mexico, Tarbell began screening transatlantic convoys in mid-May 1943. Her first voyage was in the escort of convoy UGS-9 which was augmented by the latest development in antisubmarine warfare (ASW)—an escort carrier. The convoy reached Casablanca safely on 15 June. Tarbell returned to the United States at New York, underwent repairs, and conducted training before joining another Casablanca-bound convoy in August. Upon her return to New York, the destroyer resumed local escort work until 22 October, when she departed New York in company with Croatan, Lea, and Upshur to cover the passage of another convoy. The unit steamed via Bermuda, where it was joined by Albemarle, and arrived at Casablanca on 3 November. Following a short voyage to Gibraltar, Tarbell headed back across the Atlantic on 10 November. The return convoy entered New York harbor on 21 November.
The following month brought an availability, refresher training, and time spent in training prospective crews for destroyer-type warships. On 26 December, she departed
After hunting submarines along the convoy routes, Tarbell's group reached Norfolk, on 7 February, and the destroyer set out for a 10-day availability at Boston. Following that, she was assigned to the Air Force,
As of 2012, no other ship in the United States Navy has borne this name.
Convoys escorted
Convoy | Escort Group | Dates | Notes |
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HX 156 | 24 Oct-1 Nov 1941[1] | from Newfoundland to Iceland prior to US declaration of war | |
ON 34
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12-21 Nov 1941[2] | from Iceland to Newfoundland prior to US declaration of war | |
HX 163 | 5-15 Dec 1941[1] | from Newfoundland to Iceland; war declared while escorting convoy | |
ON 47
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22-23 Dec 1941[2] | from Iceland to Newfoundland | |
HX 170 | 16-22 Jan 1942[1] | from Newfoundland to Iceland | |
ON 61
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1-10 Feb 1942[2] | from Iceland to Newfoundland |
References
This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
- ^ a b c "HX convoys". Andrew Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 2011-06-19.
- ^ a b c "ON convoys". Andrew Hague Convoy Database. Retrieved 2011-06-19.