Naval History and Heritage Command

USS Finch (AM-9) was launched 30 March 1918 by Standard Shipbuilding Co., New York, N.Y.; sponsored by Mrs. F. G. Peabody; and commissioned 10 September 1918, Lieutenant J. C. Lindberg in command.

After training and operations with a submarine bell, USS Finch (AM-9) sailed from New York 9 August 1919 for Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, Scotland. Here she based for 2 months of duty removing the vast number of mines laid in the North Sea during World War I. USS Finch (AM-9) returned to Charleston 29 November 1920, and on 3 January 1920 sailed for San Pedro, Calif., where from 1 March to 29 August she was in reduced commission. Modernized, she sailed from San Francisco 20 August 1921 for duty with the Asiatic Fleet, and for the next 20 years, served in the Philippines in the winter and out of the China base at Chefoo in the summer. Her duties were varied, and included towing and salvage work, as well as participation in the Yangtze River Patrol. USS Finch (AM-9) joined in fleet exercises, and as war tension heightened, played a part in protecting American citizens and interests in the Far East.

In 1941, USS Finch (AM-9) began work in intensive development exercises with submarine and mine groups in the Philippines, and as war came closer, spent December on patrol in the Taiwan Straits. On 9 April 1942, while moored at the eastern point of Corregidor, USS Finch (AM-9) was damaged by the near miss of a Japanese bomb, her seams opening and fragments of the bomb piercing her hull. The entire crew landed safely, and USS Finch (AM-9) was abandoned to sink the next day, 10 April 1942.

For a complete history of USS Finch (AM-9) please see its DANFS page.