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De Haven II (DD-727)

(DD-727: dp. 2,200; l. 376'; b. 41'1"; dr. 15'8"; s. 34 k.; cpl. 336; a. 6 5", 10 21" tt., 6 dcp., 2 dct.; cl. Allen M. Sumner)

Edwin Jess De Haven, born in 1819 in Pennsylvania was appointed Acting Midshipman at the age of 10 and Passed Midshipman 5 years later. He served in Vincennes, flagship of the Wilkes Exploring Expedition in its historic cruise of 1838 to 1842 to the Antarctic and among the Pacific Islands. De Haven served in the Mexican War, assisting in the capture of the Mexican schooner Creole. In command of the Grinnell Rescue Expedition in 1850, he led the search for Sir John Franklin lost in the Arctic. Only traces of the party were found, but De Haven discovered and named Grinnell Land, and was commended for the valuable scientific data he collected concerning the winds and currents of the ocean. He served in the Coast Survey Service until placed on the retired list in February 1862. He died at Philadelphia, Pa., 1 May 1865.

II

The second De Haven was launched 9 January 1944 by Bath Iron Works Corp., Bath, Maine; sponsored by Miss H. N. De Haven, sponsor of the first De Haven; and commissioned 31 March 1944, Commander J. B. Dimmick in command

De Haven escorted Ranger (CV-4) from Norfolk to Pearl Harbor, arriving 3 August 1944. She screened a convoy to Eniwetok between 16 and 30 August, and returned to Eniwetok 5 October. A week later she got underway for Ulithi to join TF 38. Operating from this base she screened the fast carriers striking Luzon in support of the invasion of Leyte during November and December. In coordination with the invasion of Lingayen Gulf, Luzon, the force hit Formosa, Luzon, Camranh Bay, Hong Kong, Hainan, and Okinawa in a score of strikes extending from 30 December 1944 to 26 January 1945.

On 10 February 1945 De Haven sortied from Ulithi with TF 58, to prepare for the invasion of Iwo Jima, striking the Japanese mainland as well as the Nansei Shoto, and then providing fire support for the invading troops. Returning to Ulithi 4 March, she sailed 10 days later to screen air strikes on Kyushu, Japan, prior to the invasion of Okinawa. Until 13 June she screened the carriers and gave fire support at Okinawa. On 1 July she sailed from Leyte with TF 38 for the final air strikes and bombardments on the Japanese homeland which continued until the end of the war. Present in Tokyo Bay 2 September for the signing of the surrender, De Haven sailed on 20 September for the States, arriving at San Francisco 15 October.

Between 1 February 1946 and 3 February 1947, De Haven served in the Western Pacific, joining the 7th Fleet in operations off the coast of China, and patrolling off the Japanese coast. She operated along the west coast through 1948 and 1949 and on 1 May 1950 cleared San Diego for another tour of duty in the western Pacific, arriving at Yokosuka the last day of May.

When the Communists invaded South Korea 25 June 1950, De Haven was assigned to patrol off the Korean coast. She screened the Norwegian ship Reinholt evacuating American dependents from Inchon to Yokosuka; patrolled on the blockade; bombarded shore targets; acted as lifeguard and communications linking ship for air strikes against Pyongyang and Haeju; and provided call fire support for United Nations troops. On 13 and 14 September she stood up a treacherous channel to anchor a scant 800 yards from Wolmi-Do and pour fire into the concealed gun emplacements in preparation for the bold assault on Inchon. De Haven provided gunfire support for the successful landings the following day, and for her part in this daring action was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation.

Returning to Blockade duty 25 September 1950 De Haven dispersed a Communist force attempting to ambush a Korean Army unit; aided the mined Brush (DD-745) and escorted her to Sasebo; and provided fire support for a British Commando raid on 6 and 7 October. She cleared Yokosuka 1 November for San Diego, arriving 18 November.

During De Haven's second tour of Korean duty from 18 June 1951 to 17 February 1952 she served primarily on blockade patrol. After an overhaul and local operations at San Diego, she sailed from Long Beach 16 September 1952 to serve as flagship for ships on patrol in the Chongjin-Songjin-Chaho area until 18 November. After patrol duty with TF 77, she returned to Korean waters for duty with TF 95 on patrol off Wonsan Harbor, supporting the minesweeping operations there from 12 to 18 February. She got underway from Sasebo 22 March for Long Beach, arriving 9 April.

De Haven continued to alternate duty in the western Pacific with local operations along the west coast, making six voyages to the Far East from 1953 through 1959. On 1 February 1960 she began a major overhaul for modernization at San Francisco, completed in September. De Haven returned to training activities through the remaining months of 1960.

De Haven received five battle stars for World War II service and in addition to her Navy Unit Commendation received six for Korean War service.

Published: Mon Jul 06 13:42:07 EDT 2015