Ghost Ship Found
Maybe you navel naval history types are familiar with this particular ship – I certainly wasn’t.
The USS Stewart was deliberately sunk during a US Navy exercise in May 1946 and its final resting place has now been located, according to a statement from the Air Sea Heritage Foundation and Search Inc, which were both involved in the investigation, published Tuesday.
What is described as a “four-stacker” destroyer, she seems to be sitting upright on her keel off Northern California.
“This level of preservation is exceptional for a vessel of its age and makes it potentially one of the best-preserved examples of a US Navy ‘fourstacker’ destroyer known to exist.”
But, in the famous words of the man who made the phrase ubiquitous, Ron Popeil, “Wait – there’s more!”
Commissioned in 1920, the USS Stewart had a tumultuous life.
The ship was damaged in combat against Japanese forces in 1942 and was captured by the enemy, becoming the Imperial Japanese Navy’s Patrol Boat No. 102, according to the release.
“Soon, far-ranging Allied pilots began reporting the strange sight of an old American destroyer operating deep behind enemy lines,” reads the statement.
If you had asked me, I would have said that no American ships were captured by the Imperial Empire – I had only seen battle footage and the like, which seemed to say all of our losses went to Davy Jones’ Locker. I would have been wrong – no fewer than SIX were captured by the Japanese, to wit USS Finch (AM-9), USS Genesee (AT-55), USS Luzon (PG-47), USS Robert L. Barnes, USS Stewart (DD-224) USS Wake. (Learn something every day I do a column… boy, was I wrong. )
Damaged in battle against the Japanese, she was put in a dry-dock for repairs in Sumatra, but slipped off the keel blocks and rolled over in 12 feet of water. Due to Japanese attacks, raising her was impossible, so scuttling charges were set off in her and the dry-dock. Later the Japanese were able to raise her and recommissioned her as Patrol Boat No. 102.
“It was not until the Stewart was found afloat in Kure, Japan at the end of the war that the mystery of the Pacific ghost ship was finally solved.”
It was then towed back to San Francisco before it was used as a target ship during a naval exercise, sinking after absorbing fire for more than two hours.
“In the following decades, the Stewart’s story drew the interest of historians, archaeologists, and naval enthusiasts, and the rediscovery of its wreck became a top national priority for exploration,” reads the statement. “More than 78 years would pass before it was found.” CNN
Recovered by the US at the end of the war, she became a target ship.
Five Navy F6F Hellcat fighters[37] hit her with 18 rockets and thousands of rounds of 50 calibre ammunition but she refused to go down despite the damage. She was finally sunk by USS PC-799 which finished her off with twelve 40-mm and 17 three-inch shells fired from a range of 300 yards. Wiki
Category: Navy, We Remember, WWII
Okay, this could be the inspiration of a new series of articles on This Ain’t Hell, that being naval ships captured by the enemy and put back into the fight. Has the United States ever repurposed captured ships?
Off the top of my head, I could start with a “sort of” example. The SS Normandy was interned (so, not captured) after France fell. She was going to be converted to a troop ship but caught fire pier side in New York harbor. Fire fighting water caused the ship to capsized. She was eventually raised just to clear the pier.
There are probably better examples from the War of 1812 and maybe WWI.
If memory serves (big “if”), the original Arizona was commissioned by the USN, captured and sailed by the CSN as the Caroline, then recaptured by the USN and rechristened the Arizona. Kept sailing for another year or two, I think.