USS Reuben James (DD-245): Difference between revisions
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[[Image:USS ReubenJames ((DD-245) after torpedo.gif|thumb|left|300px|''USS Reuben James (DD-245)'', still afloat after fatal torpedoing]] | |||
''USS Reuben James (DD-245)''' was an 1920-vintage [[Clemson-class]] destroyer, which was the first U.S. destroyer sunk as a result of the [[Second World War]]. She was on a "[[neutrality patrol]]", escorting [[Lend-Lease]] convoy HX-156 to Britain, when she was sunk, on 31 October 1941 by the German submarine [[U-552]]. | |||
The name Reuben James has a long tradition in the U.S. Navy, beginning with Boatswain's Mate Reuben James in the Barbary Wars. Already wounded on 1804, he deliberately took a cutlass blow aimed for his captain, [[Stephen Decatur]]. <ref> {{citation | |||
| author = [[USS Reuben James (FFG-57)]] | |||
| contribution = Ship's Namesake | |||
| title = USS Reuben James Official Website | |||
| url = http://www.reuben-james.navy.mil/Site%20Pages/History.aspx }}</ref> | |||
[[Image:USS Reuben James (FFG-57).jpg|right|250px|thumb|today's ''Reuben James'']] | |||
In 1941, DD-245 was in a blocking position between ammunition ship in the convoy and the known position of a German U-Boat Wolfpack. Of the crew, 44 survived and 115 died. All officers including the Commanding Officer, LCDR H.L. Edwards, were lost. The sinking was immortalized in a Woody Guthrie ballad:<ref>{{citation | |||
| url =http://www.reuben-james.navy.mil/Site%20Pages/History.aspx# | |||
| title = Lyrics to "The Sinking of Reuben James" | |||
| year = 1941 | |||
| author = Woody Guthrie }}</ref> | |||
<center>First verse</center> | |||
Have you heard of a ship called the good Reuben James, | |||
Manned by hard-fighting men, both of honor and of fame? | |||
She flew the stars and stripes of the land of the free, | |||
But tonight she's in her grave at the bottom of the sea. | |||
<center>Chorus</center> | |||
Tell me, what were their names, tell me, what were their names? | |||
Did you have a friend on the good Reuben James? | |||
What were their names, tell me, what were their names? | |||
Did you have a friend on the good Reuben James? | |||
Today, the name is worn proudly by [[USS Reuben James (FFG-57)|''USS Reuben James'' (FFG-57)]] , an [[Oliver Hazard Perry-class]] "frigate" or light destroyer/ocean escort. | |||
==References== | |||
{{reflist}} | |||
Revision as of 18:08, 26 August 2010
_after_torpedo.gif)
USS Reuben James (DD-245)' was an 1920-vintage Clemson-class destroyer, which was the first U.S. destroyer sunk as a result of the Second World War. She was on a "neutrality patrol", escorting Lend-Lease convoy HX-156 to Britain, when she was sunk, on 31 October 1941 by the German submarine U-552.
The name Reuben James has a long tradition in the U.S. Navy, beginning with Boatswain's Mate Reuben James in the Barbary Wars. Already wounded on 1804, he deliberately took a cutlass blow aimed for his captain, Stephen Decatur. [1]
.jpg)
In 1941, DD-245 was in a blocking position between ammunition ship in the convoy and the known position of a German U-Boat Wolfpack. Of the crew, 44 survived and 115 died. All officers including the Commanding Officer, LCDR H.L. Edwards, were lost. The sinking was immortalized in a Woody Guthrie ballad:[2]
Have you heard of a ship called the good Reuben James, Manned by hard-fighting men, both of honor and of fame? She flew the stars and stripes of the land of the free, But tonight she's in her grave at the bottom of the sea.
Tell me, what were their names, tell me, what were their names? Did you have a friend on the good Reuben James? What were their names, tell me, what were their names? Did you have a friend on the good Reuben James?
Today, the name is worn proudly by USS Reuben James (FFG-57) , an Oliver Hazard Perry-class "frigate" or light destroyer/ocean escort.
References
- ↑ USS Reuben James (FFG-57), Ship's Namesake, USS Reuben James Official Website
- ↑ Woody Guthrie (1941), Lyrics to "The Sinking of Reuben James"