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Hull Number: DD-643

Launch Date: 04/24/1943

Commissioned Date: 06/29/1943

Decommissioned Date: 05/01/1960

Call Sign: NAWR

Voice Call Sign: HOPE CHEST, MALARIA (44)


Class: FLETCHER

FLETCHER Class

Data for USS Fletcher (DD-445) as of 1945


Length Overall: 376’ 5"

Beam: 39’ 7"

Draft: 13’ 9"

Standard Displacement: 2,050 tons

Full Load Displacement: 2,940 tons

Fuel capacity: 3,250 barrels

Armament:

Five 5″/38 caliber guns
Five 40mm twin anti-aircraft mounts
Two 21″ quintuple torpedo tubes

Complement:

20 Officers
309 Enlisted

Propulsion:

4 Boilers
2 General Electric Turbines: 60,000 horsepower

Highest speed on trials: 35.2 knots

Namesake: JAMES BUTLER SIGOURNEY

JAMES BUTLER SIGOURNEY

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, September 2015

James Butler Sigourney, born in Boston, Mass., was appointed Midshipman on 16 January 1809. He served in Wasp and then became sailing master of Nautilus. He was captured with his ship shortly after the outbreak of the War of 1812; and, after his exchange had been effected, he was placed in command of Asp, a schooner fitted out to defend the Chesapeake Bay. On 14 July 1813, Asp was attacked by three British barges but succeeded in driving them off. On a second attack, however, Asp was boarded, and Sigourney was killed at his post on deck.


Disposition:

Stricken 12/1/1974. Sold 7/31/1975.


A Tin Can Sailors Destroyer History

USS SIGOURNEY DD-643

The Tin Can Sailor, January 2001

The SIGOURNEY was launched at Bath, Maine, on 24 April and commissioned on 29 June 1943. By November she was headed for the South Pacific for the Bougainville landings. She escorted the troop ships for the assault phase of the landing and took part in the pre-landing bombardment east of the Torokina Peninsula. The target of enemy dive-bomb attacks, she splashed two attackers and escaped damage by two near misses. During subsequent operations in the South Pacific on the night of 17 November, the MCKEAN (DD-90) was torpedoed and sunk. The SIGOURNEY spent a harrowing night as she stood by to rescue survivors. Silhouetted against the burning ship, she came under heavy attack by enemy torpedo planes. From 0130 until dawn, she managed to dodge bombs and torpedoes while rescuing thirty-four survivors. The ship’s boats transferred many more to the TALBOT (DD-114), which was assisting in the rescue. In the meantime, her gunners brought down one enemy plane and possibly two others.

Into the first part of 1944, she engaged in antisubmarine sweeps and barge hunts and went on to support the landings on Green Island with Destroyer Division 44. In March she supported operations at Bougainville to turn back an enemy counter-offensive. She next supported the landings on Emirau and operations in the Bismarck Archipelago area. May saw her en route to the Marianas. Leaving Kwajalein in early June, the SIGOURNEY began sixty-one days of fire support and screening operations around Saipan and Tinian during which she sank one enemy barge. Early in August the SIGOURNEY joined Destroyer Squadron 56 for the occupation of the Western Caroline Islands. She and the CONY (DD-508), AULICK (DD-569), and CLAXTON (DD-571) formed a unit known as Desdiv Xray to screen the escort carriers for the landings in the Palau Islands.

The destroyers of Desdiv Xray stayed together into October when they joined the carrier Task Group 77. 2 for the landings in the Leyte Gulf. Preparations began on 18 October. The SIGOURNEY’s guns covered the underwater demolition teams off the beaches of Dulag and Tacloban. Despite her efforts, the demolition teams suffered casualties and the AULICK was hit twice by shore fire. On the night of 19 October, while the rest of Task Group 77.2 withdrew to cover the approaches to the gulf through the Surigao Strait, the SIGOURNEY and CONY were left to rake the Red and Blue beaches with harassing-fire. The SIGOURNEY remained off the Red beach to fire in support of the landings the following morning. She then alternated between fire support, picket, and screening duties with the task group’s main formation fighting off numerous air attacks.

On the evening of 24 October, Desdiv Xray, made up now of the SIGOURNEY, CONY, THORN (DD-647), and WELLES (DD-628), was assigned to screen the battle line in the Surigao Strait. At dawn, the SIGOURNEY pursued retreating enemy vessels and assisting in sinking a destroyer. She then rejoined the task group to fight off an air attack. Action continued in the Leyte Gulf into November with the SIGOURNEY under constant air attack on the infamous “Baker-Charlie” radar picket station off Dinagat Island.

December opened with bombardment of the Ormoc Bay area. Cooperating with PT boats, the SIGOURNEY sank a small enemy transport. She also bombarded the coast of Palompon and managed to get through a night of heavy air raids that resulted in the lost of the COOPER (DD-695). Two weeks later, the destroyer covered amphibious landing craft in the assault on Mindoro and screened the escort carriers against air attacks in the Mindanao and Sulu seas.

For the landings on Luzon, the SIGOURNEY screened the assault transport formation as it entered Lingayen Gulf early on D-Day. Over the following days, she evaded dive bombers as she helped repel air attacks and prevented a kamikaze from crashing a neighboring ship. She later escorted transports and covered landings in the Philippines and was one of the first U.S. ships to enter Manila Bay. In mid-March the SIGOURNEY delivered her final bombardment at Mindanao. Finally in May, she headed for home where, in January 1947, she was decommissioned and assigned to the Atlantic Reserve Fleet.

The SIGOURNEY was recommissioned on 7 September 1951 at Charleston, South Carolina, and operated along the Atlantic coast until June 1953 when she began a seven-month Far Eastern tour. During her Korean commitment, she served as a unit of fast carrier Task Force 77 and the United Nations Blockading and Escort Force. While in Korean waters, she escorted the WISCONSIN (BB-64). Local operations out of Norfolk and yearly cruises to the Mediterranean and Northern Europe kept her busy into 1955 when she and Destroyer Division 322 steamed to St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, to assist in the filming of Away All Boats. She was on patrol in the Mediterranean during the 1956 Middle East Crisis and the crisis in Lebanon in 1958. In 1959 her home port was changed to Philadelphia and she became part of the Reserve Training Fleet. She was inactivated in May 1960, struck from the navy’s list on 1 December 1974, and sold on 31 July 1975.

USS SIGOURNEY DD-643 Ship History

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, September 2015

The second Sigourney (DD-643) was laid down on 7 December 1942 by Bath Iron Works Corp., Bath, Me.; launched on 24 April 1943; sponsored by Miss Amy C. Olney; and commissioned on 29 June 1943, Comdr. W. L. Dyer in command.

The destroyer underwent shakedown training in Casco Bay, Me., and in the Bermuda operating area. After post-shakedown repairs, Sigourney sailed, on 14 September, from Norfolk with Baltimore (CA-68) en route to the west coast. They arrived at San Diego on 3 October, and the DD departed the next day for Pearl Harbor. She was routed onward to Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides. The ship arrived on 24 October and was assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DesRon) 22, Destroyer Division (DesDiv) 44.

Staging was then in progress for the invasion of Cape Torokina, Bougainville, Solomon Islands. Sigourney escorted the transports of the assault phase to the landing area and then participated in the preliminary bombardment of the landing beaches on 1 November. The ship was under air attack but suffered no damage while splashing two enemy planes. Sigourney then participated in resupply operations, with Task Force (TF)31, from Tulagi to the beachhead. On the morning of 17 November, the destroyer was escorting a convoy to Empress Augusta Bay when it was attacked by Japanese planes. The convoy was illuminated by flares and torpedo planes began their runs. The high speed transport, McKean (APD-5), was struck by a torpedo and began to burn furiously. Sigourney and Talbot (DD-114) were alongside for approximately two hours trying to rescue survivors. Sigourney rescued 34 but as the two destroyers were illuminated by the burning transport, they were under constant air attack. Fortunately, neither was damaged, and Sigourney splashed two of the planes.

Sigourney and her squadron continued operations with TF 31 until 6 May 1944. The destroyer participated in antisubmarine sweeps, barge hunts, and in combined operations with PT boats and supporting aircraft. In February 1944, the destroyer was a unit in the Green Islands Attack Group which landed New Zealand troops there on the 15th. On the night of 29 February and 1 March, Sigourney, with DesRon 22, engaged in an antishipping sweep of Simpson Harbor and then bombarded Rabaul and the airfield on Duke of York Island in the Bismarck Archipelago.

During March, Sigourney and her destroyer division operated under the direction of the Commanding General, XVI Army Corps, in support of forces on Bougainville. They provided counter-battery fire, bombarded enemy troops and installations ashore, and performed fire support as requested. Siaourney engaged in daily bombardments in the Jaba River and Motapena Point area and supported PT boat operations at night. On 12 March alone, Sigourney and Eaton (DD-510) fired 400 rounds of call fire in support of the 37th Army Division perimeter.

In mid-March, Sigourney was called upon to support the landing of the 4th Marine Regiment at Emirau, St. Mathis Group. She then returned to bombard pillboxes and entrenchments east of the Torokina River, Bougainville, until 12 April.

Sigourney then made escort trips between Guadalcanal, Cape Gloucester, Purvis Bay, Majuro, Eniwetok, and Kwajalein. On 11 May, the destroyer sortied from Kwajalein with TG 51.18, the Joint Expeditionary Force, Reserve, for the amphibious assault on Saipan and Tinian in the Mariana Islands. Sigourney arrived off Saipan, on 16 June, and participated in operations there and on Tinian until she withdrew from the operations area on 20 August. During her time on station, she bombarded beaches on both islands, supplied call-fire support for the forces ashore, and served as a picket ship and as an antisubmarine screen.

When Sigourney was released from the Mariana Islands campaign, she sailed for Purvis Bay, Solomon Islands, arriving on 25 August. There, she was attached to TF 32 which sortied on 8 September for the Palau Islands operation. From 15 to 30 September, the destroyer worked in conjunction with the aircraft carriers which launched attacks in support of the amphibious assart on Peleliu. Siaourney was in Seeadler Harbor, Admiralty Islands, from 3 to 12 October. Then she got underway for Leyte, P.I., with TG 77.2, the Bombardment and Fire Support Group.

On the 19th, Sigourney shelled Red and White Beaches to cover underwater demolition teams reconnoitering the landing sites near Dulag and Tacloban. She and Cony (DD-508) remained in the area while the remainder of TG 77.2 withdrew to the south to coyer the approaches to the gulf through Surigao Strait. The two destroyers fired night harassing and interdiction fire on beaches, roads, and installations. On the 20th, they bombarded the beaches until H-hour and then provided call-fire support until the 24th when word was received from the Commander, 7th Fleet, to prepare for a night engagement. Sigourney, Aulick (DD-569), and Wells (DD-628) were in the van as Attack Section 2 of DesDiv “X-Ray” which would screen the battle line consisting of six battleships. In the screening position, they did not take part in the torpedo attacks on the Japanese fleet launched by other American destroyers. On 29 October, Sigourney withdrew from Leyte and returned to Seeadler Harbor, arriving on 3 November.

Nine days later, the destroyer was en route back to Leyte Gulf. She performed screening assignments and radar picket duties at the entrance to the gulf off Dinagat Island from 6 to 30 November. On the night of 1 and 2 December, DesDiv 44 made a sweep of the Camotes Sea. At 0238 on 2 December, Sigourney and Conway (DD-507) opened fire on a Japanese freighter which sank six minutes later. The destroyers then steamed for the Palau Islands to join the covering force for the invasion of Mindoro. The task group of four battleships, four cruisers, six escort carriers, and 18 destroyers sailed on the 10th. Three days later, the carriers began launching air attacks which continued until 17 December. During the time in the area, the task group was under constant enemy air attack.

Sigourney next joined TG 79.2 (Attack Group Baker) which was formed at Manus Island and sortied from there on 31 December 1944 en route to the Philippine Islands. On 9 January 1945, the task group landed elements of the 6th Army in the Lingayen area of Luzon Island. On the 20th, Sigourney and Saufley (DD-465) left to screen Australian Transport Division 21 to Morotai, N.E.I. The destroyer escorted convoys between Leyte and Lingayen gulfs until 27 February when she sailed with TU 78.2.12 for Puerto Princesa, Palawan Island, to support the landings there on the 28th by United States Army troops. Still conducting operations in the Philippine Islands during April, Sigourney operated with TG 74.2 prior to, and during the army assault on the Malabang, Parong, and Cotabato areas of Mindanao on 17 April. On 6 May, the destroyer sailed from the Philippine Islands for the United States via the Marshall Islands and Pearl Harbor.

Sigourney arrived at San Pedro, Calif., on 31 May and entered the Bethlehem Steel Co. Shipyard for an overhaul, remaining there until 3 September. She moved to San Diego the next day and, a month later, was underway, for New York City via the Panama Canal, Canal, arriving there on 20 October. In October, the destroyer was ordered to Charleston, S. C., to prepare for inactivation. On 20 March 1946, she was placed out of commission, in reserve, with the Atlantic Reserve Fleet.

Sigourney was placed in full commission again on 7 September 1951 at Charleston, S. C. She underwent shakedown training at Guantanamo Bay in early 1952 and, in April, joined DesRon 322 with Norfolk as her homeport. She conducted local operations from there until October when she entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for an overhaul which lasted until January 1953. She returned to Guantanamo Bay for refresher training until March, after which she operated out of her homeport. On 29 June, Sigourney began a combined seven-month Far East tour and round-the-world cruise. While in Korean waters, the destroyer was attached to TF 77, the Fast Carrier Force, and TF 95, the United Nations Blockading and Escort Force.

On 10 December 1953, Sigourney began her goodwill cruise which took her to Hong Kong, Singapore, Naples, Cannes, Gibraltar, and Lisbon before returning to Norfolk on 6 February 1954. In June, she took a Midshipman cruise to France and Spain before returning to her home port in August. The destroyer was overhauled from October 1954 until January 1955.

Sigourney made a cruise to Europe with DesDiv 322 in 1955, Midshipman cruises to Europe in 1956 and 1958, and was deployed with the 6th Fleet in 1957. On 1 January 1959, her home port was changed to Philadelphia, and she became part of the Reserve Training Fleet. On 1 May 1960, Sigourney was placed in reserve, out of commission, with the Atlantic Reserve Fleet and berthed at Philadelphia where she remains as of August 1974.

Sigourney received nine battle stars for World War II service.