USS Dewey (YFD-1)
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USS ''Dewey'' (YFD-1) was a
floating dry dock Floating may refer to: * a type of dental work performed on horse teeth * use of an isolation tank * the guitar-playing technique where chords are sustained rather than scratched * ''Floating'' (play), by Hugh Hughes * Floating (psychological p ...
built for the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
in 1905, and named for American Admiral
George Dewey George Dewey (December 26, 1837January 16, 1917) was Admiral of the Navy, the only person in United States history to have attained that rank. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish–American War, with ...
. The
auxiliary floating drydock An auxiliary floating drydock is a type of US Navy floating dry dock. Floating dry docks are able to submerge underwater and to be placed under a ship in need of repair below the water line. Water is then pumped out of the floating dry dock, ...
was towed to her station in the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
in 1906 and remained there until
scuttled Scuttling is the deliberate sinking of a ship. Scuttling may be performed to dispose of an abandoned, old, or captured vessel; to prevent the vessel from becoming a navigation hazard; as an act of self-destruction to prevent the ship from being ...
by American forces in 1942, to prevent her falling into the hands of the invading
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
.


History

Laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...
in early 1905 at Maryland Steel Co. of
Sparrows Point Sparrow's Point is an unincorporated community in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States, adjacent to Dundalk. Named after Thomas Sparrow, landowner, it was the site of a very large industrial complex owned by Bethlehem Steel, known for steelm ...
,
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, ''Dewey'' was floated for the first time on 10 June 1905. She was christened on that date with the traditional bottle of wine by Miss Endicott, the daughter of U.S. Navy Chief of Yards Mordecai T. Endicott. ''Dewey'' was very large and state of the art at her time. ''Dewey'' was in length, had a beam width of , and a working deck surface wide. The sidewalls reached above the deck. She displaced 18,500 tons empty. She had a
draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...
of from .
Ballast Ballast is material that is used to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within a boat, ship ...
pontoons
tanks A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engi ...
were flooded with water to submerge or pumped dry to raise the ship. The wide sidewalls contained crew
barrack Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...
, officer stateroom cabins for officers, two
mess hall The mess (also called a mess deck aboard ships) is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and (in some cases) live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the o ...
s, machine shops, and a steam plant to run the pumps. On 28 December 1905, ''Dewey'' began a journey to her station in the Philippines under tow by colliers and ,
stores ship Store may refer to: Enterprises * Retail store, a shop where merchandise is sold, usually products and usually on a retail basis, and where wares are often kept ** App store, an online retail store where apps are sold, included in many mobile op ...
, and tug . The cruiser helped in towing for part of the convoy. Leaving
Solomons, Maryland Solomons, also known as Solomons Island, is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,368 at the 2010 census, up from 1,536 in 2000. Solomons is a popular weekend ...
on the
Patuxent River The Patuxent River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. There are three main river drainages for central Maryland: the Potomac River to the west passing through Washington, D.C., the Patapsco River to the northeast ...
, the convoy sailed to
Olongapo Olongapo, officially the City of Olongapo ( fil, Lungsod ng Olongapo; ilo, Siudad ti Olongapo; xsb, Siyodad nin Olongapo), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Located in the province of Zambales ...
, Philippines, via
Las Palmas Las Palmas (, ; ), officially Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is a Spanish city and capital of Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital (jointly with Santa Cruz de Tenerife), the most populous city in the auto ...
in the Canary Islands; Port Said, Egypt; the Suez Canal; and
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
. They arrived at their destination U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay on 10 July 1906. This constituted the world's longest tow job at the time. ''Dewey'' was put into service in the U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay at Olongapo and remained active through
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and the interwar years. Sank 24 May 1910 while receiving a torpedo boat. Raised undamaged on 29 June and put back in service. After the outbreak of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, ''Dewey'' was moved to
Mariveles Mariveles, officially the Municipality of Mariveles ( tl, Bayan ng Mariveles), is a first class municipality in the province of Bataan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 149,879 people. History Founded as a ''p ...
,
Bataan Bataan (), officially the Province of Bataan ( fil, Lalawigan ng Bataan ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the enti ...
, when the U.S. forces retreated to that peninsula. As the reality of the situation of the U.S. forces became apparent, several undamaged ships, including ''Dewey'', were ordered scuttled to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Japanese. On 8 April 1942, docking officer, Lt. C. J. Weschler, scuttled the drydock. Three damaged ships were also scuttled with ''Dewey''; the submarine tender and the
minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...
and the
tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, su ...
. She was later raised by the Japanese and towed to
Manila Bay Manila Bay ( fil, Look ng Maynila) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Phi ...
, but was sunk again by Allied forces. American
Grumman TBF Avenger The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air and naval a ...
torpedo bomber A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carrying the weight ...
s attacked her on 12 and 13 November 1944, ending her 35 years of service.Any Port in a Storm: The Dewey in the Canaries, 28 December 2016
/ref> ''Dewey'' earned one
battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...
for her World War II service.


References

* * *''The voyage of the Dewey'' by Frank M Bennett, 1906, Hardcover book * "Across the Atlantic in a Drydock" written by crewmember of the Dewey, 30 June 1906. *"Towing the Drydock Dewey", in ''American Machinist '', 1 March 1906 *"The Memorable Voyage of the Drydock Dewey" in the ''Baltimore Sun Almanac'', 1907. *"Towing the Drydock Dewey" – by the Chief Officer, in the ''Marine Review'' 4 January 1906. *"Another Glimpse of the Towing of the Dry Dock Dewey" by F. M. Treder in the ''American Marine Engineer'' March, 1907 *"Dry-Dock Dewey at Journey's End" US Navy, to Commander Hosley, 10 July 1907


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dewey (YFD-1) Ships built in Sparrows Point, Maryland World War I auxiliary ships of the United States World War II auxiliary ships of the United States 1905 ships Floating drydocks of the United States Navy World War II shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean Maritime incidents in April 1942