USS Ludlow (DD-438)
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USS ''Ludlow'' (DD-438), a , was the third ship of the United States Navy to bear the name. The second and third ''Ludlow'' ships were named for Lieutenant
Augustus C. Ludlow __NOTOC__ Augustus C. Ludlow (1 January 1792 – 13 June 1813) was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812. Ludlow was born in Newburgh, New York. He was appointed midshipman April 2, 1804, and commissioned lieutenant June 3 ...
, second in command of . He was, like his captain, mortally wounded in their ship's engagement with on 1 June 1813, and died at Halifax, Nova Scotia on 13 June. ''Ludlow'' was laid down 18 December 1939 by Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine. She was launched 11 November 1940, sponsored by Miss Frances Nicholson Chrystie, a descendant of Lieutenant Ludlow, and commissioned at Boston 5 March 1941.


History


Commissioning

''Ludlow'' commissioned at a time when the North Atlantic saw daily evidence of the struggle of British ships and planes against German U-boats. At this time, too, the vital Lend-Lease Act was destined to demonstrate America's concern for Great Britain's survival.


First tour

Having completed shakedown, ''Ludlow'' left Boston in October 1941 for
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
and Iceland, convoying supplies ultimately destined for the British Isles. The 7 December attack on Pearl Harbor, and the declaration of war between Germany and the United States soon lengthened ''Ludlow''s convoy runs to include the ports of
Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...
, Liverpool, Greenoch, and Freetown, South Africa.


Operation Torch

Assigned to Task Force 34 (TF 34) for the invasion of North Africa, ''Ludlow'' arrived off
Cape Fedhala A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. The ...
,
French Morocco The French protectorate in Morocco (french: Protectorat français au Maroc; ar, الحماية الفرنسية في المغرب), also known as French Morocco, was the period of French colonial rule in Morocco between 1912 to 1956. The prote ...
, late 7 November 1942. Shortly after the first wave of landing craft headed tor shore, ''Ludlow'' found herself engaging shore batteries, bombers, and a
Vichy French Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...
naval force comprising a
cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...
and two destroyers in the Naval Battle of Casablanca. A 6-inch shell struck her forward and straddling shots were falling close aboard when and — arrived and helped to dispose of the French ships.


Operation Husky

''Ludlow'' returned to
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
to repair battle damage, then conducted training off the coast of Maine before departing 14 January 1943 for the first of three convoy runs to
Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...
. After the third of these, in June, she remained in the Mediterranean Sea for the forthcoming invasion of Sicily. With the invasion forces on 10 July, Ludlow gave fire support off
Licata Licata (, ; grc, Φιντίας, whence la, Phintias or ''Plintis''), formerly also Alicata (), is a city and ''comune'' located on the south coast of Sicily, at the mouth of the Salso River (the ancient ''Himera''), about midway between Agr ...
and Porsa Empedocle. Daily enemy air attacks followed, and on 11 August she splashed her first airplane. Participating in the invasion of Italy on 9 September, ''Ludlow'' led a section of the assault wave through a known
minefield A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ...
to the bloody landing at
Salerno Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
. She and her sister ships were warmly commended by the commanding general ashore for their effective close range fire support. She then served on convoy duty between Naples and
Oran Oran ( ar, وَهران, Wahrān) is a major coastal city located in the north-west of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria after the capital Algiers, due to its population and commercial, industrial, and cultural ...
, until 11 January 1944. Returning to the beachheads, she covered Allied troops storming ashore at Anzio 22 January. This Joint American–British operation initially met little opposition, but later in the day the Germans struck with a fierce counterattack. Heavy air attacks marked the following days and, in less than a week, ''Ludlow'' splashed two bombers one fighter, and three rocket
glider bomb A glide bomb or stand-off bomb is a standoff weapon with flight control surfaces to give it a flatter, gliding flight path than that of a conventional bomb without such surfaces. This allows it to be released at a distance from the target r ...
s. A 5-inch shell crashed through the torpedo director deck and the pilothouse, causing ''Ludlow'' to retire, but serious damage was averted when Chief Gunners Mate James D. Johnson located the hot, unexploded shell and managed to get it topside and overboard.


Antisubmarine duty

''Ludlow'' repaired at New York, then trained along the Atlantic coast and returned to the Mediterranean 20 April for antisubmarine patrols. On 19 May, ''Ludlow'' and ''Niblack'' depth charged to the surface, where ''Ludlow''s main battery sank her. After convoy alignments in the western Mediterranean, ''Ludlow'' steamed 11 August from
Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
for the invasion of southern France. Following preinvasion bombardment and beachhead screening off
Fréjus Fréjus (; ) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 54,458. It neighbours Saint-Raphaël, effectively forming one urban agglomeration. The north of ...
, she joined ''Augusta'' from 25 to 30 August to help overcome the last resistance at
Marseilles Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
. While on coastal fire support missions around Monaco, she encountered not only floating mines and E-boats, but also attacks by explosive-laden boats and
human torpedoes Human torpedoes or manned torpedoes are a type of diver propulsion vehicle on which the diver rides, generally in a seated position behind a fairing. They were used as secret naval weapons in World War II. The basic concept is still in use. ...
. ''Ludlow'' captured three operators of these one man diving machines on 5 September after a series of
depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...
attacks. Fire support, convoy and patrol duty continued until 23 January 1945, when ''Ludlow'' sailed for a month's plane guard duty off the west coast of Africa, returning to Boston on 28 February. In April she sailed to England to escort a convoy of LSTs stateside, then prepared for duty in the Pacific.


Convoys escorted


Pacific Theater

Transiting the Panama Canal 27 June, she reached Pearl Harbor 17 July and began training for operations with the fast carriers. The
surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...
, however diverted her to the job of escorting ships filled with occupation troops to the home islands of the defeated Empire. She departed Pearl Harbor 7 September and arrived at Wakayama, Japan on 27 July. ''Ludlow'' operated in the Far East until 3 November, then sailed for the Aleutians where she saw a brief period of "Magic Carpet" duty.


Decommissioning

Early in 1946, ''Ludlow'' was ordered back to the east coast, and on 20 May 1946 she was placed out of commission in reserve at
Charleston Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfoundlan ...
, South Carolina. After this she was utilized for reserve training. She was placed in commission in reserve on 6 June 1950, and on 21 November of the same year she was placed on active status.


Greek service

''Ludlow'' decommissioned 22 January 1951 and was transferred to the Royal Hellenic Navy where she was renamed ''Doxa'' (D20). The destroyer was broken up for scrap in 1972.


Awards

''Ludlow'' received six battle stars for World War II service.


References


External links


navsource.org: USS ''Ludlow''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ludlow (DD-438) Gleaves-class destroyers of the United States Navy Ships built in Bath, Maine 1940 ships World War II destroyers of the United States Gleaves-class destroyers of the Hellenic Navy