USS ''Maloy'' (DE-791/EDE-791), a of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

Namesake

Thomas Joel Maloy was born on 26 September 1906 in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. He enlisted in the Navy on 30 September 1926. On 13 November 1942, in action off

Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomons by area and the second- ...

, Chief Watertender Maloy's ship, , was torpedoed and went dead in the water. After ordering his crew to abandon number one fireroom, Maloy remained at his station struggling to stem the rapid flooding of the area. Compelled to leave the compartment, he proceeded to the forward engine room to investigate conditions there. He perished in this heroic attempt to save the ship. He was posthumously awarded the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Naval Service's second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is equivalent to the Army ...

Construction and commissioning

''Maloy'' (DE-791) was laid down by

Consolidated Steel Corporation The Consolidated Steel Corporation was an American steel and shipbuilding business. Formed on 18 December 1928, the company built ships during World War II in two main locations: Wilmington, California, and Orange, Texas. It was created by the mer ...

Orange, Texas Orange is a city in and the county seat of Orange County, Texas, United States. The population was 19,324 at the 2020 census. It is the easternmost city in Texas, located on the Sabine River at the border with Louisiana, and is from Houston. ...

, on 10 May 1943; launched on 18 August 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Thomas J. Maloy, widow of Chief Water Tender Maloy; and commissioned on 13 December 1943.

Service history

World War II, 1943–1945

''Maloy'' spent her entire

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

service with the Atlantic Fleet. On her first assignment she escorted troop

transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

s to the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal () is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. It cuts across the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama, and is a Channel (geography), conduit for maritime trade between th ...

and screened an

escort carrier The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slower type of aircraf ...

back to the east coast. Then in early March 1944 she crossed the Atlantic to

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, and until June conducted amphibious training along the English coast in preparation for the

invasion of France France has been invaded on numerous occasions, by foreign powers or rival French governments; there have also been unimplemented invasion plans. * The 978 German invasion during the Franco-German war of 978–980 * The 1230 English invasion of ...

. On

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

, 6 June 1944, ''Maloy'' supported operations off

Omaha Beach Omaha Beach was one of five beach landing sectors of the amphibious assault component of Operation Overlord during the Second World War. On June 6, 1944, the Allies of World War II, Allies invaded German military administration in occupied Fra ...

in this hard-fought assault where naval gunfire support played a decisive role in victory. She continued to patrol off the

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

coast and among the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...

for the remainder of the war, raiding enemy shipping whenever possible. With the capitulation of Germany on 8 May 1945, she escorted the first

convoy A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...

to re-enter

Saint Peter Port St. Peter Port () is a town and one of the ten parishes on the island of Guernsey in the Channel Islands. It is the capital of the Bailiwick of Guernsey as well as the main port. The population in 2019 was 18,958. St. Peter Port is a small tow ...

Guernsey Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...

, Channel Islands. The destroyer escort then returned to the United States, arriving on 18 June 1945.

Operational Development Force, 1946–1965

The following May, ''Maloy'' commenced working for Operational Development Force, New London Detachment, and was redesignated EDE-791 on 14 August 1946. For the next 18 years, ''Maloy'' played a large role in the ever-changing Navy, primarily testing and evaluating experimental equipment in connection with various projects of the

Underwater Sound Laboratory The Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) is the United States Navy's full-spectrum research, development, test and evaluation, engineering and fleet support center for submarines, autonomous underwater systems, and offensive and defensive weapons ...

. While testing the new equipment, ''Maloy'' continued to fulfill regular duties, which included service as a school and training ship for the

Fleet Sonar School The Fleet Sonar School was a United States Navy facility located at Naval Station Key West, Florida for the training of Service personnel in Sonar techniques and equipment, and Anti-submarine warfare. {{Cite web , url=http://www.sonarshack.org/mile ...

at Key West, and participated in

anti-submarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in the older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations ar ...

, convoy, and other fleet exercises. During this time she also successfully completed emergency assignments. At

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

, 11 November 1947 to 25 March 1948, ''Maloy'' provided electrical power for the city when, because of extreme drought conditions, local power companies could not draw on their normal power source, the lakes and rivers of the area. In May and June 1961, she cruised off the

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...

to provide, if necessary, protection for American citizens during the

revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

in that country. And the following year she provided support for the Cuban quarantine during the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis () in Cuba, or the Caribbean Crisis (), was a 13-day confrontation between the governments of the United States and the Soviet Union, when American deployments of Nuclear weapons d ...

of October–November. For the next two years, ''Maloy'' continued her test and evaluation assignments.

Decommissioning and sale

She decommissioned at

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, on 28 May 1965 and was struck from the

Navy List A Navy Directory, Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a co ...

on 1 June 1965. On 11 March 1966, she was sold to the North American Smelting Company of

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington is the List of municipalities in Delaware, most populous city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish colonization of the Americas, Swedish settlement in North America. It lie ...

, for scrap.

Awards

''Maloy'' received one

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star 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 service period. T ...

for World War II service.

References

External links

*
A web site devoted to the USS Maloy (DE-791)
created by the last executive officer to serve on the ship {{DEFAULTSORT:Maloy (DE-791) Buckley-class destroyer escorts Ships built in Orange, Texas World War II frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States 1943 ships