USS Hopkins (DD-6)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

USS ''Hopkins'' (DD-6) was a ''Hopkins''-class destroyer, which was a sub-class of the , in 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 ...
. She was the first of three Navy vessels named in honor of Commodore of the
Continental Navy The Continental Navy was the navy of the United Colonies and United States from 1775 to 1785. It was founded on October 13, 1775 by the Continental Congress to fight against British forces and their allies as part of the American Revolutionary ...
Esek Hopkins Commodore (rank), Commodore Esek Hopkins (April 26, 1718February 26, 1802) was a Continental Navy officer and privateer. He served as the only commander-in-chief of the Continental navy during the American Revolutionary War, when the Continental ...
.


Construction

''Hopkins'' was launched by Harlan & Hollingsworth Company,
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 ...
, on 24 April 1902, and sponsored by Alice Gould Hawes, a great-great-granddaughter of Esek Hopkins. The ship was commissioned at
Philadelphia Navy Yard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was the first United States Navy shipyard and was historically important for nearly two centuries. Construction of the original Philadelphia Naval Shipyard began during the American Revolution in 1776 at Front ...
on 23 September 1903, with
Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
Montgomery M. Taylor in command.


Pre-World War I

''Hopkins'' sailed from
Philadelphia 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 12 May 1904, and joined the Fleet at
Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...
. That summer the destroyer deployed with the Coast Squadron for the
midshipmen A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afric ...
at sea training. During the following three years she ranged into the
Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere, located south of the Gulf of Mexico and southwest of the Sargasso Sea. It is bounded by the Greater Antilles to the north from Cuba ...
, exercising with the Flotilla, engaging in torpedo practice, and Fleet problems. In September 1906, ''Hopkins'' was present for the
Presidential Review A Naval Review is an event where select vessels and assets of the United States Navy are paraded to be reviewed by the President of the United States or the Secretary of the Navy. Due to the geographic distance separating the modern Structure ...
off Oyster Bay. On 29 September, she and escorted the President in to
Cape Cod Bay Cape Cod Bay is a large bay of the Atlantic Ocean adjacent to the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Measuring below a line drawn from Brant Rock in Marshfield to Race Point in Provincetown, Massachusetts, it is enclosed by Cape Cod to the south ...
to witness record target practice. In 1907–1908, ''Hopkins'' – as part of the Torpedo Flotilla – accompanied the Atlantic Fleet on a practice cruise to the
Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...
. They sailed from
Hampton Roads Hampton Roads is a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond, and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point near whe ...
on 2 December 1907, exchanging courtesies at various
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
and
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
n ports ''en route''. After target practice in Magdelena Bay, the Flotilla arrived at
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
on 6 May 1908, in time for the review of the combined Atlantic and Pacific Fleets by the
Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On March 25, 2025, John Phelan was confirm ...
. On 1 June of that year, ''Hopkins'' joined the Pacific Torpedo Fleet for tactics along the West Coast, at sea training north to
Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
n waters, and south to the coast of Mexico. On 14 February 1910, ''Hopkins'' suffered a
boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centra ...
accident. Two sailors, Chief Watertender
Robert Earl Bonney Robert Earl Bonney (November 23, 1882 – November 22, 1967) was a United States Navy sailor and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor. Biography Early life and career Bonney was born in Maryville, Blo ...
and Watertender Edward Alvin Clary, were awarded the
Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...
for their actions during the incident.


World War I

On 30 April 1917, after the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
entry into
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, ''Hopkins'' departed
San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
for the
Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone (), also known as just the Canal Zone, was a International zone#Concessions, concession of the United States located in the Isthmus of Panama that existed from 1903 to 1979. It consisted of the Panama Canal and an area gene ...
. She performed patrol duty, convoyed
submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...
s and assisted them in torpedo proving. On 3 August, she arrived at Hampton Roads, for escort and patrol ranging along the coast to
Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...
. ''Hopkins'' entered the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 29 January 1919, and decommissioned there 20 June. She was sold for scrapping on 7 September 1920 to the Denton Shore Lumber Company.


Noteworthy commanding officers

* Lieutenant commander Montgomery M. Taylor (24 October 1902 – 13 February 1903) (Later
Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...
) * Lieutenant Alfred G. Howe (3 December 1906 – 1 June 1908) (Later
Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
) * Lieutenant Harold G. Bowen, Sr. (15 March 1910 – 5 September 1911) (Later
Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...
) * Lieutenant junior grade James L. Kauffman (1 November 1912 – 4 January 1914) (Later
Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...
) * Lieutenant commander Robert G. Tobin (24 October 1918 – 20 June 1919) (Later
Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
)


Notes


References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hopkins (DD-6) Bainbridge-class destroyers World War I destroyers of the United States Ships built by Harlan and Hollingsworth 1902 ships