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 ...
during
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 ...
. She was the second ship named for
Richard Worsam Meade III
Richard Worsam Meade III (also called Richard Worsam Meade, Jr., by many sources) (October 9, 1837 – May 4, 1897) was an officer in the United States Navy during the American Civil War.
Biography
Born in New York City, he was the son of Captain ...
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Until its closure in 2003, it was one of the world's largest steel-producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success ...
, Shipbuilding Division,
Staten Island, New York
Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...
, 25 March 1941, launched 15 February 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Moray Nairne Wootton, and commissioned at
Brooklyn Navy Yard
The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York, U.S. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a se ...
Cuba
Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
, ''Meade'' sailed in the screen escorting to the southwest Pacific. After arriving
Tongatapu
Tongatapu is the main island of Tonga and the site of its capital, Nukuʻalofa, Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with 74,611 residents (2016), 70.5% o ...
14 September, she guarded carrier task groups defending the sea lanes between Allied bases in the South Pacific and American forces in the
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...
. Operating out of
Nouméa
Nouméa () is the capital and largest city of the French Sui generis collectivity, special collectivity of New Caledonia and is also the largest Francophone city in Oceania. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main i ...
,
New Caledonia
New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...
, she served during the months in late 1942 during the protracted struggle for control of
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- ...
.
As escort for and YT‑130, ''Meade'' cruised off Guadalcanal during the costly but decisive night cruiser battle 13 November. She reached
Tulagi
Tulagi, less commonly known as Tulaghi, is a small island in Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Ngella Sule. The town of the same name on the island (pop. 1,750) was the capital of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate from 1896 t ...
the 14th, and following the night battleship battle 14 to 15 November, she crossed
Ironbottom Sound
"Ironbottom Sound" (alternatively Iron Bottom Sound or Ironbottomed Sound or Iron Bottom Bay) is the name given by Allied sailors to the stretch of water at the southern end of The Slot between Guadalcanal, Savo Island, and Florida Island o ...
and for the better part of an hour blasted four beached enemy transports north of Tassafaronga with 5‑inch rapid fire. The transports previously had suffered aerial strafing and bombing attacks, and ''Meade's'' concentrated gunfire left them wrecks "blazing with many internal explosions." Thence she cruised the waters between
Savo Island
Savo Island is an island in Solomon Islands in the South Pacific ocean. Administratively, Savo Island is a part of the Central Province of Solomon Islands. It is about from the national capital of Honiara. The principal village is Alialia, i ...
and Guadalcanal and rescued 266 men from destroyers and sunk during the fierce fighting of the previous night. After returning to Tulagi, she joined the search off San Cristobal 16 November for survivors from .
Between 22 November and 16 December, ''Meade'' operated as escort for during salvage operations. She screened damaged cruiser to
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and guarded en route to the
New Hebrides
New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium () and named after the Hebrides in Scotland, was the colonial name for the island group in the South Pacific Ocean that is now Vanuatu. Native people had inhabited the islands for three th ...
. She continued escort operations between Guadalcanal and bases in New Caledonia and the New Hebrides. During the
Battle of Rennell Island
The took place on 29–30 January 1943. It was the last major naval battle, naval engagement between the United States Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Guadalcanal Campaign of World War II. It occurred in the South Pacific Area, ...
, 29 to 30 January 1943, she screened escort carriers of TF 18.
Aleutians Campaign
''Meade'' departed the South Pacific 18 March for the
Aleutians
The Aleutian Islands ( ; ; , "land of the Aleuts"; possibly from the Chukchi ''aliat'', or "island")—also called the Aleut Islands, Aleutic Islands, or, before 1867, the Catherine Archipelago—are a chain of 14 main, larger volcanic island ...
, arriving 15 April. During 4 months of patrol and escort duty in the North Pacific, she provided shore bombardment and fire support during the invasion and occupation of fog‑shrouded
Attu Island
Attu (, ) is an island in the Near Islands (part of the Aleutian Islands chain). It is one of the westernmost points of the U.S. state of Alaska. The island became uninhabited in 2010, making it the largest uninhabited island that is part of th ...
11 May. Before departing the Aleutians, she also took part in the bloodless occupation of
Kiska Island
Kiska (, ) is one of the Rat Islands, a group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is about long and varies in width from . It is part of Aleutian Islands Wilderness and as such, special permission is required to visit it. The island ha ...
, previously evacuated by the
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
ese.
Tarawa
After overhaul at
Puget Sound
Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...
, she steamed via
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...
to
Wellington, New Zealand
Wellington is Capital of New Zealand, the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the List of cities in New Zealand, third-largest city ...
, 29 October for duty with the 5th Fleet Assault Force. She departed Efate, New Hebrides, 13 November and sailed as part of the fire support group of the southern task force (TF 53) for the invasion of the
Gilbert Islands
The Gilbert Islands (;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this name applied o ...
. She screened cruisers and provided shore bombardment support during the bitterly contested assaults on Betio Island,
Tarawa
Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati ''
underwater explosion
An underwater explosion (also known as an UNDEX) is a explosive material, chemical or nuclear explosive, nuclear explosion that occurs under the surface of a body of water. While useful in anti-ship and submarine warfare, underwater bombs are not ...
lifted the boat out of the water and holed it. ''Meade'' recovered the motor whaleboat crew who were "shaken up somewhat."
Marshall Islands
''Meade'' returned to Pearl Harbor 7 December and during the next 6 weeks trained for the invasion of the
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands, officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands, is an island country west of the International Date Line and north of the equator in the Micronesia region of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean.
The territory consists of 29 c ...
. She sortied with TF 52 on 22 January 1944, and on the 30th participated in heavy bombardment of enemy installations on
Taroa
Taroa is an island in the east of Maloelap Atoll in the Marshall Islands. During World War II, it was the site of a major Japanese airfield (Taroa Airfield). The airfield was destroyed near the close of World War II, and parts of the base and its ...
island,
Maloelap Atoll
The Maloelap Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) (also spelled Maleolap) is a coral atoll of 71 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its land area is only , but that encloses a lagoon o ...
. Arriving off
Kwajalein Island
Kwajalein Atoll (; Marshallese language, Marshallese: ) is part of the Marshall Islands, Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island, which its majority English-speaking re ...
the 31st, she screened
battleship
A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...
s and
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 operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to sea ...
s during intensive shore bombardments. In addition she provided scheduled and spotter‑directed gunfire against installations on 1 and 2 February, destroying blockhouses, pillboxes, and machinegun emplacements. She remained in the Kwajalein area until 16 February, thence sailed via Majuro to Pearl Harbor, arriving the 24th.
Caroline Islands
''Meade'' returned to Majuro 8 March for screening duty with the fast carriers of TF 58. After supporting shore bombardment and airstrikes against,
Mille Atoll
Mili Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) is a coral atoll of 92 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. It is located approximately southeast of Arno. Its total land area is making it the ...
, Marshalls, 18 March, she screened the carriers westward to the
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands (or the Carolines) are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically, they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) in the cen ...
. Between 30 March and 2 April TF 58 carried out intensive airstrikes against enemy positions on
Yap
Yap (, sometimes written as , or ) traditionally refers to an island group located in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, a part of Yap State. The name "Yap" in recent years has come to also refer to the state within the Federate ...
,
Woleai
Woleai (), also known as Oleai, is a coral atoll of 22 islands in the western Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, forming a legislative district in the Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia, and located approximately west-northwest ...
, and the
Palau
Palau, officially the Republic of Palau, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the western Pacific Ocean. The Republic of Palau consists of approximately 340 islands and is the western part of the Caroline Islands ...
s. She supported similar strikes in western
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...
21 to 24 April, then protected the mighty carriers during heavy air raids against Truk and
Ponape
Ponape may refer to:
*Pohnpei
Pohnpei (formerly known as Ponape or Ascension, from Pohnpeian: "upon (''pohn'') a stone altar (''pei'')") is an island of the Senyavin Islands which are part of the larger Caroline Islands group. It belongs to ...
, Carolines, 29 to 30 April. She returned to the Marshalls 4 May.
Between 12 May and 10 July ''Meade'' operated out of Majuro while conducting shore bombardments and blockade patrols against bypassed islands in the Marshalls, including
Wotje
Wotje Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) is a coral atoll of 75 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands.
Geography
Wotje's land area of is one of the largest in the Marshall Islands, and ...
,
Maloelap
The Maloelap Atoll ( Marshallese: , ) (also spelled Maleolap) is a coral atoll of 71 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its land area is only , but that encloses a lagoon of ...
, Mille, and
Jaluit
Jaluit Atoll ( Marshallese: , , or , ) is a large coral atoll of 91 islands in the Pacific Ocean and forms a legislative district of the Ralik Chain of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Its total land area is , and it encloses a lagoon with a ...
. Departing Majuro 11 July, she steamed via Pearl Harbor to the west coast, arriving San Francisco 26 July. After overhaul at
Mare Island
Mare Island (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Isla de la Yegua'') is a peninsula in the United States in the city of Vallejo, California, about northeast of San Francisco. The Napa River forms its eastern side as it enters the Carquinez Strait junc ...
, she returned to Pearl Harbor 20 September. During the next 2 months she provided training facilities for the Pacific Fleet Torpedo and Gunnery School, then sailed 1 December in the screen for .
Philippines Campaign
Arriving
Ulithi
Ulithi (, , or ; pronounced roughly as YOU-li-thee) is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about east of Yap, within Yap State.
Name
The name of the island goes back to Chuukic languages, Proto-Chuukic ''*úlú-diw ...
, Carolines, 9 December, ''Meade'' returned to the Marshalls 15 to 19 December escorting two merchant ships. Thence, between 25 December and 16 January 1945 she completed two escort voyages between
Eniwetok
Enewetak Atoll (; also spelled Eniwetok Atoll or sometimes Eniewetok; , , or , ; known to the Japanese as Brown Atoll or Brown Island; ) is a large coral atoll of 40 islands in the Pacific Ocean and with its 296 people (as of 2021) forms a legi ...
and
Guam
Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...
. Departing the Marshalls 21 January, she steamed via Ulithi to the
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
where she arrived the 28th for duty with the
7th Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...
. As a unit of DesDiv 27, she escorted LSTs and merchant ships from
Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf, also known simply as the Leyte, is a gulf in the Eastern Visayan region in the Philippines. The bay is part of the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, and is bounded by two islands; Samar in the north and Leyte in the west. On the ...
via
Mindoro
Mindoro is the seventh largest and eighth-most populous island in the Philippines. With a total land area of 10,571 km2 ( 4,082 sq.mi ), it has a population of 1,408,454, as of the 2020 census. It is located off the southwestern coast of ...
and
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, about northwest of Manila Bay. An extension of the South China Sea, its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility, U.S. Naval Base Subi ...
to
Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf is a large gulf on northwestern Luzon in the Philippines, stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central (Luzon), Cordillera Central. The Agno ...
,
Luzon
Luzon ( , ) is the largest and most populous List of islands in the Philippines, island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the List of islands of the Philippines, Philippine archipelago, it is the economic and political ce ...
, 8 to 13 February. For more than 2 months ''Meade'' operated out of Lingayen Gulf, patrolling the approaches of the gulf and the coast of western Luzon for enemy submarines and aircraft. She returned to Leyte Gulf 5 May.
Assigned to TG 78.3, ''Meade'' enter Macajalar Bay, Mindoro, 10 May and laid down fire support during unopposed amphibious landings. She departed the area the 15th, and escorted ships to
Cebu
Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...
and Mindanao before returning to Leyte 20 May. She continued escort runs to the southern Philippines until 9 July; a month later she sailed for Subic Bay, arriving there just prior to Japanese capitulation.
End of World War II and fate
Between 31 August and 9 September, ''Meade'' completed an escort voyage to
Okinawa
most commonly refers to:
* Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost prefecture
* Okinawa Island, the largest island of Okinawa Prefecture
* Okinawa Islands, an island group including Okinawa itself
* Okinawa (city), the second largest city in th ...
and back. She sailed 20 September for
French Indochina
French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China), officially known as the Indochinese Union and after 1941 as the Indochinese Federation, was a group of French dependent territories in Southeast Asia from 1887 to 1954. It was initial ...
; closed the coast of
Table Island
Table Island is an uninhabited island within the Arctic Archipelago in the territory of Nunavut. It lies in Norwegian Bay, north of Devon Island, and is also south Cornwall Island, separated by Belcher Channel. Ekins Island is a small islet ab ...
in the
Gulf of Tonkin
The Gulf of Tonkin is a gulf at the northwestern portion of the South China Sea, located off the coasts of Tonkin ( northern Vietnam) and South China. It has a total surface area of . It is defined in the west and northwest by the northern co ...
the 23rd; and delivered provisions and medical supplies to French military personnel. After returning to Manila Bay 29 September, she completed her duty in the Philippines and departed for the United States 2 November. Steaming via
San Diego, California
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 ...
and 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 ...
, she reached
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...
, 9 December. Two days later she began extensive overhaul. On 4 March 1946 she sailed to
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...
. ''Meade'' decommissioned there 17 June 1946, and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. She was struck from the
Naval Vessel Register
The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...
on 1 June 1971, and sunk as a target in February 1973. Her ship's bell was removed prior to the sinking and is now on display at the Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, VA.
Awards
''Meade'' received nine
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 ...