USS ''Walsh'' (APD-111) was a

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 ...

''Crosley''-class high-speed transport in commission from 1945 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1968.

Namesake

Patrick Joseph Walsh was born on 19 January 1908 in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He accepted a

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in the

United States Naval Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2004, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called reservists, are categorized as being in either the S ...

as a

lieutenant, junior grade Lieutenant junior grade is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank used in a number of navies. United States Lieutenant (junior grade), commonly abbreviated as LTJG or, historically, Lt. (j.g.) (as well as variants of both ab ...

, on 4 May 1942. He received instruction at the Naval Training School,

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and later received more specialized training at the Armed Guard School at Little Creek,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, from 16 June 1942 to 22 July 1942. Walsh was Naval Armed Guard detachment commander aboard the

merchant ship A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are ...

SS ''Patrick J. Hurley'' in the

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on the night of 12 September 1942 when the stealthily surfaced and closed on the ''Patrick J. Hurley''. Undetected, ''U-512'' opened fire on ''Patrick J. Hurley'' with devastating effect. Walsh fell severely wounded in the initial shelling, taking shrapnel in the

throat In vertebrate anatomy, the throat is the front part of the neck, internally positioned in front of the vertebrae. It contains the Human pharynx, pharynx and larynx. An important section of it is the epiglottis, separating the esophagus from the t ...

. In spite of the machine-gun fire directed at his battle station Walsh remained at his post, though weak from loss of blood. He died of his wounds. He was posthumously awarded the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

and the

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

Construction and commissioning

''Walsh'' was laid down as the ''Rudderow''-class

destroyer escort Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships. Development of the destroyer escort was promoted by th ...

USS ''Walsh'' (DE-601) on 27 February 1945 by

Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard The Bethlehem Hingham Shipyard of Hingham, Massachusetts, was a shipyard in the United States from 1941 until 1945. Located on Weymouth Back River, it was owned by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Company and operated by the nearby Fore River Shipyard. ...

, Inc., at Hingham,

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. She was reclassified as a ''Crosley''-class high-speed transport and redesignated APD-111 during construction, and was launched on 27 April 1945, sponsored by Mrs. John J. Walsh. ''Walsh'' was commissioned on 11 July 1945.

Service history

After

shakedown Shakedown or Shake Down may refer to: * Shakedown (continuum mechanics), a type of plastic deformation * Shakedown (testing) or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft before being declared operational ...

out of Guantanamo Bay,

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, from 1 August 1945 to 29 August 1945, during which

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 ...

ended on 15 August 1945, ''Walsh'' visited

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, and then took part in

smoke screen A smoke screen is smoke released to mask the movement or location of military units such as infantry, tanks, aircraft, or ships. Smoke screens are commonly deployed either by a canister (such as a grenade) or generated by a vehicle (such as ...

experiments in the

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as part of

Task Group A task force (TF) is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology. Many ...

23.19. On 4 October 1945, she moved north for training exercises in company with

PT boat A PT boat (short for patrol torpedo boat) was a motor torpedo boat used by the United States Navy in World War II. It was small, fast, and inexpensive to build, and it was valued for its maneuverability and speed. However, PT boats were hampe ...

s out of Melville,

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. She later participated in

Navy Day Several nations observe or have observed a Navy Day to recognize their navy. By country Argentina The Argentine Navy day is celebrated on May 17, anniversary of the victory achieved in 1814 against the Spanish fleet in the action of 14 ...

festivities at

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

, in late October 1945 before departing Portland on 30 October 1945 bound for

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, to begin the process of inactivation. At Philadelphia, ''Walsh'' secured her

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gear at the

Philadelphia Naval Shipyard 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 ...

and received hull repairs. She departed Philadelphia on 13 November 1945 bound for

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 ...

, Virginia, and arrived at Norfolk on 14 November 1945. She then unloaded all

ammunition Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...

and turned in registered

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s before proceeding on to

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

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Decommissioning and disposal

Decommissioned on 26 April 1946 at Green Cove Springs, Florida, ''Walsh'' berthed initially with the Florida Group of the Atlantic Reserve Fleet there. Later, she was moved to the Texas Group of the Atlantic Reserve Fleet, where she remained until stricken from the

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on 1 May 1966. She was sold for scrapping in July 1968.

References

*
NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive DE-601 / APD-111 Walsh
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh (APD-111) Crosley-class high speed transports World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Ships built in Hingham, Massachusetts 1945 ships