USS Straus (DE-408) was a acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The primary purpose of the destroyer escort was to escort and protect ships in convoy

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, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...

, in addition to other tasks as assigned, such as patrol or radar picket

Radar picket

A radar picket is a radar-equipped ship, submarine, aircraft, or vehicle used to increase the radar detection range around a force to protect it from surprise attack. Often several detached radar units encircle a force to provide increased cover in all directions.-World War II:Radar picket ships...

. Post-war, she returned home proudly with three battle stars to her credit.

She was named in honor of Storekeeper

Storekeeper

Storekeeper is an enlisted rating in the United States Coast Guard; until 2009 it was also a United States Navy rating, the most common supply rate in US Navy vs. CS and SH and very much equivalent to the MOS 92 of the US Army...

 Second Class David H. Straus, Jr. who was killed during the Battle of the Coral Sea

Battle of the Coral Sea

The Battle of the Coral Sea, fought from 4–8 May 1942, was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II between the Imperial Japanese Navy and Allied naval and air forces from the United States and Australia. The battle was the first fleet action in which aircraft carriers engaged...

. She was laid down on 18 November 1943 by the Brown Shipbuilding

Brown Shipbuilding

The Brown Shipbuilding Company was founded in Houston, Texas in 1942 as a subsidiary of Brown and Root by brothers Herman and George R. Brown to build ships for the US Navy during World War II....

 Co., Houston, Texas

Houston, Texas

Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...

; launched on 30 December 1943; sponsored by Mrs. David Straus; and commissioned on 6 April 1944, Lt. Comdr. D. A. Nienstedt in command.

World War II Atlantic Ocean operations

Straus was fitted out and held sea trials at Galveston, Texas

Galveston, Texas

Galveston is a coastal city located on Galveston Island in the U.S. state of Texas. , the city had a total population of 47,743 within an area of...

, until 25 April when she sailed to Bermuda

Bermuda

Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...

 for her shakedown

Shakedown (testing)

A shakedown is a period of testing or a trial journey undergone by a ship, aircraft or other craft and its crew before being declared operational. Statistically, a proportion of the components will fail after a relatively short period of use, and those that survive this period can be expected to...

 cruise. She then sailed to Boston, Massachusetts, for a post-shakedown overhaul from 28 May to 9 June. The ship arrived at Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

, on 11 June and sailed for Panama

Panama

Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...

 the following week as an escort for . The oiler loaded at Aruba

Aruba

Aruba is a 33 km-long island of the Lesser Antilles in the southern Caribbean Sea, located 27 km north of the coast of Venezuela and 130 km east of Guajira Peninsula...

, off Venezuela

Venezuela

Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

, on 23 and 24 June and continued to Panama. On the evening of the 24th, the escort attacked a sound contact with depth charges and hedgehogs

Hedgehog (weapon)

The Hedgehog was an anti-submarine weapon developed by the Royal Navy during World War II, that was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers to supplement the depth charge. The weapon worked by firing a number of small spigot mortar bombs from spiked fittings...

. Oil slicks and bubbles rose to the surface, but Straus had to break off the attack to rejoin Mississinewa. Straus left the oiler at Cristóbal

Cristóbal, Colón

Cristóbal is a port in the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal. It is located on the western edge of Manzanillo Island and is part of the Panamanian city and province of Colón...

 and transited the Panama Canal

Panama Canal

The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...

 on 26 June to sail independently to California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

.

Transfer to the Pacific Fleet

Straus stopped at San Diego, California

San Diego, California

San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...

, for voyage repairs from 6 to 9 July and then sailed westward, arriving at Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...

 on the 16th. Eight days later, she sailed for the Marshall Islands

Marshall Islands

The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...

. The destroyer escort arrived at Eniwetok on 2 August and was assigned to the convoy screen which sailed three days later for the Marianas

Mariana Islands

The Mariana Islands are an arc-shaped archipelago made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the north-western Pacific Ocean between the 12th and 21st parallels north and along the 145th meridian east...

 and arrived off Saipan

Saipan

Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...

 on 10 August. Straus was assigned to local antisubmarine patrol. On the 13th, she rescued two U.S. Army airmen from a piece of driftwood

Driftwood

Driftwood is wood that has been washed onto a shore or beach of a sea or river by the action of winds, tides, waves or man. It is a form of marine debris or tidewrack....

 and put them ashore. From 14 August to 14 September, Straus escorted convoys between Eniwetok and Guam

Guam

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...

. On the latter date, the ship was assigned to the U.S. 3rd Fleet.

Rescuing Japanese adrift at sea

Straus stood out of Apra Harbor

Apra Harbor

Apra Harbor is a deep-water port on the western side of Guam in the Mariana Islands. The harbor is formed by Orote Peninsula in the south and Cabras Island in the north. To the south, the harbor narrows and then widens again to form an inner harbor. The southern end of the harbor is the location...

, Guam, on 17 September with a replenishment unit to join the main logistics group, Task Group

Task force

A task force 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...

 (TG) 30.8, that was supporting the fast carriers of Task Force (TF) 38. The ship was detached from the screen on the 23d to investigate a life raft reported west of Cocos Island

Cocos Island

Cocos Island is an uninhabited island located off the shore of Costa Rica . It constitutes the 11th district of Puntarenas Canton of the province of Puntarenas. It is one of the National Parks of Costa Rica...

. She found a raft carrying three Japanese Army officers and two enlisted men. A boat was dispatched to tow the raft to the ship. Before the boat reached the raft, the two enlisted men had committed suicide. The other three surrendered peacefully, after one was disarmed of a hand grenade

Hand grenade

A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...

. The next day, Straus steamed for a rendezvous with the 3d Fleet for refueling and replenishment operations, after which her unit returned to Saipan. She sailed for Eniwetok on 1 October; and, upon her arrival three days later, she resumed convoy duty.

Intercepting infiltrating swimmers

Straus sailed with a Ulithi

Ulithi

Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...

-bound convoy on 8 October and arrived five days later. She became station ship for the Commander, Western Carolines

Caroline Islands

The Caroline Islands 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 in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...

, Patrol and Escort Group. The DE moved to the Palau Islands, on 15 November, with her division, Escort Division 65, and was assigned to the screen around Peleliu

Peleliu

Peleliu is an island in the island nation of Palau. Peleliu forms, along with two small islands to its northeast, one of the sixteen states of Palau. It is located northeast of Angaur and southwest of Koror....

 and Angaur

Angaur

Angaur or Ngeaur is an island in the island nation of Palau. The island, which forms its own state, has an area of 8 km² . Its population is 188 . State capital is the village of Ngeremasch on the western side...

. On the 18th, a report was received that enemy swimmers were moving from Eli Malk Island, under cover of darkness, toward Peleliu. Straus provided starshell illumination while a landing craft flotilla attacked the swimmers with machine guns and eliminated them. The ship returned to Ulithi on the 26th, and resumed her former duties until March 1945 when she was attached to the U.S. 5th Fleet.

Straus departed Ulithi on 26 March with a task unit en route to rendezvous with task group TG 50.8, the main logistics group that was refueling and replenishing the fast carriers during the Okinawa operations. She remained with the group until 26 June. Two days later, she sailed from Ulithi with a convoy en route to Okinawa. The ships arrived on 2 July, and Straus was assigned to antisubmarine patrol. The DE continued operating in the Okinawa area after the cessation of hostilities with Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

End-of-war operations

On 19 September, she sailed with TF 55 for Japan and arrived at Sasebo

Sasebo, Nagasaki

is a city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. As of 2011, the city has an estimated population of 259,800 and the density of 609 persons per km². The total area is 426.47 km². The locality is famed for its scenic beauty. The city includes a part of Saikai National Park...

 the following day. The force consisted of a cruiser

Cruiser

A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...

 accompanied by five destroyers to provide a show of force before occupation forces arrived.

Straus was detached before the amphibious

Amphibious warfare

Amphibious warfare is the use of naval firepower, logistics and strategy to project military power ashore. In previous eras it stood as the primary method of delivering troops to non-contiguous enemy-held terrain...

 forces arrived to join two aircraft carriers that were steaming off Kyūshū

Kyushu

is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....

 with ready air support in case the Japanese offered resistance. She returned to Sasebo on the 25th and remained there until 15 October when she weighed anchor for the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. After port calls at Saipan and Pearl Harbor, the destroyer escort arrived at San Diego on 5 November 1945 to begin inactivation.

Post-war decommissioning

Straus remained inactive at the Naval Repair Base until 15 January 1947 when she was decommissioned and attached to the San Diego Group of the Pacific Reserve Fleet. Straus was struck from the Navy List

Naval Vessel Register

The Naval Vessel Register 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 the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...

on 1 May 1966 and used as a target in August 1973.

External links

• NavSource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive - USS Straus (DE-408)