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USS Wadleigh (DD-689)
Encyclopedia
USS Wadleigh (DD-689) was a of the United States Navy
, named for Rear Admiral George H. Wadleigh
(1842–1927).
Wadleigh was laid down on 5 April 1943 at Bath, Maine
, by the Bath Iron Works
; launched
on 7 August 1943; sponsored by Miss Clara F. Wadleigh, daughter of RAdm. Wadleigh; and commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard
on 19 October 1943, Lieutenant Commander Walter C. Winn in command.
as she carried President Franklin D. Roosevelt back to the United States from talks with other Allied leaders at the Cairo Conference
.
to Pearl Harbor
.
Her baptism of fire came on 20 March 1944 during the Marshall Islands campaign. Assigned shore-bombardment duties, Wadleigh—in company with and —supported LCI
s and LSTs during the landings on Ailinglapalap and expended 478 rounds of 5 inch shells which destroyed an enemy-held village. Three days later, the new destroyer again took part in shooting up Japanese defenses, shelling a weather station and a radio station on Ebon Island
, helping to clear the way for the 1,500 marines
who soon took the island.
The ship returned to the Hawaiian Islands
for further operational training in preparation for the upcoming conquest of the Marianas
. Assigned to Task Group 52.4 (TG 52.4), Wadleigh arrived off Roi Island
in the Marshalls on 10 June, five days before D-Day
for the invasion of Saipan Island
. The day before the first landings, the warship closed Saipan
and commenced fire early in the morning, beginning her part in the operations designed to "soften up" the enemy defenses.
On D-Day, Wadleigh lay offshore, providing predawn gunfire support for underwater demolition team
s (UDTs) and for the initial waves of troops. After spending the day in shelling enemy positions, she retired seaward to conduct screening patrols. While thus engaged, Wadleigh and both picked up strong sonar
contacts with a submarine
west of Tinian
. Both ships went to general quarters and attacked, dropping depth charge
s with deadly precision. A heavy explosion, followed by a widening slick of oil and debris, indicated that whatever had been down there had been heavily hit. Postwar accounting revealed that the two destroyers had teamed to sink the .
Assigned to bombard Garapan
, the capital city of Saipan, Wadleigh encountered heavy activity of all types in this area, from both friend and foe alike, while expending some 1,700 rounds of 5 inch shells against the Japanese-held island. Not only was Wadleigh fired on by a Japanese shore battery, but the doughty destroyer was also straddled by a stick of bombs from a Japanese plane, mistaken for a low-flying aircraft by American forces, and again taken under fire from shore—all within a hair-raising space of 15 minutes! During the latter days of the campaign Wadleigh shot enemy snipers out of caves, trees, and cliffs; picked up an occasional Japanese prisoner, and rescued downed American aircrews shot down near her position.
Following escort runs to Eniwetok and Guadalcanal
, Wadleigh was assigned to support the invasion of the Palaus. On 15 September, she patrolled north of the islands on radar
picket duty, standing ready to provide early warning if Japanese planes were sighted.
On the following day, Wadleigh steamed to Kossol Roads
to begin assisting minesweeper
s in clearing the sealanes there. Floating mines
swept up by the minesweepers provided the destroyers with "game", and Wadleigh destroyed 22 with 40-millimeter fire. The 23d, however, was deadly. While approaching one mine, the destroyer brushed horns with another, an unswept mine which burst amidships. The explosion ripped into the bowels of the ship, killing three men and injuring 20, while flooding three engineering compartments and one living space. As the crew raced to general quarters, the ship settled five feet by the stern, and listed seven degrees to starboard. Wadleigh—now sporting a 40-foot rent in her bottom—came to an even keel as the crew manhandled all moveable weight from starboard to port to correct the list.
passed a towline and towed the stricken destroyer out of danger. The crippled ship, now sagging noticeably amidships, "worked" noticeably in the swells, prompting initial fears that the ship was breaking in two. In addition, the shock of the blast snapped one radar antenna and jarred both 26-foot motor whaleboat
s from their blocks.
_at_mare_island_naval_yard,_stern_view.jpg)
After temporary repairs, the ship painfully made her way back to Pearl Harbor and thence proceeded to the west coast to enter the Mare Island Navy Yard for repairs. Nearly rebuilt from the keel up, Wadleigh emerged from Mare Island on 20 February 1945 for speed trials and gunnery shoots. She departed San Diego, California, on 19 April and arrived at Pearl Harbor on 25 April, in company with , to conduct type-training exercises in the Hawaiian Islands.
She departed Pearl Harbor on 3 May, bound for Ulithi
, and arrived there after an 11-day passage. Rejoining her old unit—Destroyer Squadron 54 (DesRon 54)—the destroyer sortied with other 5th Fleet units on 25 May. After serving several tours on radar picket stations with the Fleet, Wadleigh weathered heavy typhoons from 5 to 7 June and subsequently accompanied and in a shore bombardment mission to Minami Daito Shima (Rasa Island) on the 9th, demolishing radar installations and buildings.
After a rest period in the Philippines
, Wadleigh sailed again for Japanese waters to screen the aircraft carrier
s as they continued to pound the Japanese home islands. On 10 July, the ship embarked a party of dignitaries—including Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Air, John L. Sullivan, and Vice Admiral Aubrey W. Fitch, for transportation to Iwo Jima
.
Rendezvousing with at Guam
, she rejoined her task force on 21 July to support offensive operations off Japan's doorstep. While serving on occasion 50 miles from the enemy shore, Wadleigh rescued two downed Navy aircrewmen who had been shot down during a strike on Tokyo.
The destroyer slowed to destroy a derelict mine on 10 August, but excessive turbine vibrations forced the ship to shut down her starboard engine. Detached from the task force, Wadleigh limped back to Ulithi, in a convoy of replenishment ships and tanker
s, for repairs. While en route, she received word of the Japanese capitulation.
Departing Ulithi on 23 August and hoping to rejoin the Fleet in time for the triumphal entry into Tokyo Bay
, Wadleigh stopped at Iwo Jima en route for passengers and mail and arrived 24 hours after the first ships had entered the bay. Ordered to proceed directly to Sagami Wan, Wadleigh went to general quarters in company with as the ships passed beneath the once-menacing shore batteries along the Urage Strait. They soon arrived at their destination, the Yokosuka Naval Base
, on 29 August.
As the first American troops went ashore at Yokohama
and Yokosuka, Wadleigh headed out to sea and rendezvoused with incoming carrier groups. She returned to her anchorage, near , on 2 September—in time to be on hand when the official surrender accords were signed that day.
Back at sea with the carriers once more, Wadleigh patrolled off the Japanese coast for two weeks, before she departed Nipponese waters on 16 September and proceeded via Eniwetok to Saipan in company with and for air group replacements. The destroyer returned to Tokyo Bay after a week at Saipan and arrived on 13 October, escorting and Lexington.
Departing Japanese waters on 20 October, bound for the Hawaiian Islands, Wadleigh carried a load of men eligible for discharge upon their return to the United States. After a 48-hour layover in the Hawaiian Islands, she pressed on for San Francisco, arriving on 5 November 1945. She commenced a preinactivation overhaul on 5 December and sailed for San Diego, California, on 27 January 1946, for inactivation. The destroyer was placed out of commission, in reserve, in the San Diego group of the Pacific Reserve Fleet, in January 1947.
. On 3 October 1951, Wadleigh was recommissioned at San Diego, Comdr. R. H. Pauli in command.
She departed San Diego on 4 January 1952, bound for duty with the Atlantic Fleet
. She transited the Panama Canal
on 14 January—in company with , , , and —and, upon arrival at her new home port of Newport, Rhode Island
, became flagship
for Destroyer Division 342.
After participating in various Fleet exercises, Wadleigh arrived at Pensacola, Florida
, on 17 August, to commence four weeks of plane-guard duty for . She rescued three downed aviators from the Gulf of Mexico
during this tour. Next, the destroyer sailed north for an overhaul at the Boston Naval Shipyard—during which time the ship received a battery of 3 inch guns—replacing the older 40-millimeter mounts.
On 3 May 1954, Wadleigh departed Newport, bound via the Panama Canal, Pearl Harbor, Midway
, and Guam for the Western Pacific
(WestPac), and arrived at Yokosuka, Japan, on 7 June 1954. After initially operating in the Philippine Islands, the destroyer shifted to the waters off the east coast of Korea
, assisting in monitoring the Armistice Agreement reached at Panmunjom the year before.
While in Subic Bay
, Wadleigh was put on alert and ordered to rendezvous with Task Group 70.2 (TG 70.2). Once she joined with the group, TG 70.2 proceeded to the southern coast of Formosa
in a precautionary move by the United States to forestall possible Chinese communist intentions towards the American-supported Nationalist Chinese regime on the island. While en route to Formosa, the ship struck an underwater object which inflicted minor damage to both screws. Returning to Subic Bay, the ship repaired the damage and sailed to rejoin the group. Once back on station, she spent 20 tense but uneventful days on patrol off Formosa and, soon thereafter, proceeded back to Sasebo, Japan, to prepare to return to the United States.
Wadleigh returned to Newport—via Hong Kong
, Singapore
, Colombo
, and various Mediterranean ports— and arrived at her home port on 28 November 1954. Shifting to the Caribbean, she operated both in these waters and off the east coast, on antisubmarine warfare (ASW) exercises and local operations, through the end of 1955. She then deployed three times to the Mediterranean.
During the third of these deployments, in July 1958, tensions flared in Lebanon
, and civil strife threatened American lives and property. Accordingly, the United States landed troops to restore order. Wadleigh was among the first American ships to arrive on the scene, with another much-decorated Fletcher-class destroyer, , arriving simultaneously. During the Lebanese crisis, she conducted eastern Mediterranean patrols as a unit of TF 61.
She returned to the east coast soon thereafter to operate along the Atlantic seaboard and into the Caribbean through the fall of 1958 before deploying to the Mediterranean for a fourth time in June 1959. While homeward-bound to Newport in September of that year, she served as one of the chain of ships beneath the aerial route of President Dwight D. Eisenhower
's return to the United States after his summit conferences in Europe.
During the period in which the ship continued to be based out of Newport, she conducted ASW exercises and local operations through the end of the year and into 1960. On 19 March 1960, Wadleigh sped to the scene of a collision between and a Swedish
tanker off Cape Henry
. Commander, Destroyer Squadron 20 (DesRon 20), embarked in Wadleigh, was on-scene commander and directed the successful effort to take Darby under tow.
Returning to a schedule of local operations, Wadleigh conducted a midshipman
's training cruise, ASW patrols, and exercises. During a deployment to European waters in the fall of 1960, she conducted NATO fall exercises in the North Sea
and across the Arctic Circle
.
Deploying to the Mediterranean for the fifth time, Wadleigh transited the Suez Canal
and participated in CENTO
Exercise Midlink III, in which the naval forces of five nations participated. In November 1960, the ship returned to Mediterranean and western European waters, and took part in ASW Exercises "Hay-strike" and "Jetstream" with French Navy
units before returning to Newport on 15 December 1960.
She then conducted ASW exercises out of Mayport, Florida
, and practiced recovery techniques for participation in Project Mercury
, the first American manned spaceflight program. Attached to TG 140.8, Wadleigh was on station on 5 May 1961 when Comdr. Alan Shepard
conducted his history-making flight. A second participation by Wadleigh in the Project Mercury program came in August of that year, but unfavorable weather "scrubbed" the launch, and the destroyer was detached to return to Newport.
Late in the following fall, Wadleigh sailed for European waters once more and participated in Exercise Line Jug II—extensive ASW exercises with Royal Navy
units. She topped this deployment with visits to ports in the British Isles
like Londonderry and Southampton
before returning to her home port on 22 February 1962. She conducted routine local operations until departing Newport on 22 June for Norfolk, Virginia
. There, the ship was decommissioned and placed in reserve on 28 June 1962.
Wadleigh received six battle stars for her service in World War II.
under the Military Aid Program in 1963. The ship was renamed Blanco Encalada and was given identification number 14.
She was decommissioned and stricken in 1982, and on 28 September 1991 was intentionally sunk off southern Chile by a Harpoon missile launched from the Spruance-class destroyer during an Operation Unitas XXXII exercise.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
, named for Rear Admiral George H. Wadleigh
George H. Wadleigh
Rear Admiral George Henry Wadleigh served in the United States Navy during the American Civil War and the Spanish–American War.-Biography:...
(1842–1927).
Wadleigh was laid down on 5 April 1943 at Bath, Maine
Bath, Maine
Bath is a city in Sagadahoc County, Maine, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 9,266. It is the county seat of Sagadahoc County. Located on the Kennebec River, Bath is a port of entry with a good harbor. The city is popular with tourists, many drawn by its...
, by the Bath Iron Works
Bath Iron Works
Bath Iron Works is a major American shipyard located on the Kennebec River in Bath, Maine, United States. Since its founding in 1884 , BIW has built private, commercial and military vessels, most of which have been ordered by the United States Navy...
; launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
on 7 August 1943; sponsored by Miss Clara F. Wadleigh, daughter of RAdm. Wadleigh; and commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard
Boston Navy Yard
The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. Established in 1801, it was officially closed as an active naval installation on July 1, 1974, and the property was...
on 19 October 1943, Lieutenant Commander Walter C. Winn in command.
World War II
Following shakedown training in the West Indies, Wadleigh rendezvoused in the mid-Atlantic with , , and . The three destroyers escorted the battleshipBattleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
as she carried President Franklin D. Roosevelt back to the United States from talks with other Allied leaders at the Cairo Conference
Cairo Conference
The Cairo Conference of November 22–26, 1943, held in Cairo, Egypt, addressed the Allied position against Japan during World War II and made decisions about postwar Asia...
.
1944
Soon after her return from this special escort duty, Wadleigh got underway from Hampton Roads, Virginia, on 3 January 1944 and steamed via PanamaPanama
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...
to 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...
.
Her baptism of fire came on 20 March 1944 during the Marshall Islands campaign. Assigned shore-bombardment duties, Wadleigh—in company with and —supported LCI
Landing Craft Infantry
The Landing craft, Infantry or LCI were several classes of sea-going amphibious assault ships of the Second World War utilized to land large numbers of infantry directly onto beaches. They were developed in response to a British request for a vessel capable of carrying and landing substantially...
s and LSTs during the landings on Ailinglapalap and expended 478 rounds of 5 inch shells which destroyed an enemy-held village. Three days later, the new destroyer again took part in shooting up Japanese defenses, shelling a weather station and a radio station on Ebon Island
Ebon Atoll
Ebon Atoll is a coral atoll of 22 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ralik Chain of the Marshall Islands. Its total land area is only , but it encloses a deep lagoon with an area of . A passage leads to the lagoon from the southwest edge of the atoll. The...
, helping to clear the way for the 1,500 marines
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
who soon took the island.
The ship returned to the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
for further operational training in preparation for the upcoming conquest of 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...
. Assigned to Task Group 52.4 (TG 52.4), Wadleigh arrived off Roi Island
Roi-Namur
Roi-Namur is an island in the northern part of the Kwajalein atoll in the Marshall Islands.Occupied by Japanese forces prior to World War II, it was the target of the U.S. 4th Marine Division in the Battle of Kwajalein, in February 1944....
in the Marshalls on 10 June, five days before D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
for the invasion of Saipan Island
Battle of Saipan
The Battle of Saipan was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Saipan in the Mariana Islands from 15 June-9 July 1944. The Allied invasion fleet embarking the expeditionary forces left Pearl Harbor on 5 June 1944, the day before Operation Overlord in Europe was...
. The day before the first landings, the warship closed 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...
and commenced fire early in the morning, beginning her part in the operations designed to "soften up" the enemy defenses.
On D-Day, Wadleigh lay offshore, providing predawn gunfire support for underwater demolition team
Underwater Demolition Team
The Underwater Demolition Teams were an elite special-purpose force established by the United States Navy during World War II. They also served during the Korean War and the Vietnam War...
s (UDTs) and for the initial waves of troops. After spending the day in shelling enemy positions, she retired seaward to conduct screening patrols. While thus engaged, Wadleigh and both picked up strong sonar
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
contacts with a submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
west of Tinian
Tinian
Tinian is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.-Geography:Tinian is about 5 miles southwest of its sister island, Saipan, from which it is separated by the Saipan Channel. It has a land area of 39 sq.mi....
. Both ships went to general quarters and attacked, dropping depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
s with deadly precision. A heavy explosion, followed by a widening slick of oil and debris, indicated that whatever had been down there had been heavily hit. Postwar accounting revealed that the two destroyers had teamed to sink the .
Assigned to bombard Garapan
Garapan
Garapan is the largest village and the center of the tourism industry on the island of Saipan, which is a part of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands ....
, the capital city of Saipan, Wadleigh encountered heavy activity of all types in this area, from both friend and foe alike, while expending some 1,700 rounds of 5 inch shells against the Japanese-held island. Not only was Wadleigh fired on by a Japanese shore battery, but the doughty destroyer was also straddled by a stick of bombs from a Japanese plane, mistaken for a low-flying aircraft by American forces, and again taken under fire from shore—all within a hair-raising space of 15 minutes! During the latter days of the campaign Wadleigh shot enemy snipers out of caves, trees, and cliffs; picked up an occasional Japanese prisoner, and rescued downed American aircrews shot down near her position.
Following escort runs to Eniwetok and Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
, Wadleigh was assigned to support the invasion of the Palaus. On 15 September, she patrolled north of the islands on radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
picket duty, standing ready to provide early warning if Japanese planes were sighted.
On the following day, Wadleigh steamed to Kossol Roads
Kossol Roads
Kossol Roads, Palau is a large body of reef-enclosed water north of Babeldaob. During World War II, it was used by the United States Navy as the location of a floating resupply and repair base....
to begin assisting minesweeper
Minesweeper (ship)
A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
s in clearing the sealanes there. Floating mines
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
swept up by the minesweepers provided the destroyers with "game", and Wadleigh destroyed 22 with 40-millimeter fire. The 23d, however, was deadly. While approaching one mine, the destroyer brushed horns with another, an unswept mine which burst amidships. The explosion ripped into the bowels of the ship, killing three men and injuring 20, while flooding three engineering compartments and one living space. As the crew raced to general quarters, the ship settled five feet by the stern, and listed seven degrees to starboard. Wadleigh—now sporting a 40-foot rent in her bottom—came to an even keel as the crew manhandled all moveable weight from starboard to port to correct the list.
passed a towline and towed the stricken destroyer out of danger. The crippled ship, now sagging noticeably amidships, "worked" noticeably in the swells, prompting initial fears that the ship was breaking in two. In addition, the shock of the blast snapped one radar antenna and jarred both 26-foot motor whaleboat
Whaleboat
A whaleboat is a type of open boat that is relatively narrow and pointed at both ends, enabling it to move either forwards or backwards equally well. It was originally developed for whaling, and later became popular for work along beaches, since it does not need to be turned around for beaching or...
s from their blocks.
1945
She departed Pearl Harbor on 3 May, bound for 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...
, and arrived there after an 11-day passage. Rejoining her old unit—Destroyer Squadron 54 (DesRon 54)—the destroyer sortied with other 5th Fleet units on 25 May. After serving several tours on radar picket stations with the Fleet, Wadleigh weathered heavy typhoons from 5 to 7 June and subsequently accompanied and in a shore bombardment mission to Minami Daito Shima (Rasa Island) on the 9th, demolishing radar installations and buildings.
After a rest period in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Wadleigh sailed again for Japanese waters to screen the aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
s as they continued to pound the Japanese home islands. On 10 July, the ship embarked a party of dignitaries—including Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Air, John L. Sullivan, and Vice Admiral Aubrey W. Fitch, for transportation to Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
.
Rendezvousing with at 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...
, she rejoined her task force on 21 July to support offensive operations off Japan's doorstep. While serving on occasion 50 miles from the enemy shore, Wadleigh rescued two downed Navy aircrewmen who had been shot down during a strike on Tokyo.
The destroyer slowed to destroy a derelict mine on 10 August, but excessive turbine vibrations forced the ship to shut down her starboard engine. Detached from the task force, Wadleigh limped back to Ulithi, in a convoy of replenishment ships and tanker
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
s, for repairs. While en route, she received word of the Japanese capitulation.
Departing Ulithi on 23 August and hoping to rejoin the Fleet in time for the triumphal entry into Tokyo Bay
Tokyo Bay
is a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
, Wadleigh stopped at Iwo Jima en route for passengers and mail and arrived 24 hours after the first ships had entered the bay. Ordered to proceed directly to Sagami Wan, Wadleigh went to general quarters in company with as the ships passed beneath the once-menacing shore batteries along the Urage Strait. They soon arrived at their destination, the Yokosuka Naval Base
United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka
U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, or Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka is a United States Navy base, in Yokosuka, Japan. Its mission is to maintain and operate base facilities for the logistic, recreational, administrative support and service of the U.S. Naval Forces Japan, U.S. 7th Fleet and...
, on 29 August.
As the first American troops went ashore at Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
and Yokosuka, Wadleigh headed out to sea and rendezvoused with incoming carrier groups. She returned to her anchorage, near , on 2 September—in time to be on hand when the official surrender accords were signed that day.
Back at sea with the carriers once more, Wadleigh patrolled off the Japanese coast for two weeks, before she departed Nipponese waters on 16 September and proceeded via Eniwetok to Saipan in company with and for air group replacements. The destroyer returned to Tokyo Bay after a week at Saipan and arrived on 13 October, escorting and Lexington.
Departing Japanese waters on 20 October, bound for the Hawaiian Islands, Wadleigh carried a load of men eligible for discharge upon their return to the United States. After a 48-hour layover in the Hawaiian Islands, she pressed on for San Francisco, arriving on 5 November 1945. She commenced a preinactivation overhaul on 5 December and sailed for San Diego, California, on 27 January 1946, for inactivation. The destroyer was placed out of commission, in reserve, in the San Diego group of the Pacific Reserve Fleet, in January 1947.
1951 – 1962
Wadleigh remained in reserve until she was reactivated during the Korean WarKorean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. On 3 October 1951, Wadleigh was recommissioned at San Diego, Comdr. R. H. Pauli in command.
She departed San Diego on 4 January 1952, bound for duty with the Atlantic Fleet
U.S. Atlantic Fleet
The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...
. She 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 14 January—in company with , , , and —and, upon arrival at her new home port of Newport, Rhode Island
Naval Station Newport
The Naval Station Newport is a United States Navy base located in the towns of Newport and Middletown, Rhode Island. Naval Station Newport is home to the Naval War College and the Naval Justice School...
, became flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
for Destroyer Division 342.
After participating in various Fleet exercises, Wadleigh arrived at Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
, on 17 August, to commence four weeks of plane-guard duty for . She rescued three downed aviators from the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
during this tour. Next, the destroyer sailed north for an overhaul at the Boston Naval Shipyard—during which time the ship received a battery of 3 inch guns—replacing the older 40-millimeter mounts.
On 3 May 1954, Wadleigh departed Newport, bound via the Panama Canal, Pearl Harbor, Midway
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way between Honolulu, Hawaii, and Tokyo, Japan. Unique among the Hawaiian islands, Midway observes UTC-11 , eleven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and one hour...
, and Guam for the Western Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
(WestPac), and arrived at Yokosuka, Japan, on 7 June 1954. After initially operating in the Philippine Islands, the destroyer shifted to the waters off the east coast of Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, assisting in monitoring the Armistice Agreement reached at Panmunjom the year before.
While in Subic Bay
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
, Wadleigh was put on alert and ordered to rendezvous with Task Group 70.2 (TG 70.2). Once she joined with the group, TG 70.2 proceeded to the southern coast of Formosa
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
in a precautionary move by the United States to forestall possible Chinese communist intentions towards the American-supported Nationalist Chinese regime on the island. While en route to Formosa, the ship struck an underwater object which inflicted minor damage to both screws. Returning to Subic Bay, the ship repaired the damage and sailed to rejoin the group. Once back on station, she spent 20 tense but uneventful days on patrol off Formosa and, soon thereafter, proceeded back to Sasebo, Japan, to prepare to return to the United States.
Wadleigh returned to Newport—via Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
, and various Mediterranean ports— and arrived at her home port on 28 November 1954. Shifting to the Caribbean, she operated both in these waters and off the east coast, on antisubmarine warfare (ASW) exercises and local operations, through the end of 1955. She then deployed three times to the Mediterranean.
During the third of these deployments, in July 1958, tensions flared in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, and civil strife threatened American lives and property. Accordingly, the United States landed troops to restore order. Wadleigh was among the first American ships to arrive on the scene, with another much-decorated Fletcher-class destroyer, , arriving simultaneously. During the Lebanese crisis, she conducted eastern Mediterranean patrols as a unit of TF 61.
She returned to the east coast soon thereafter to operate along the Atlantic seaboard and into the Caribbean through the fall of 1958 before deploying to the Mediterranean for a fourth time in June 1959. While homeward-bound to Newport in September of that year, she served as one of the chain of ships beneath the aerial route of President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
's return to the United States after his summit conferences in Europe.
During the period in which the ship continued to be based out of Newport, she conducted ASW exercises and local operations through the end of the year and into 1960. On 19 March 1960, Wadleigh sped to the scene of a collision between and a Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
tanker off Cape Henry
Cape Henry
Cape Henry is a cape on the Atlantic shore of Virginia north of Virginia Beach. It is the southern boundary of the entrance to Chesapeake Bay.Across the mouth of the bay to the north is Cape Charles...
. Commander, Destroyer Squadron 20 (DesRon 20), embarked in Wadleigh, was on-scene commander and directed the successful effort to take Darby under tow.
Returning to a schedule of local operations, Wadleigh conducted a midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
's training cruise, ASW patrols, and exercises. During a deployment to European waters in the fall of 1960, she conducted NATO fall exercises in the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
and across the Arctic Circle
Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For Epoch 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs north of the Equator....
.
Deploying to the Mediterranean for the fifth time, Wadleigh transited the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
and participated in CENTO
Cento
Cento is a city and comune in the province of Ferrara, part of the region Emilia-Romagna . In Italian "cento" means 100.-History:The name Cento is a reference to the centuriation of the Po Valley...
Exercise Midlink III, in which the naval forces of five nations participated. In November 1960, the ship returned to Mediterranean and western European waters, and took part in ASW Exercises "Hay-strike" and "Jetstream" with French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
units before returning to Newport on 15 December 1960.
She then conducted ASW exercises out of Mayport, Florida
Naval Station Mayport
Naval Station Mayport is a major United States Navy base in Jacksonville, Florida. It contains a military airfield with one asphalt paved runway measuring 8,001 x 200 ft. ....
, and practiced recovery techniques for participation in Project Mercury
Project Mercury
In January 1960 NASA awarded Western Electric Company a contract for the Mercury tracking network. The value of the contract was over $33 million. Also in January, McDonnell delivered the first production-type Mercury spacecraft, less than a year after award of the formal contract. On February 12,...
, the first American manned spaceflight program. Attached to TG 140.8, Wadleigh was on station on 5 May 1961 when Comdr. Alan Shepard
Alan Shepard
Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. was an American naval aviator, test pilot, flag officer, and NASA astronaut who in 1961 became the second person, and the first American, in space. This Mercury flight was designed to enter space, but not to achieve orbit...
conducted his history-making flight. A second participation by Wadleigh in the Project Mercury program came in August of that year, but unfavorable weather "scrubbed" the launch, and the destroyer was detached to return to Newport.
Late in the following fall, Wadleigh sailed for European waters once more and participated in Exercise Line Jug II—extensive ASW exercises with Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
units. She topped this deployment with visits to ports in the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
like Londonderry and Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
before returning to her home port on 22 February 1962. She conducted routine local operations until departing Newport on 22 June for Norfolk, Virginia
Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk, in Norfolk, Virginia, is a base of the United States Navy, supporting naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command, those operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean...
. There, the ship was decommissioned and placed in reserve on 28 June 1962.
Wadleigh received six battle stars for her service in World War II.
Blanco Encalada
Wadleigh was transferred to ChileChile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
under the Military Aid Program in 1963. The ship was renamed Blanco Encalada and was given identification number 14.
She was decommissioned and stricken in 1982, and on 28 September 1991 was intentionally sunk off southern Chile by a Harpoon missile launched from the Spruance-class destroyer during an Operation Unitas XXXII exercise.