USS Whipple (DD-15)
Encyclopedia
The first USS Whipple (DD-15) was a in the United States Navy
, named for Abraham Whipple
.
She was laid down on 13 November 1899 at Sparrows Point, Maryland, by the Maryland Steel Company; launched on 15 August 1901; sponsored by Miss Elsie Pope; and commissioned
on 17 February 1903, Lieutenant
Jehu V. Chase
in command.
, Whipple was assigned to the 2nd Torpedo Flotilla, Atlantic Fleet
, and was based at Norfolk
. The destroyer periodically served as flagship
of the flotilla and operated off the east coast and in the Caribbean
until she was placed in reserve at Norfolk on 5 September 1905.
Returning to active service on 16 July 1906, the ship conducted tactical exercises and routine training operations through November of 1907, apart from taking part in relief operations after the 1907 Kingston earthquake
in Jamaica. On 2 December, Whipple stood out of Hampton Roads
and headed south toward the Caribbean for goodwill visits — "showing the flag."
Subsequently following in the wake of the 16 battleships of the "Great White Fleet
", Whipple and her flotilla-mates called at Rio de Janeiro
; rounded Cape Horn
for ports on the Chile
an and Peru
vian coasts; and conducted target practice at Magdalena Bay
, Mexico
. After participating in a fleet review at San Francisco on 8 May 1908, Whipple remained on the west coast, based at San Diego, as a unit of the Pacific Torpedo Flotilla.
Departing San Francisco at the end of a towline on 24 August, the destroyer subsequently took part in fleet battle problems in Hawaii
an waters. Upon completion of the exercises, she steamed back to the west coast via Samoa
and Magdalena Bay
, Baja California
, before arriving at San Diego on 1 December.
For the next six years, the destroyer operated off the west coast between San Diego and Magdalena Bay and made one cruise to Alaska
n waters for maneuvers. The ship received the Mexican Service Medal
for service off the Mexican coast in 1914 and 1916. While that country suffered in the throes of revolution and civil strife, the destroyer conducted patrols and stood ready to protect American lives and property.
on the side of Britain
, France
, and Italy
. Whipple soon commenced patrols off the approaches to the vital Panama Canal
before departing the Panama Canal Zone
on 5 July.
Refitted for "distant service", the destroyer put to sea on 28 August, bound for the Atlantic war zone, and put into the Azores
on 17 September. Whipple operated on escort duties, convoying ships to and from the strategic islands for the next three months.
She then received orders to report at Brest
, France
. Anti-submarine
patrols and convoy escort duties occupied Whipple through the early spring of 1918. On 17 April, munition ship Florence H. blew up off Quiberon Bay
. Braving flying debris from the exploding ship, Whipple joined and in rescuing 32 men of the 77-man crew of that doomed vessel.
Whipple carried out her routine wartime patrol duties through the end of hostilities. On 9 December, the destroyer departed the French coast and headed homeward, touching at the Azores and Bermuda
before making port at Philadelphia
on 3 January 1919.
The destroyer was decommissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 7 July, and her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
on 15 September. On 3 January 1920, Joseph G. Hitner
, of Philadelphia, purchased the ship for scrapping.
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 Abraham Whipple
Abraham Whipple
Abraham Whipple was an American revolutionary naval commander in the Continental Navy. Whipple was born near Providence, Rhode Island and chose to be a seafarer early in his life. He embarked upon a career in the lucrative West Indies trade, working for Moses and John Brown...
.
She was laid down on 13 November 1899 at Sparrows Point, Maryland, by the Maryland Steel Company; launched on 15 August 1901; sponsored by Miss Elsie Pope; and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on 17 February 1903, Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Jehu V. Chase
Jehu V. Chase
Admiral Jehu Valentine Chase was born in Pattersonville, Louisiana on 10 January 1869, and graduated from the United States Naval Academy 6 June 1890....
in command.
Pre-World War I
After training in Chesapeake BayChesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
, Whipple was assigned to the 2nd Torpedo Flotilla, Atlantic Fleet
United States Fleet Forces Command
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...
, and was based at Norfolk
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....
. The destroyer periodically served as 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...
of the flotilla and operated off the east coast and in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
until she was placed in reserve at Norfolk on 5 September 1905.
Returning to active service on 16 July 1906, the ship conducted tactical exercises and routine training operations through November of 1907, apart from taking part in relief operations after the 1907 Kingston earthquake
1907 Kingston earthquake
The 1907 Kingston earthquake which shook the capital of the island of Jamaica with a magnitude of 6.5 on the moment magnitude scale on Monday January 14th, at about 3:30 pm local time , was considered by many writers of that time one of the world's deadliest earthquakes recorded in history...
in Jamaica. On 2 December, Whipple stood out of Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
and headed south toward the Caribbean for goodwill visits — "showing the flag."
Subsequently following in the wake of the 16 battleships of the "Great White Fleet
Great White Fleet
The Great White Fleet was the popular nickname for the United States Navy battle fleet that completed a circumnavigation of the globe from 16 December 1907 to 22 February 1909 by order of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. It consisted of 16 battleships divided into two squadrons, along with...
", Whipple and her flotilla-mates called at Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
; rounded Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
for ports on the Chile
Chile
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...
an and Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
vian coasts; and conducted target practice at Magdalena Bay
Magdalena Bay
Bahía Magdalena is a 50 km long bay in Comondú Municipality along the western coast of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. It is protected from the Pacific Ocean by the sandy barrier islands of Isla Magdalena and Isla Santa Margarita....
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. After participating in a fleet review at San Francisco on 8 May 1908, Whipple remained on the west coast, based at San Diego, as a unit of the Pacific Torpedo Flotilla.
Departing San Francisco at the end of a towline on 24 August, the destroyer subsequently took part in fleet battle problems in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
an waters. Upon completion of the exercises, she steamed back to the west coast via Samoa
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
and Magdalena Bay
Magdalena Bay
Bahía Magdalena is a 50 km long bay in Comondú Municipality along the western coast of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. It is protected from the Pacific Ocean by the sandy barrier islands of Isla Magdalena and Isla Santa Margarita....
, Baja California
Baja California
Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...
, before arriving at San Diego on 1 December.
For the next six years, the destroyer operated off the west coast between San Diego and Magdalena Bay and made one cruise to Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
n waters for maneuvers. The ship received the Mexican Service Medal
Mexican Service Medal
The Mexican Service Medal is an award of the United States military which was established by General Orders of the United States War Department on December 12, 1917...
for service off the Mexican coast in 1914 and 1916. While that country suffered in the throes of revolution and civil strife, the destroyer conducted patrols and stood ready to protect American lives and property.
World War I
On 6 April 1917, America entered World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
on the side of Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. Whipple soon commenced patrols off the approaches to the vital 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...
before departing the Panama Canal Zone
Panama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone was a unorganized U.S. territory located within the Republic of Panama, consisting of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending 5 miles on each side of the centerline, but excluding Panama City and Colón, which otherwise would have been partly within the limits of...
on 5 July.
Refitted for "distant service", the destroyer put to sea on 28 August, bound for the Atlantic war zone, and put into the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
on 17 September. Whipple operated on escort duties, convoying ships to and from the strategic islands for the next three months.
She then received orders to report at Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Anti-submarine
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
patrols and convoy escort duties occupied Whipple through the early spring of 1918. On 17 April, munition ship Florence H. blew up off Quiberon Bay
Quiberon Bay
The Baie de Quiberon is an area of sheltered water on the south coast of Brittany. The bay is in the Morbihan département.-Geography:The bay is roughly triangular in shape, open to the south with the Gulf of Morbihan to the north-east and the narrow peninsular of Presqu'île de Quiberon providing...
. Braving flying debris from the exploding ship, Whipple joined and in rescuing 32 men of the 77-man crew of that doomed vessel.
Whipple carried out her routine wartime patrol duties through the end of hostilities. On 9 December, the destroyer departed the French coast and headed homeward, touching at the Azores and 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...
before making port at Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
on 3 January 1919.
The destroyer was decommissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 7 July, and her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
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 15 September. On 3 January 1920, Joseph G. Hitner
Joseph G. Hitner
Joseph G. Hitner owned an iron works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.He purchased many United States Navy ships in the early 1900s, converting some of them to merchant ships and scrapping others.-References:...
, of Philadelphia, purchased the ship for scrapping.