USS The Sullivans (DD-537)
The Sullivans 29 October 1962
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| History | |
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| Namesake: | The Sullivan Brothers |
| Builder: | Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation at San Francisco |
| Laid down: | 10 October 1942 |
| Launched: | 4 April 1943 |
| Sponsored by: | Mrs. Thomas F. Sullivan |
| Commissioned: | 30 September 1943 |
| Decommissioned: | 7 January 1965 |
| Struck: | 1 December 1974 |
| Motto: | "We Stick Together" |
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| Status: | Museum ship |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Fletcher-class destroyer |
| Displacement: | 2,050 tons |
| Length: | 376 ft 6 in (114.76 m) |
| Beam: | 39 ft 8 in (12.09 m) |
| Draft: | 17 ft 9 in (5.41 m) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph) |
| Range: | 6,500 nmi (12,000 km; 7,500 mi) at 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) |
| Complement: | 336 |
| Armament: |
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USS The Sullivans
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| Location |
Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park, Buffalo, New York |
| Coordinates | 42°52′40″N 78°52′50″W / 42.8777°N 78.8806°WCoordinates: 42°52′40″N 78°52′50″W / 42.8777°N 78.8806°W |
| NRHP Reference # | 86000085 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | 14 January 1986 |
| Designated NHL | 14 January 1986 |
USS The Sullivans (DD-537) is a Fletcher-class destroyer. She is a United States Navy ship named in honor of the five Sullivan brothers (George, Francis, Joseph, Madison, and Albert) aged 20 to 27 who lost their lives when their ship, USS Juneau, was sunk by a Japanese submarine during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on 13 November 1942. This was the greatest military loss by any one American family during World War II. She was also the first ship commissioned in the Navy that honored more than one person.
After service in both World War II and the Korean War, The Sullivans was assigned to the 6th Fleet and was a training ship until she was decommissioned on 7 January 1965. In 1977, she and cruiser USS Little Rock (CG-4) were processed for donation to the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park in Buffalo, New York. The ship now serves as a memorial and is open for public tours.
The Sullivans was originally laid down as Putnam on 10 October 1942 at San Francisco by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation. She was initially renamed Sullivan until President Franklin Roosevelt changed the name to The Sullivans to clarify that the name honored all five Sullivan brothers. The name was made official on 6 February 1943 and launched 4 April 1943. The ship was sponsored by Mrs. Thomas F. Sullivan, the mother of the five Sullivan brothers. The Sullivans was commissioned on 30 September 1943 with Commander Kenneth M. Gentry in command.
Following a shakedown cruise, The Sullivans got underway with USS Dortch (DD-670) and USS Gatling (DD-671) on 23 December 1943. The group arrived at Pearl Harbor five days later. During training operations in Hawaiian waters, the ship was assigned to Destroyer Squadron (DesRon) 52. On 16 January 1944, she steamed out of Pearl Harbor with Task Group 58.2 (TG 58.2) bound for the Marshall Islands. En route to Kwajalein Atoll the group was joined by Battleship Division 9 (BatDiv 9). Two days later, as the American warships neared their target, picket destroyers were sent ahead to protect the main force from the enemy. On 24 January, TG 58.2 arrived at the dawn launching point for air strikes against Roi. For two days, The Sullivans screened USS Essex (CV-9), USS Intrepid (CV-11), and USS Cabot (CVL-28) as they launched nearly continuous aerial raids. Thereafter, the destroyer continued her operations to the north and northwest of Roi and Namur Islands throughout the Battle of Kwajalein until 4 February, when TG 58.2 retired to Majuro to refuel and replenish.
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