USS Charles F. Adams

USS Charles F. Adams (DDG-2), named for Charles Francis Adams III (Secretary of the Navy from 1929 to 1933), was the lead ship of her class of guided missile destroyers of the United States Navy.

USS Charles F Adams (DDG-2)
History
United States
Name: Charles F Adams
Namesake: Charles Francis Adams III
Ordered: 28 March 1957
Builder: Bath Iron Works
Laid down: 16 June 1958
Launched: 8 September 1959
Commissioned: 10 September 1960
Decommissioned: 1 August 1990
Stricken: 1 August 1990
Identification: DDG-2
Motto: "First in class, second to none."
Status: Scrapped 2020, Brownsville, Texas
General characteristics
Class and type: Charles F. Adams-class destroyer
Displacement:
  • 3,277 tons standard
  • 4,526 full load
Length: 437 ft (133 m)
Beam: 47 ft (14 m)
Draft: 15 ft (4.6 m)
Propulsion:
Speed: 33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph)
Range: 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km) at 20 knots (37 km/h)
Complement: 354 (24 officers, 330 enlisted)
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • AN/SPS-39 3D air search radar
  • AN/SPS-10 surface search radar
  • AN/SPG-51 missile fire control radar
  • AN/SPG-53 gunfire control radar
  • AN/SQS-23 Sonar and the hull mounted SQQ-23 Pair Sonar for DDG-2 through 19
  • AN/SPS-40 Air Search Radar
Armament:

History

The ship was laid down by the Bath Iron Works at Bath, Maine, on 16 June 1958, launched on 8 September 1959 by Mrs. R. Homans, sister of Mr. Adams, commissioned on 10 September 1960, and stationed in its homeport of Charleston, South Carolina.

Intended as a follow-on to the Forrest Sherman-class destroyers, the ship was originally designated as DD-952. Outwardly similar to the Forrest Sherman class, Charles F. Adams was the first U.S. Navy ship designed from the keel up to launch anti-aircraft missiles. To reflect the increased capabilities of the ship and to distinguish her from previous destroyer designs, Charles F. Adams was re-designated DDG-2 prior to the ship's launching.

USS Charles F. Adams at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard

Following commissioning, Charles F. Adams took part in recovery operations for Walter M. Schirra's Mercury 8 mission. While engaged in this operation the Cuban Missile Crisis developed and Charles F. Adams moved to the Caribbean Sea as part of the quarantine forces around the island of Cuba. In July 1969, Charles F. Adams left her homeport of Charleston and relocated to Mayport, Florida.

On 19 November 1980 Charles F. Adams under the command of Commander Joseph F. McCarton, sailed with USS Independence and her battle group to the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean, during which the ship made a port call to the town of Bunbury, Western Australia from 3-7 February 1981. Charles F. Adams returned home to Mayport on 9 June 1981.

Decommission

Charles F. Adams was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 August 1990 and is being held for donation at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in Pennsylvania. The Saginaw Valley Naval Ship Museum attempted to acquire the ship as a museum and memorial to be located in Bay City, Michigan; however, the cost of preparing the ship for movement through the Saint Lawrence Seaway proved too expensive and the project was abandoned.

Present use

As of September 2008, Charles F. Adams remains at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on Donation Hold status. She was considered for preservation by the Adams Class Veteran's Association and the Jacksonville Historic Naval Ship Association (JHNSA) in Jacksonville, Florida. An application was delivered 31 March 2008.

In October 2010, the Jacksonville City Council supported efforts to bring the ship to that city as a museum. The preservation effort will require approximately $300,000 to tow the ship to Jacksonville, $3 million for repairs and restoration of the vessel, and $5 million to construct a pier to moor it. As of late 2013, the preservation groups had raised about $1.4 million.[1] On 27 August 2014 the Jacksonville City Council approved a lease of city-owned riverfront property to the JHNSA and authorized the Downtown Investment Authority to manage the project. The groups expected to have the ship moored downtown on the St. Johns River by the end of 2015.[2] Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan's proposal to develop the riverfront includes a location for the ship.[3] In December 2018 plans to bring Charles F. Adams to Jacksonville were abandoned in the light of continued reluctance of the Navy to release the ship; the JHNSA believe that the Navy prefer demolition.[4]

In September 2020, the Charles F. Adams left Philadelphia Navy Yard under tow, bound for Brownsville, Texas, where she will be scrapped.

References
  1. Lyons, Mike (23 November 2013). "Plans for USS ADAMS Naval warship museum moving forward". Gannett. First Coast News WTLV. Archived from the original on 26 November 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  2. Davis, Clifford (28 August 2014). "City OKs use of USS Adams for maritime museum in Jacksonville on St. Johns River". Florida Times Union. Archived from the original on 31 August 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  3. "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" no more: Jags owner unveils proposal to redevelop Jacksonville Shipyards. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  4. Cawton, David (21 December 2018). "Group: Navy to scrap USS Charles F. Adams, not donate it to Jacksonville". Jacksonville Daily Record. Retrieved 22 December 2018.

Sources
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