USS Eversole (DE-404)

USS Eversole (DE-404) was a John C. Butler-class destroyer escort built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named for Lieutenant (junior grade) John Thomas Eversole, (a naval aviator who was killed in the opening phases of the Battle of Midway), she was the first of two U.S. Naval vessels to bear the name. The vessel was torpedoed and sunk on 28 October 1944.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Eversole.

A wartime picture of USS Eversole (DE-404)
History
United States
Name: Eversole
Namesake: John Thomas Eversole
Builder: Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Texas
Laid down: 15 September 1943
Launched: 3 December 1943
Commissioned: 21 March 1944
Fate: Sunk on 28 October 1944
General characteristics
Class and type: John C. Butler-class destroyer escort
Displacement: 1,350 long tons (1,370 t)
Length: 306 ft (93 m)
Beam: 36 ft 8 in (11.18 m)
Draft: 9 ft 5 in (2.87 m)
Propulsion: 2 boilers, 2 geared turbine engines, 12,000 shp (8,900 kW); 2 propellers
Speed: 24 knots (44 km/h)
Range: 6,000 nmi (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 12 kn (22 km/h)
Complement: 14 officers, 201 enlisted
Armament:

Construction and commissioning

Eversole was laid down on 15 September 1943 by Brown Shipbuilding of Houston, Texas and launched on 3 December, sponsored by Mrs. Sarah R. Eversole, mother of Lieutenant (junior grade) Eversole. The ship was commissioned on 21 March 1944 with Lieutenant Commander G. E. Marix in command.

Operational history

Eversole sailed from Boston 20 May 1944 for Pearl Harbor, arriving 19 June. After training with submarines in the Hawaiian Islands, she made an escort voyage to Eniwetok, then sailed to Eniwetok and Manus on escort duty. She returned to Eniwetok for antisubmarine patrols until 9 August, when she put to sea screening carriers for the attack on Morotai. She continued this duty, serving with the escort carriers in the initial assaults in Leyte Gulf on 20 October.

After the Battle of Leyte Gulf, Eversole rescued downed pilots, screened two of the damaged escort carriers, and took wounded off one of the carriers. In the early morning of 28 October, Eversole made contact by sonar with a submarine, and half a minute later suffered the first of two torpedo hits. The ship was ordered abandoned. After the men were all in the water, the submarine surfaced and opened fire, then dived once more. Five minutes later there was a tremendous underwater explosion which killed or wounded some of Eversole's crew. Lights from the survivors' flashlights attracted two other escorts, one of which rescued the 139 wounded survivors, as the other began a series of attacks which sank I-45, presumably the Japanese submarine which had torpedoed Eversole.

Honors

Eversole received two battle stars for World War II service. Over 40 of her crew were lost with the ship.

See also

References
  • This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
  • "Eversole". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Retrieved 14 March 2007.
  • "USS Eversole (DE-404)". Destroyer Escort Photo Archive. Archived from the original on 8 October 2006. Retrieved 14 March 2007.

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