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USS Gillis (DD-260)
Encyclopedia
USS Gillis (DD-260/AVD-12) was a Clemson-class
destroyer
in the United States Navy
. She was named for Commodore John P. Gillis
and Rear Admiral James Henry Gillis
.
; sponsored by Miss Helen Irvine Murray, granddaughter of Admiral Gillis; and Mrs. Josephine T. Smith, niece of Commodore Gillis; commissioned 3 September 1919, Lieutenant Commander Webb Trammell in command.
Gillis sailed from Newport, Rhode Island
, 17 December 1919 and moored at San Diego, California
20 January 1920. She joined the Pacific Fleet Destroyer Force in tactics and maneuvers along the West Coast until decommissioned at San Diego 26 May 1922. Recommissioned in ordinary 28 June 1940, she was reclassified 2 August as seaplane tender
destroyer AVD-12. Following conversion she was placed in full commission at San Francisco, California
, 25 March 1941.
Gillis was assigned as tender to Patrol Wing 4, Aircraft Scouting Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. In the following months she performed plane guard patrol between San Diego and Seattle, Washington
with time out for aircraft tending duties at Sitka, Alaska (14–17 June) ; Dutch Harbor and Kodiak
(15–31 July). After overhaul in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
she returned to Kodiak 16 October 1941 to resume tending of amphibious patrol planes in Alaskan waters. She was serving at Kodiak when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor
and returned to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard 9 February 1942 for overhaul.
Gillis resumed tender duties at Kodiak 26 May 1942. She was stationed at Atka
(11–13 June) tending amphibious patrol aircraft bombing the Japanese on Kiska Island. On air-sea rescue
patrol 6 June 1942, she made three depth charge runs on an underwater sound contact. A Japanese submarine
violently broached the surface revealing its conning tower and propeller, then disappeared. Gillis was unable to regain contact. She was credited with damaging this underseas raider in the combat area off Umak Island
. She was attacked by three Japanese patrol bombers while at Adak 20 July. One bomb, a dud, splashed within 10 feet alongside. Other bombs rained about her, ahead and astern. She was drenched by water thrown up by the explosions but escaped damage or casualties.
Gillis continued her varied duties as aircraft tender and air-sea rescue patrol ship throughout the Aleutian Campaign. Brief intervals of repair were accomplished in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. She terminated this service 19 April 1944 when she departed Dutch Harbor for overhaul in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. She arrived at San Diego 13 June and spent the following months as plane guard for aircraft carriers training along the California coast. She was then routed on to Pearl Harbor
, arriving 8 December 1944. She operated in Hawaiian waters as plane guard for escort carrier
Makassar Strait (CVE-91)
until 20 February 1945. She then sailed with Rear Admiral Morton L. Deyo's Gunfire and Covering Force, en route via the Marshalls
, Marianas
and Ulithi
for the invasion of Okinawa.
Gillis arrived off Kerama Retto
25 March 1945. She guarded minesweepers to the west, then stood by underwater demolition teams clearing approaches to the western beaches of Okinawa. After invasion forces stormed ashore 1 April, she tended observation and patrol planes at Kerama Retto and performed air-sea rescue patrol. On 28 April she departed Okinawa in the screen of Makassar Strait, bound via Guam
to San Pedro Bay, Philippine Islands. She returned by the same route in the escort screen of Wake Island (CVE-65)
. That carrier launched planes 29 June to land bases on Okinawa and Gillis helped escort her back to Guam 3 July 1945.
1 November 1945. She was sold for scrapping 29 January 1946.
Gillis received two battle stars for service in World War II.
, no other ship has been named Gillis.
Clemson class destroyer
The Clemson class was a series of 156 destroyers which served with the United States Navy from after World War I through World War II.The Clemson-class ships were commissioned by the United States Navy from 1919 to 1922, built by Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, New York Shipbuilding...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
in the United States Navy
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...
. She was named for Commodore John P. Gillis
John P. Gillis
John P. Gillis was an Commodore in the United States Navy, whose service extended from the mid-1820s through the end of the American Civil War.-Biography:...
and Rear Admiral James Henry Gillis
James Henry Gillis
James Henry Gillis was an Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. His active-duty career extended from the 1850s through the 1890s, including service in the American Civil War.-Biography:...
.
History
Gillis was launched 29 May 1919 by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding CorporationBethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation
Bethlehem Steel Corporation Shipbuilding Division was created in 1905 when Bethlehem Steel Corporation acquired the San Francisco shipyard Union Iron Works in 1905...
; sponsored by Miss Helen Irvine Murray, granddaughter of Admiral Gillis; and Mrs. Josephine T. Smith, niece of Commodore Gillis; commissioned 3 September 1919, Lieutenant Commander Webb Trammell in command.
Gillis sailed from Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, 17 December 1919 and moored at San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
20 January 1920. She joined the Pacific Fleet Destroyer Force in tactics and maneuvers along the West Coast until decommissioned at San Diego 26 May 1922. Recommissioned in ordinary 28 June 1940, she was reclassified 2 August as seaplane tender
Seaplane tender
A seaplane tender is a ship that provides facilities for operating seaplanes. These ships were the first aircraft carriers and appeared just before the First World War.-History:...
destroyer AVD-12. Following conversion she was placed in full commission at San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, 25 March 1941.
Gillis was assigned as tender to Patrol Wing 4, Aircraft Scouting Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. In the following months she performed plane guard patrol between San Diego and Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
with time out for aircraft tending duties at Sitka, Alaska (14–17 June) ; Dutch Harbor and Kodiak
Kodiak, Alaska
Kodiak is one of 7 communities and the main city on Kodiak Island, Kodiak Island Borough, in the U.S. state of Alaska. All commercial transportation between the entire island and the outside world goes through this city either via ferryboat or airline...
(15–31 July). After overhaul in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...
she returned to Kodiak 16 October 1941 to resume tending of amphibious patrol planes in Alaskan waters. She was serving at Kodiak when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
and returned to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard 9 February 1942 for overhaul.
Gillis resumed tender duties at Kodiak 26 May 1942. She was stationed at Atka
Atka
Atka may refer to:*Atka, Alaska, a city in the United States*Atka, Russia, an urban-type settlement in Magadan Oblast, Russia*Atka Island, an island in the Andreanof Islands*Atka Iceport, an iceport in West Antarctica...
(11–13 June) tending amphibious patrol aircraft bombing the Japanese on Kiska Island. On air-sea rescue
Air-sea rescue
Air-sea rescue is the coordinated search and rescue of the survivors of emergency water landings as well as people who have survived the loss of their sea-going vessel. ASR can involve a wide variety of resources including seaplanes, helicopters, submarines, rescue boats and ships...
patrol 6 June 1942, she made three depth charge runs on an underwater sound contact. A Japanese 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...
violently broached the surface revealing its conning tower and propeller, then disappeared. Gillis was unable to regain contact. She was credited with damaging this underseas raider in the combat area off Umak Island
Umak Island
Umak Island is an island lying in a group of small islands situated between Adak Island and Atka Island in the Andreanof Islands group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.-References:...
. She was attacked by three Japanese patrol bombers while at Adak 20 July. One bomb, a dud, splashed within 10 feet alongside. Other bombs rained about her, ahead and astern. She was drenched by water thrown up by the explosions but escaped damage or casualties.
Gillis continued her varied duties as aircraft tender and air-sea rescue patrol ship throughout the Aleutian Campaign. Brief intervals of repair were accomplished in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. She terminated this service 19 April 1944 when she departed Dutch Harbor for overhaul in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. She arrived at San Diego 13 June and spent the following months as plane guard for aircraft carriers training along the California coast. She was then routed on 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...
, arriving 8 December 1944. She operated in Hawaiian waters as plane guard for escort carrier
Escort aircraft carrier
The escort aircraft carrier or escort carrier, also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the USN or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft carrier used by the British Royal Navy , the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army Air Force, and the...
Makassar Strait (CVE-91)
USS Makassar Strait (CVE-91)
USS Makassar Strait was a Casablanca class escort carrier of the United States Navy. She was named after Makassar Strait, the strait between Kalimantan and Sulawesi, Indonesia....
until 20 February 1945. She then sailed with Rear Admiral Morton L. Deyo's Gunfire and Covering Force, en route via the Marshalls
Marshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
, 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...
and 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...
for the invasion of Okinawa.
Gillis arrived off Kerama Retto
Kerama Retto
The are a group of 22 islands located southwest of Okinawa Island in Japan. Four of the islands are inhabited:,., and. The islands are within Shimajiri District. The Kerama-shotō coral reef is a Ramsar Site....
25 March 1945. She guarded minesweepers to the west, then stood by underwater demolition teams clearing approaches to the western beaches of Okinawa. After invasion forces stormed ashore 1 April, she tended observation and patrol planes at Kerama Retto and performed air-sea rescue patrol. On 28 April she departed Okinawa in the screen of Makassar Strait, bound via 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...
to San Pedro Bay, Philippine Islands. She returned by the same route in the escort screen of Wake Island (CVE-65)
USS Wake Island (CVE-65)
USS Wake Island was an Casablanca class escort carrier of the United States Navy.She was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract on 6 February 1943 at Vancouver, Washington, by the Kaiser Shipyards; launched on 15 September 1943, sponsored by Mrs...
. That carrier launched planes 29 June to land bases on Okinawa and Gillis helped escort her back to Guam 3 July 1945.
Fate
Gillis departed Guam for home 8 July 1945. She arrived at San Pedro, California, 28 July and decommissioned there 15 October 1945. Her name was struck from the Navy ListNaval 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...
1 November 1945. She was sold for scrapping 29 January 1946.
Gillis received two battle stars for service in World War II.
, no other ship has been named Gillis.
External links
- http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/260.htm