USS Loyalty (AMc-88)
Encyclopedia
USS Loyalty (AMc-88) was an Accentor-class coastal minesweeper
Coastal minesweeper
Coastal minesweeper is a term used by the United States Navy to indicate a minesweeper intended for coastal use as opposed to participating in fleet operations at sea....
acquired by the U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
Loyalty was laid down by F. L. Fulton, Antioch, California
Antioch, California
Antioch is a city in Contra Costa County, California. Located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area along the San Joaquin-Sacramento River Delta, it is a suburb of San Francisco and Oakland. The city's population was 102,372 at the U.S...
, 8 May 1941; launched 23 August 1941; sponsored by Mrs. Donald Noackk; and placed in service 17 January 1942.
Assigned to the 14th Naval District, Loyalty, performed patrol and minesweeping operations out of 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...
. She was commissioned 15 December 1944, Lt. Robert H. Grayson
Bobby Grayson
Bobby Grayson was an American football player. He was a two-time consensus All-American player who led the Stanford University football team to three consecutive Rose Bowl Games from 1933 to 1935....
in command. Following conversion to an underwater location ship, Loyalty sailed 1 May 1945 for the western Pacific. After touching Eniwetok, 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...
, and Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
, the minesweeper arrived Okinawa 18 June.
Throughout the summer, Loyalty operated out of Okinawa on various underwater demolition and salvage mission. Her duties included the blasting of a sunken Japanese
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
ammunition ship and the removal of 40 depth charges from a sunken enemy 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...
.
She remained in the western Pacific after V-J Day. While en route to Unten Ko, Okinawa, 16 September, she struck a reef
Reef
In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....
and grounded. Loyalty decommissioned 4 December 1945 and was struck from the Navy list
Navy List
A Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a country....
the 19th. She was destroyed 12 January 1946.
Loyalty received one battle star for World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
service.