World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe cruiser Vincennes was named after the city of Vincennes, Indiana, United States. Her shakedown cruise took place to Sweden, Finland, France, and England. Upon return to the United States, she was assigned to Cruiser Division 7, Scouting Force, and operated out of San Diego, California. She was modernized in Apr 1939.

ww2dbaseAs the European War began in Sep 1939, Vincennes patrolled the east coast to protect American ships from any possible hostilities. After overhaul at Portsmouth Navy Yard in Norfolk, she sailed to the the Caribbean Sea in early 1941 to conduct gunnery and landing exercises. On 17 Mar 1941, she sailed for South Africa to bring back a shipment of gold bullion given by the United Kingdom as lend-lease payment. She continued to patrol and make journeys across the Atlantic through the entrance of the United States in WW2.

ww2dbaseIn Mar 1942, Vincennes became a part of Task Force 18 of the Pacific Fleet, which was centered around the carrier Hornet. On 2 Apr 1942, she escort the Doolittle raiders on their journey to bomb Japanese cities.

ww2dbaseDuring the Battle of Midway, Vincennes was attacked by Japanese B5N "Kate" torpedo bombers but successfully fended herself. She also protected her classmate Astoria by providing additional anti-aircraft support. Battle damage sustained during Midway put Vincennes in the yard at Pearl Harbor for repairs until early Jul 1942. She departed Pearl Harbor on 14 Jul for the South Pacific.

ww2dbaseOn 7 Aug 1942, during the Guadalcanal Campaign, Vincennes covered the transports landing Marines on Guadalcanal. At 1320, Japanese aircraft retaliated unsuccessfully, and Vincennes scored two kills against the oncoming aircraft. At 1158 the next day, the Japanese attacked again, this time with 27 G4M "Betty" bombers; this second attack also failed, and Vincennes scored seven kills against Japanese torpedo bombers. That afternoon, reported indicated a Japanese surface force coming down from Rabaul. The Japanese force, led by Vice Admiral Gunichi Mikawa, struck at 0137 in the early hours of 9 Aug. Although the southern group had already engaged in combat, the northern group in which Vincennes belonged to received no warning. Therefore, when Japanese spotlights illuminated Vincennes at 0155, it was a total surprise. She managed to fire off several rounds at the sources of the spotlights with her main battery, but she was quickly overwhelmed by shells; her bridge, carpenter shop, and radio antenna were all hit during the Japanese first salvo. Another hit ignited the aircraft in Vincennes' hangar, causing a stubborn fire with aviation fuel. At 0200, one or two torpedoes, fired long before, struck Vincennes and disabled her within minutes. At 0210, the Japanese force withdrew from combat, but by this time she already suffered from an alarming list to port. Captain Frederick Lois Riefkohl ordered the men to abandon ship at 0230. She rolled over and sank at 0250. The Battle of Savo Island caused 332 deaths aboard Vincennes, wounding 258.

Heavy Cruiser Vincennes Interactive Map

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Vincennes Operational Timeline

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25.  David Stubblebine says:
5 Jun 2016 10:12:19 AM

To Comment #24 above:
USS Vincennes Muster Rolls for April 1942 list Peavey, William Francis Jr., SK3c (Storekeeper 3rd class), service number 268 40 97 who enlisted 28 Dec 1939 in Macon, Georgia. Other pages list him as 'Peavy'. He is listed in the final Muster Roll following the sinking but without any indication of whether he was killed, missing, injured, survived, or otherwise.

27.  David Stubblebine says:
1 Jul 2016 11:20:08 PM

To Comment #26 above:
My access to World War II Navy muster rolls is through the website Fold3.com. Anyone can view these records through this website but it is a subscription site so there is a fee for access.

The Vincennes muster rolls for Dec 1940 list John Patten Reihley reporting aboard on 21 Dec 1940 from the Naval Training Station at Newport, RI. That record lists a rating of AS (Apprentice Seaman), a service number of 243 80 16, an enlistment date of 30 Oct 1940, and an enlistment location of Philadelphia, PA. The final muster roll after the sinking lists him as a F1c (Fireman 1st class; fireman as in tending the fires in the boilers) and that on 3 Sep 1942 he was transferred to the Naval Hospital at Pearl Harbor.

Other muster rolls say he was transferred to San Francisco where he reported aboard the destroyer USS Wadsworth on 22 Mar 1943. A month later, he was transferred from the Wadsworth to the Naval Hospital at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for treatment. A week later he reported aboard the stores ship USS Ariel for transportation to the United States. On 4 May 1943 he was transferred to the Naval Hospital at Norfolk, VA. That is the last record for him I could find in the muster rolls.

To learn more about his service, request a copy of his service record from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). See http://www.archives.gov/research/military/ww2/ww2-participation.pdf.

30.  David Stubblebine says:
17 Aug 2016 11:18:31 PM

To Anonymous #29 above:
According to the official Navy history of the USS Vincennes, the secret gold shipment took place in June 1940 when Vincennes transported French gold from French Morocco to the United States for safekeeping. I cannot imagine what gold there would be in the Solomons in 1942 that would be loaded onto a cruiser that was then sent into combat – it does not seem to fit together.