World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseWhen destroyer USS Cassin Young, DD-793, was launched by the United States Navy, her sponsor was none other than the widow of her namesake who was killed during actions off Guadalcanal earlier in the war. She was commissioned into service on the final day of 1943 under the command of Commander Earl Tobias Schrieber. She arrived at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, United States on 19 Mar 1944 at the conclusion of her training cruise, then sailed on to Manus, Admiralty Islands to join Task Force 58. Her first sortie was on 28 Apr when the task force was launched attack the Japanese positions at Truk, Woleai, Satawan, and Ponape, with Cassin Young acting as an anti-aircraft picket ship. After brief rest and training at Majuro in the Marshall Islands and then at Pearl Harbor, she arrived at Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands on 11 Jun to screen escort carriers for the Mariana Islands invasion; during that campaign, in addition to anti-aircraft picket duties, she also provided naval gunfire support against targets close to shore. She returned to Eniwetok on 13 Aug to replenish. Between 29 Aug and 2 Oct, she screened the carriers of Task Group 38.3 as their aircraft struck Japanese positions at Palau and Philippine Islands (Mindanao and Luzon) as support for the invasion of Palau Islands. On 6 Oct, she set sail again as part of TG 38.3; aircraft of TG 38.3 struck Japanese positions at Okinawa (Japan), Luzon (Philippine Islands), and Taiwan; between 10 and 13 Oct, off Taiwan, five of her crew was wounded by Japanese aircraft machine gun fire, but she succeeded in shooting down several aircraft. On 18 Oct, she screened carriers of Task Force 38 east of Luzon, Philippine Islands as their aircraft struck Japanese airfields in preparation for the invasion of Leyte, Philippine Islands. On 25 Oct, she was among the American warships that rushed northward, lured by Jisaburo Ozawa's decoy fleet; this led to the Battle off Cape Engaño. She remained with TF 38 through Jan 1945 as the aircraft struck land targets at Okinawa, Taiwan, Luzon, and Hong Kong and sea targets in the Camranh Bay, making port call at Ulithi periodically. In Feb 1945, she screened carriers as their aircraft struck Japanese airfields on Honshu and Okinawa, Japan during the Iwo Jima invasion. On 22 Mar, she departed Ulithi for the Okinawa invasion. On 1 Apr, she screened larger warships as they bombarded Okinawa, moved in close to shore to support underwater demolition teams, provided naval gunfire support, and acted as a radar picket ship. On 6 Apr, she rescued survivors from two sunken American destroyers. On 12 Apr, after shooting down five enemy aircraft, a Japanese aircraft crashed into her foremast, exploding in mid-air about 15 meters from her; one man was killed and another was wounded. She sailed to Kerama Retto southwest of Okinawa under her own power, then received temporary repairs at Ulithi, returning to Okinawa on 31 May to resume radar picket duties. On 28 Jul, she shot down two Japanese aircraft during a special attack on ships in her group; she then helped in the rescue of men from a destroyer sunken by a kamikaze aircraft. On 29 Jul, she was struck on the starboard side by a special attack aircraft, killing 22 and injuring 45; her crew was able to bring the fire under control within 20 minutes. This special attack ended her WW2 career. For her service at Okinawa, she received the Navy Unit Commendation. She was decommissioned in 1946, and was recommissioned in 1951. In mid-1953, she conducted anti-submarine exercises off Florida, United States. Between 16 Sep and 30 Nov 1953, she served with the US Navy 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea. In early 1954, she conducted exercises in the Caribbean Sea. On 3 May 1954, she departed Newport, Rhode Island, United States for an around-the-world cruise, returning the Newport on 28 Nov. In the late 1950s, she conducted training exercises in the Caribbean Sea and in the Atlantic Ocean, mixed in with several tours of duty in the Mediterranean Sea and a cruise to northern Europe in 1958. On 6 Feb 1960, she arrived at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Virginia, United States and prepared for inactivation. She was decommissioned for the second and final time about three months later. She now serves as a museum ship at the Boston National Historical Park in Charlestown, Massachusetts, United States.

Destroyer Cassin Young (DD-793) Interactive Map

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Cassin Young Operational Timeline

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2.  David Stubblebine says:
6 Sep 2017 06:33:32 PM

To Dennis Halladay (above):
Yes. These lists are called Muster Rolls and they can be viewed at Fold3.com. Muster Rolls documented the enlisted men only while officers were accounted for in the Deck Logs (not available at Fold3.com).