Cushing (DD 985) - Naval Cruise Book

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The Ship's Crest 'lf ' I USS CUSHlNG's coat of arms symbolizes the spirit and endeavors of William Baxter Cushing as well as the tradition of destroyers named in honor of this brave na- val officer. The indented division of the shield repre- sents a log boom and the pile, which represents the ships prow, crosses the boom suggestive of the man- ner in which Commander Cushing foiled the Confeder- ate defenses to accomplish the sinking of the ABER- MARLE. The upper area of the pile is red, alluding to the danger and high risk of his famous action and the fact that Commander Cushing had been under more fire than any other officer in the Navy at that time. The lion's head is a symbol of courage and strength and repre- sents the spirit and abilities of Commander Cushing. This spirit is also reflected in the ships motto, Non Sibi Sed Patriae, a statement attributed to the ancient Flo- man Cicero, which translated to Not for Self but for Country. The trident is a traditional maritime symbol and its sharp points suggest offensive action. The spar torpe- do is dark blue, alluding to the dark of night and the co- vert nature ofthe sinking of the ABERMARLE. The dark blue also recalls the fact that Commander Cushing a Union officer, took the torpedo, at that time basically a Confederate weapon, and used it to sink an enemy ves- sel. The five stars refer to the fact that this SPRUANCE class destroyer is the fifth destroyer-type ship to be named CUSHING. :Qi ml N Illlfp ,1 1' -, sz:- , e e s x try s? 0 1 .. D 1,1 0 I Ora: ll' I W Q If O xx 'lik 5 xg 111' f 0? ,flf',, O .000 fl ff' '-5 '.. S 0' ',l' '-X ' 00' HQ , U U5 x 6215 25' K ? Q 5? 5 0 1' . xxx .. T 7 I ,Il l 2

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CUSQJ 'ik' tif y if 'iff l l tl lu? I 4 fl -N' it Nl E: ll S if fr is is N , N Q Q y 2 t N S Q ? F3 l N . Q ' l y S X X Q 35 0 X X' Q Y 5 of of X X, Q9 QQ ,f ,0' ...hoo p- Q 1 D 3 ' 00110 11111 Of all the tools the Navy will employ to control the seas in any future war, the most useful of the combatant ships, the destroyer, will be sure to be there. lts appearance may be altered and it may even be called by another name. but no type -- not even the' carrier or the submarine -- has such an assured place in the future navies. Adm. C. W. Nimitz

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iff. S: ffmiffi iw f-rare' fe-1 .rw- ,. , V Commander William B. Cushing USS CUSHING is named after Com- mander William Barker Cushing, aNaval hero of the Civil War. Born in Delafield, Wis., Nov. 4, 1842, he entered the Naval Academy in 1857. He became lieutenant on July 16, 1862, and subsequently at- tained the rank of commander on Jan. 31, 1872. After brilliant service in the blockad- ing fleet off the North Carolina coast, his plans to outfit torpedo boats to destroy the formidable and dangerous Confed- erate ram, Albemarle were approved. On Oct. 27, 1864, Cushing in a torpedo boat manned by 15 volunteers, eluded the enemy lookouts and crept up the Ro- anoke River under defense fire from small arms and succeeded in disabling the Confederate ram Albemarle. For this action, Cushing was promoted and offi- cially thanked by Congress, the only non-flag officer of the war to be so hon- ored. ln the four years he had risen from midshipman to lieutenant commander he was under fire perhaps more than any other officer in the Navy and seemed to have escaped without a scratch. After the Civil War he served in both Pacific and Asiatic squadrons, commanded the Lancaster and Mau- mee, served as ordnance officer, Bos- ton Navy Yard, and from July 11 , 1873 commanded the USS WYOMING until relieved of active duty because of ill- ness. While commanding USS WYO- MING in the Caribbean, he helped to free the passengers of a ship detained by the Spanish government in Cuba. Commander Cushing died on Decem- ber 17, 1874 at the age of thirty two. 3