Heywood Edwards (DD 663) - Naval Cruise Book

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■ li liip % lli it r COMMISSIONING BOSTON S CAPT BOULWARE ACCEPTS TOKEN OF PROVIDENCE , l,T. W II I I M I ( ol II . Ii;.. I -A.K. Tins i llic lii liir .if a ship uitli llic iii.-tiiicl foi iii i al. s il i writlcii tlic lioiiu-w ;u(1Imhim(I pcii- riaril llullii almM- llti ' lark- and liail mit nvir llu- fanlail. All iiisliiKi f ir sMi i al imi ihf ii iial |)i iniiiiiciil ()ualit ill a ship. Ships arc laiili . little irls. m tll ll ■p . oil love thrill III Mill hate thciii: mmi havr an alTi ' ilioiial; ' iiaiiic fur ihciii. or a fuiiii iiaiiic. m Dili ' ill uliiili the iij;l i-Saxi ii preddiiiinatfs. Thf) lia f prrsiiiiaiitii ' s. Ihis ship had no pcisoiialit — lii- wa- a iciliot of m: a lad rohot. if iiii liki-. Iiiit a loi.ot. Ship- ar.- fiiiiah- llirv air mad.- to lind tlic-ii ;:lor in pain, lo die uliilc swiinniin iiii ' ii look on in diinili. lhroat-( oiistrictcd niisrr . more ronsiioiis of ihc ship s a}:oii than their ow n. I lie are made to ri :hl priiudh and ■:lorioii-l . . . to uin isonielinie to lo-el and roiiie home. niilin : ihroii h the hurt. Ihat i win men lo e a ship. When tlie are hurt in ImiiK. lie i hurt in l od : ami tliev lielieM- that when lhe iiffi ' r within lliiou:;li I line—, .mil fi-.ii. he must suffer o. lull llii- -hip u.i nl like thai. She- i ame ihrou ii eiiilileen inoiitli- of hell unmarked. F. er man who e er M ' r ed in iier walked away. Her instiiKt for sur- i ai was so siroiii; it iniluded her erew . Of course, she had a nickname. Hut not a fuiinv one. ol e en an alTectionately insulliiif; one. Hers was luisinesslike and firim. The called her lask Imcc (id.i . . he was a war machine. I ' lie 2IIHI t,,n de-tro er i h-ioii. To dcM rihe il lo a sailor i- to dc-ciihe a partii iilar sea;:ul!. or a cer- tain palm tree. )])U( A wascoii.eiMMl on the {■..iirtli of JiiK I ' M.V wlicn her keel was laid at the a Yard at Hoslnii. On ()(). toiler l J l. ' ishe was chrislened and launched. Her name was the I . sS llc niti il I.. F.ditanh. in honor of 1,1. (!omdr. Ilex wood l.ane Kiiwards. I . S. . . . . conmiandin;: ollicer of the I . S. . . Kruhfii Jaiiii ' s sunk ilurin : action with a liennan siihmariiie in the North tlantic .m llie la-l .lax of OitoU-r. I ' M I. a month an. I a w.-.k l.. ' foie IVail Harhor. On Janiiai ' ( . I ' MI. DDiil.:! wa- ommissioni-il. with C.inm.in.l.i Jo. W . U.iolwar. ' . I .S. . f..| h.-i

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■ ocoiiiiiididatioii lor tlie Ma% ' Unit € oniiii iicl«Bti€»ii Fkom : (liiriiiiuiiulci- Dt ' stioyr S(|iki(Ii iii I ' l K ' I VSl . To : The Societal (if tin- ii . I : Ollicial ClianiH-U. SlB.IKCT: Hriiinimciulatioii for Auaid (if Na I nit ( IdiiirnfiHJatidii Id L .S.S. IIcmkkkI .. Fi irnnls i DDfiO.S) and I .S.S. Hicluinl I ' . I.,ni i DDddl i. 1. in aiididaiRi ' uitli Cunciit l)irtTli t ' s it is itHdiniiR ' ndci,! tliat tlu- . a I iiit (.cniiuK-mlatioii he awarded to the V. S. S. Heyuood L. Edwards I DDOO. ' I and the U. S. S. Richard ' . Leary I 1)1)66 1 ) ioY outstanding performance in combat against enemy Japanese forces ashore, afhiat and in tlic air in the Pacific War Area from 29 Mav 1944 to 2!! Jnlv 19 IS fcr the HI.. Kduai(l an(l from ' ) .|iil 1944 to 28 July 1945 for the R. P. ' Lear . 2. During these periods the subject ships participated in the i niajiu am|)hibious assaidt;- and landings in the Marianas, at Palau. Leyte Gulf. Lingayen Gulf, luo Jima and Okinawa. In cai h (d these difficult engagements the two ships were the first to arri e in the area and in almost every instance among the last to leave. During this period the H. L. Edwards fired a total of rounds equivalent to four times the normal life of the guns. Both ships have been repeatedly coniniendcd tor their accurate and devastating fire, and have accounted for the timely demise of manv Japanese. During these operations both ships have been under fire from shore batteries and under repeated and heavy air attack. Both ships have made attacks on submarines, and both have claimed probable sinkings of one submarine each, though official assessments ha e not been received. The H. L. Edwards on 24 September 1944 destroyed a large group of small enemy surface craft, attempting to reinforce the garrison of an enemy held island in the Palau with the loss of a large number of enemy troops. 3. Both ships participated in the Battle of Surigao Straits and were with this scpuulron when it delivered a coordinated torpedo attack on a Jap battleship which no doubt contributed to its loss. Both ships were under heavy enemy fire but escaped without injurN. 4. During the Okinawa campaign both ships were among the mainstays of the fire support group. When the originator requested Commander. Amphibious Force. Pacific Fleet to give these two particular ships a breather, he was told. ' Those will be the last ships to be relieved, because they are so good that we cannot spare them. W e i an alwa s rcl on the Edwards and the Leary to produce in the tight places. 5. The remarkable thing about these two siiips. and the thing uiii(h the oriiiiiialdi uishcs to emphasize, is that in spite of these long and arduous duties, neither ship has been hit b the enenn . cithci from ashore, surface or the air. In view ' of the fact that six of the other ships of the squadron, participating in the same actions. ha e been hit and damaged, this record cannot be passed off as mere luck. Rather, it is the writer s opinion that this fine record is due to outstanding performance of dut h all officers and men of both ships, and is one of the principal bases for this recommendatiim. Many of the officers and men have been decorated for their indi idual aits, but it is the earnest desire of the squadron cominaiider to see every man recei e recognition for the outstanding performance iiicntioiicd herein. 6. liile neither ship lias participated in am action (if the spectacular nature uiiicii draws the attention of the press and radio to it individnalix. it is desired Id point out thai to the writer know I edge no other deslro ers in the Navy, except the oilier -liip in this scpiadron lunc pai ticipalcd in all six of the above named major operations a- a pari df llic lidmliardinciit and liic -iippnil LiKuip. This record the « rilcr believes to be of such an (inl.-landing nature as to vairanl ihcauaid ol llic Navy I nit (iommcndalion. H. F. Simr.

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TAKING IN THE SLACK WHILE FUELING first captain. Five months and twenty-twd rlaxs from keel-la in ; to commissioning. DD66. ' «as a war bali . On 22 Apiil l ' J44. after three moiillis of fitlirij; onl and shaking down. DD663 transited the I ' aiiama Canal tf) enter the Parifie. Knowing lier. it is uii- likeJN thai she was ni-i ou (n e en mo ed (in llii.- Uii Id .i enilMr I ' M. ). ) )( i,A l.iucll. ' d the I nited States again at Puget Sound a y Yard to he pnl in reserve status. The elapsed time was one ear. -i months, and nineteen days. It i inipiohahle she wa rnui li e i ili ' l at this, either. Dining the interval eonsiderahle liad lia|i|ic-ned. It i ihi ' purpoM- (if u hi lcir . nliie(lirig ihe nanio and emiili(iii nf men In llie will of a -liip so strong thai she madr llieni all -lrong. --(i inipregnalile that she made them in ninrr ahle. o ahiof lliat she detached them fnmi ihrm eKo anti made them ihink oid of iheir mi-siiin il i tin- purt ci e nf llii- hi-- |(ir Id tell the -lnr of tho e nineleen mcinlli . SMPWTIM ■; Jiuir II - J ) l„h II On 2 J .Vla . I9H. a- part nf Ta k (dcmp 7,2. I. ' ). I)|)f)M sortied from I ' eai I llarli.ir f.ir the Mariannas Operaliiin uhicli wa - In prn ide Iv2 ' ) bases against llie Jap mairdand. She ai i i ed nif the coast of Saipan nil i) l)a . I. ' ) jinie. and stayed sixty-odd davs. until the con(|iiest of Saipan and Tinian was com- plete. This was DD66;Vs lirst lime iimlci lire aii l the lust lime she had fired a slml in uliat has heen euphemistically termed, anger. Ihi pci fnrmance was cool and competent as she mnxed almiit nn her in- itial assignment, shore b(Mnliardmeiit. I his nperatinn as sea-borne field artiller wa-aliimsi a .-pecialtx and her crews became practised in w lial must have seemed impossible initially, sleeping wiiilc ihe main batter lired five inch salvos at regular inteixals. For da s and sometimes for weeks, the fire support ships stayed within eas range nf ihr encm positinris. moving in long before the first wa c. and following or leading the advance until the last point of resist- ance was destro ed. Sometimes the fired steadih fnr almost a week, the irew alternating at the guns. At Saipan. Dl)()6. ' i worked in coordinalinii wilh the Army, knocking out gun einplacemenls. irnnp concentrations; sealing ca es: and reducing ma- chine gun nests to a tangle of shattered ordnance and enemy dead. On July 7th. DI)()(i.H had a cliam c for individual action. During a lasl desperate attack, a portion nf the lO.Sth I . S. iiifantiN was cut off and driven oul into the sea to a point v licre ihe limit of retreat was reached at the heifiht nf a tired soldier ' s mniilh. DDfid.H pul nver her whaleboats and sent ihcin in over llic trca(hernus reefs to the rescue. Net proceeds were H Ainciic ans and one Jap. w ho had adopted the novel e |)ediciit of deserting during an attack. Saipan was DI)()6. ' -! s first time miilci Inc. In lici career she had the dubious disliiic linn, wliirli would w illinglv have heen v acalcd in fav ni ol anv ( laimaiil. of being attacked hv llic i-ncmv a full do iii v(av . DD66. ' ? beat off or destroved ihc Jap cvcrv uav he came after her — and he came in lialtlesliips and cruisers . . . and dcstrovcis . . . and -iihmai inc . . . and PT boats . . . and siiii idc lioals . . . He -v am llic water w illi dcmolilinn ( hargcs lied In his hark, lie (lew ill dive hnnibcis . . . and Kamika c planes . . . and pilnlcl haka hnmli- . . . Ilc-li,-u, ' d mii,,- liher- allv in Ik I palli and lie liicd al lici willi -lime hal- Iciies. il i- prnlialilc even llial he piavi ' d ai;ainsl her . . . nr (iirsed liei avoiding lo all llic god- nf Shinto.