USS Preston (DD-379)

USS Preston (DD-379) was a built for the United States Navy during the 1930s. Named for Samuel W. Preston, a United States Naval Academy officer killed during the American Civil War, the ship served throughout the Pacific War. Her career was cut short during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in November 1942, where she was sunk in intense surface combat.

Construction and commissioning

The destroyer's construction was authorized under the fiscal year 1935 program, and her keel was laid down on 27 October 1935 at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo, California. She was launched on 22 April 1936, sponsored by Mrs. Edward H. Campbell, and commissioned on 27 October 1936 under the command of Commander Claude V. Ricketts. Following commissioning, Preston conducted shakedown exercises off the coast of California before joining the Pacific Fleet. Her initial armament consisted of five 5-inch/38 caliber guns, twelve 21-inch torpedo tubes, and numerous 40 mm and 20 mm anti-aircraft weapons, a configuration typical for the advanced design.

Service history

Following her shakedown, Preston was assigned to Destroyer Squadron 5 of the Battle Force, operating out of San Diego, California. In the years leading up to World War II, she participated in routine fleet exercises, training operations, and goodwill visits along the West Coast of the United States. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, she immediately began escort and patrol duties, initially off the California coast and later in the Hawaiian Islands. In early 1942, she screened the aircraft carrier USS ''Enterprise'' during raids on Makin Island and provided cover for the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. Throughout the critical months of mid-1942, Preston was heavily engaged in the Guadalcanal campaign, performing vital tasks such as escorting convoys to Espiritu Santo, bombarding Japanese positions on Guadalcanal, and participating in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands as part of the screen for USS ''Hornet''.

Her final action came during the intense night surface engagement of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on the night of 14–15 November 1942. Operating as part of Rear Admiral Willis A. Lee's Task Force 64, which included the battleships USS ''Washington'' and USS ''South Dakota'', Preston was positioned in the van of the American formation. The force encountered a powerful Japanese bombardment group under Vice Admiral Nobutake Kondō, which included the battleship ''Kirishima'' and several cruisers and destroyers. In the ensuing chaotic melee, Preston was illuminated by enemy searchlights and subjected to concentrated fire from multiple Japanese warships, including the cruisers ''Nagara'' and ''Sendai''. Struck by several shells, she suffered catastrophic damage to her engineering spaces and was set ablaze.

Fate

The devastating hits on Preston caused immediate and severe flooding, and within minutes she lost all power and began to list heavily. The order to abandon ship was given approximately ten minutes after the first hits. She sank stern-first northwest of Savo Island at approximately 23:36 on 14 November 1942. Of her crew, 116 men were killed in the action or went down with the ship. Survivors, including her commanding officer, Commander Max C. Stormes, were rescued the following day by American destroyers, including USS ''Meade''. For her service in World War II, USS Preston was awarded two battle stars. Her wreck, along with those of other vessels lost in the fierce battles around Guadalcanal, remains on the floor of Ironbottom Sound as a war grave. Category:Mahan-class destroyers Category:World War II destroyers of the United States Category:Ships built in Vallejo, California Category:1936 ships