USS Atherton

14°29′43″N 120°55′04″E / 14.4952845°N 120.9177217°E / 14.4952845; 120.9177217

USS Atherton (DE-169)
History
United States
NameUSS Atherton
NamesakeJohn McDougal Atherton
Ordered18 January 1942
BuilderFederal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Newark, New Jersey
Yard number285
Laid down14 January 1943
Launched27 May 1943
Sponsored byMrs. Cornelia A. Atherton, widow of Peter Lee Atherton
Commissioned29 August 1943
Decommissioned10 December 1945
Stricken15 June 1975
IdentificationDE-169
Honors and
awards
1 battle star, World War II
Fatetransferred to the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF), 14 June 1955
Acquiredreturned from JMSDF, 1975
Fatetransferred to the Philippine Navy, 13 September 1976
Japan
NameJDS Hatsuhi
Acquired14 June 1955
Decommissioned1975
IdentificationDE-263
FateReturned to the United States, 1975
Philippines
NameBRP Rajah Humabon
Acquired23 December 1978
Commissioned27 February 1980
Decommissioned1993
RecommissionedJanuary 1996
Decommissioned15 March 2018
IdentificationPF-11
General characteristics
Class and type
Displacement
  • 1,240 long tons (1,260 t) standard
  • 1,620 long tons (1,646 t) full
Length
  • 306 ft (93 m) o/a
  • 300 ft (91 m) w/l
Beam36 ft 10 in (11.23 m)
Draft11 ft 8 in (3.56 m)
Propulsion4 × GM Mod. 16-278A diesel engines with electric drive, 6,000 shp (4,474 kW), 2 screws
Speed21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Range10,800 nmi (20,000 km) at 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement15 officers and 201 enlisted
Armament

USS Atherton (DE-169), a Cannon-class destroyer escort, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Lt. (jg) John McDougal Atherton, who died when USS Meredith sank near Guadalcanal during World War II.[1]

Atherton (DE-169) was laid down on 14 January 1943 at Newark, New Jersey, by the Federal Drydock & Shipbuilding Co. The ship was launched on 27 May 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Cornelia A. Atherton, the mother of Lt. (jg.) Atherton, and widow of Peter Lee Atherton of Louisville, Kentucky.[2]

The vessel was completed at the Norfolk Navy Yard and commissioned there on 29 August 1943.

  1. ^ "2 Navy Ships Launched; Destroyer Escorts Atherton and Amick Honor War Heroes". The New York Times, May 28. 1943. p. 7.
  2. ^ "The Courier Journal May 28,1943". 1943.