USS Willmarth (DE-638) was a in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1968.
History Willmarth was named in honor of Ensign Kenneth Willmarth (1914-1942), who was killed in action when the cruiser was sunk during the Battle of Savo Island on 9 August 1942. The ship was laid down on 25 June 1943 at San Francisco, California, by the Bethlehem Steel Company's Shipbuilding Division; launched on 21 November 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Eva Willmarth, the mother of Ens. Willmarth; and commissioned on 13 March 1944.
Solomon Islands Following shakedown out of San Diego and post-shakedown availability at her builder's yard, Willmarth was assigned to Escort Division 40. She stood out of San Francisco Bay on 31 May, as screen for the four-ship Convoy 2410 bound for Hawaii, and arrived at Pearl Harbor on 9 June.
On 12 June, together with and , Willmarth screened the sortie of the Marshall Islands-bound Convoy 4212-A. After delivering the convoy safely at Eniwetok nine days later, Willmarth proceeded on to the Treasury Islands, anchoring in Blanche Harbor at 11:30 on the 26th.
Shifting successively to Tulagi and Purvis Bay, Willmarth operated on local escort and patrol missions in the Solomon and Treasury Islands groups for the remainder of July. She escorted a small convoy to Dreger Harbor, New Guinea, between 1 and 5 August and then shifted to Milne Bay for repairs on her port propeller.
Challenging an unknown ship Underway for the Treasury Islands on 24 August, Willmarth made radar contact with an unidentified ship at 02:00 on the 25th. Willmarth tracked the stranger and challenged her at 03:35, when about two miles (3 km) distant. The latter did not reply, but instead altered course away from the destroyer escort and increased speed. Willmarth in turn churned up and went to general quarters at 03:40.
Willmarth repeated the challenge at 04:06 but again received no reply. On the port beam of her target, the escort vessel illuminated the stranger with her searchlight and discovered her to be a freighter of some 8,000 to 10,000 tons. Only away, Willmarth men could see the freighter's crew manning their guns to challenge the destroyer escort.
Willmarth opened the range to as the freighter responded with two different call signs, perhaps seeking to confuse the escort vessel. Just as Willmarth began to flash a call for recognition signals, the freighter commenced fire with guns. The destroyer escort rang down for and opened the range to , refraining from firing because of the stranger's appearance and location, "indicating that it was friendly." With respect to the freighter's fierce – but ineffective – fire, Willmarth's war diarist noted that the ship's "range was excellent, but deflection was off." No shells landed closer than away.
Escort ship Willmarth subsequently anchored at Blanche Harbor later on the 25th. Late the next day, she got underway on an escort assignment and convoyed to Green Island, Bougainville, arriving on the 29th to screen the transport as she unloaded. She eventually escorted the troopship to Emirau Island and Torokina, Bougainville, before proceeding independently to the Treasury Islands. She conducted training exercises over the balance of September before she performed local escort missions and the like out of her Treasury Islands' base into October.
Willmarth departed Blanche Harbor on 6 October in company with , bound for Dutch New Guinea. She arrived three days later and sortied on the 12th with Task Unit (TU) 77.7.1 which included , , , , , and merchant ship . Other escorts were , , and Whitehurst.
Willmarth operated with TU 77.7.1 until she was released late on the 13th to escort Chepachet and SS Pueblo to Kossol Passage, in the Palaus. Arriving there at 18:21 on the 14th, she remained anchored for two days before beginning to patrol the harbor entrance on the 17th. Relieved of this duty by , Willmarth got underway during the forenoon on 20 October to screen the sortie of Ashtabula, Saranac, Chepachet, Salamonie, Mazama, and for the Philippines.
Philippines campaign Willmarth proceeded north with her convoy, while American troops splashed ashore on the beaches of Leyte to commence the liberation of the Philippines. On the 23rd, three days after the main landing began, the destroyer escort anchored off Leyte midway between the northern and southern transport areas while her oilers refueled the ships from Task Group (TG) 77.2. That evening, Willmarth steamed eastward toward a night anchorage and, at 18:25, observed anti-aircraft fire over the northern transport area.
Underway again off Homonhon Island early the next morning, the destroyer escort received a report of enemy aircraft orbiting over the northern transport area. As she steamed along the convoy's flank, she commenced making black smoke at 08:44 to lay a protective screen in anticipation of the enemy's arrival. While the radio crackled with reports of ships under attack, Willmarth spotted no enemy planes nearby, only many puffs of "flak" splattering the skies to the westward of her screening position in the refueling group.
With the receipt of a "flash white" at 13:43, the oilers resumed refueling TG 77.2. Willmarth shifted to Samar Island shortly before 17:00 before going to general quarters at 17:06 upon receipt of a "flash red." After waiting for well over an hour for the enemy to make an appearance, the convoy stopped and prepared to anchor for the night.
At 18:43, however, three "Jills" roared in low from the east, torpedoes slung menacingly beneath their bellies. Willmarth guns opened fire on two just before they released their "fish." One torpedo holed Ashtabula and forced her to a halt, dead in the water. While the oiler's repair parties controlled the flooding and patched the hole, the convoy passed out of Leyte Gulf and reformed in the wake of the attack. Eventually, Ashtabula, repairs effected, rejoined at 22:30.
Willmarth and the convoy remained underway throughout the evening, maneuvering on various courses and speeds in Leyte Gulf until the first rays of sunlight streaked the eastern skies. After going to general quarters at 04:58, the destroyer escort remained at battle stations throughout the day. Less than an hour after her crew first closed up at action stations, two "Jills" attacked the convoy from the westward. Willmarth immediately opened fire with her and batteries. As one "Jill" roared across the stern of the convoy, it was caught by gunfire from Willmarth and other ships of the convoy and crashed in flames far astern.
While maneuvering and making smoke to mask the convoy, the destroyer escort spotted a floating mine which she sank with gunfire. Soon thereafter, another "Jill" passed through the area and drew fire from Willmarth. The shells were not observed to hit; and the plane escaped.
The convoy anchored in the fueling area at 11:52, three hours after the last attack. Willmarth and the other escorts screened the convoy and provided an anti-submarine screen patrol around the valuable auxiliaries. Later that afternoon, Willmarth repulsed an attack made by a lone plane which came out of the sun in a glide-bombing attack at 14:20. The destroyer escort's gunfire damaged the plane and caused it to spin into the water about five miles (8 km) away.
The convoy departed the fueling area at 16:46. Frequent alerts and enemy planes enlivened the evening hours as the group maneuvered throughout the night in a retirement formation. Willmarth war diarist noted that the Japanese planes seemed loath to attack ships in the fueling area during daylight, probably because of the heavy concentration of anti-aircraft fire that could be directed at an attacker.
The next day, 26 October, saw a repetition of the same routine that had kept the destroyer escort active since her arrival in Leyte Gulf three days earlier. After maneuvering on screening duties through the night, the warship spotted a lone "Val" dive bomber making an attack at 05:50; Willmarth opened fire from but failed to score any hits. Within minutes, she and her sister escorts were laying smoke screens to cover the convoy for the next hour. Thereafter, they provided anti-submarine screening protection while the oilers conducted fueling operations.
Further escort duty After following the same routine on the 27th, Willmarth departed Leyte Gulf and headed for the Palaus. At 08:00 on 28 October, Willmarth – escorting the oilers earmarked to refuel the 7th Fleet ships – rendezvoused with the carriers of Task Group 77.4 and screened the refuelling operations for the balance of the day. Detached that afternoon, Willmarth screened Ashtabula and Chepachet as they voyaged to Kossol Roads, in the Palaus. Arriving on 31 October, Willmarth refueled from and anchored, her job done.
The respite afforded the destroyer escort was a brief one, however, for she got underway on 1 November for Hollandia and Seeadler Harbor, escorting a convoy. Entering Humboldt Bay on the 4th, Willmarth anchored there over the next two days before proceeding to sea to screen the sortie of TG 78.4 – , 12 LSM's, 4 LCI's, 8 LCI(G)'s, and – on the 7th.
Western New Guinea campaign For the next three days, Willmarth screened the convoy to its destination – Mapia and Asia Islands, near Morotai – before arriving in the invasion area on the 11th. As the convoy neared Morotai, Willmarth lookouts observed anti-aircraft fire between 04:15 and 05:30. Two "bogies" passed within four miles (6 km) of the convoy; but, as Wilmarth's war diarist recorded, "evidently they either did not sight us or were not interested, as they proceeded directly toward the area from which flak appeared." There was a reason why Willmarth did not open fire on the two planes that seemed so close – she carried the only reliable air-warning radar in the entire convoy and to open fire prematurely would have disclosed the position of the little convoy and exposed it to possible air attacks. At 08:32, the destroyer escort anchored just off the southern coast of Morotai, near Ariadne, while the remainder of the convoy (save the LCM's) proceeded to another part of the island to load for the impending invasion of Mapia and Asia Islands. The mission of the assault group was to establish weather station and LORAN – long range radio aid to navigation – facilities.
On 13 November, with the assault ships having embarked their troops, Willmarth got underway in company with TG 78.14, bound for Pegun Island. At 05:00, two days later – she was joined by and . Willmarth, the two destroyers, and PC-1122 bombarded the southern part of the island prior to the landings and provoked no return fire from the beach. After a half-hour of firing, Ariadne signalled that "H" hour was 06:30, meaning that the first wave of LVT(A)s would hit the reef at that time.
Willmarth remained at her bombardment station for the rest of the morning, ceasing fire as the first assault wave splashed toward the beachhead. The accompanying LCI(G)'s laid their own barrage, thus obviating the need for the destroyers' gunfire. By noon, the island was in American hands. When surrounded, the remaining garrison – only 12 to 14 Japanese soldiers – committed suicide.
Meanwhile, since she was not needed for bombardment, Willmarth patrolled to the northward of the invasion beach and came across canoes full of natives to the north. One native, speaking good English, told Willmarth that the remainder of the Japanese garrison, about 170 men, had waded across the reef to Bras Island the previous night – thus accounting for the sparse reception given the invasion forces.