USS CONCORD HISTORY
THE SHIP’S WHO WORE THE CONCORD NAME!
Curtis Creek sent in information about another WWII veteran (his grandpa) who sailed USS CONCORD CL-10. Very interesting to say the least and gives an insight into what the Navy was like back in the early 40’s! Scroll to the bottom to read Curtis’s email and his grandfathers stories about his time on our namesake.
USS CONCORD (SP-773) 1917 – 1937, was the third ship of this title and later was renamed Mendota and Muscotah (both as YT-33). A 353 gross ton tug built in 1898 at Philadelphia, she was commandeered by the Navy from the Staples Transportation Company of New York in 1917. Later purchased outright, she was placed in commission after outfitting by Boston Navy Yard. Late in 1917 she helped tow French submarine chasers from Bermuda to the Azores, then went on to Brest, France where she served through the end of WWI and for nearly another year afterwards. Returning to the US IN November 1919, she was assigned to the Washington Navy Yard. In 1920 she was redesignated YT-33 and renamed Mendota. She was again renamed in January 1932 becoming Muscotah, and remained active until placed out of service November 1934. She was sold at the end of April 1937 as per the Naval Historical Center.
This brings us to our Predecessor USS CONCORD (CL-10) 1923 – 1947, the ship sailed by Jo Ann’s dad Darwin McMahon. A 7050 ton Omaha class light cruiser she was built in Philadelphia and Commissioned November 1923. Designed for combat, the vessel carried 12 six-inch guns, 4 three-inch guns, 3 anti-aircraft guns, 6 torpedo tubes, 2 catapults and 2 seaplanes. In 1924 she made her shakedown cruise in the Med and around Africa. During the next several years she served with the Lant based Scouting Fleet making occasional visits to the Pacific for Fleet maneuvers. Her homeport was changed to SanDiego in 1932 and she operated mainly in the Pacific afterwards. As tensions with Japan increased she moved with the Battle Fleet to Pearl Harbor in 1940. When the US entered WWII in 1941, she was on the West Coast undergoing overhaul. She served in the Southern Pacific February 1942 escorting convoys and patrolling off Central and South America. September – November 1943 she served as flagship to Real Admiral Richard Byrd during his survey of Southeastern Pacific islands. An accidental gasoline explosion during this cruise damaged the ship and 22 crew members lost their life. Following repairs she was transferred to the northern Pacific and spent the rest of WWII patrolling, interdicting enemy shipping and conducting bombardments of facilities in the Kuril islands area. Just after the end of the fighting, she supported the occupation of northern Japan. CONCORD passed through the Panama Canal October 1945 and was decommissioned at Philadelphia. She was sold for scrapping in January 1947.