“Old enough to vote,” said Adm. Thomas C. Hart, Commander in Chief, US Asiatic Fleet of the thirteen destroyers under his command—Destroyer Squadron 29—“not only inadequately armed for the warfare of the day but sadly in need of overhaul,” yet “manned by rock-hard veterans of the China Station who, under relentless, nerve-racking pressure, fought them with fierce determination and courageous abandon against fearful odds* . . . ”
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Destroyer Squadron 29
24 November 1941
24 November 1941
USS Paul Jones, DD 230, flag
Destroyer Division 57
USS Whipple, DD 217, flag
USS Alden, DD 211
USS John D. Edwards, DD 216
USS Edsall, DD 219
USS Whipple, DD 217, flag
USS Alden, DD 211
USS John D. Edwards, DD 216
USS Edsall, DD 219
Destroyer Division 58
USS Stewart, DD 224, flag
USS Parrott, DD 218
USS Bulmer, DD 222
USS Barker, DD 213
USS Stewart, DD 224, flag
USS Parrott, DD 218
USS Bulmer, DD 222
USS Barker, DD 213
Destroyer Division 59
USS Peary, DD 226, flag
USS Pope, DD 225
USS John D. Ford, DD 228
USS Pillsbury, DD 227
USS Peary, DD 226, flag
USS Pope, DD 225
USS John D. Ford, DD 228
USS Pillsbury, DD 227
In 1941, the Asiatic Fleet was a navy all to itself. All of its thirteen destroyers had been stationed in the Far East beginning in 1922. Over the next 19 years, they had conducted disaster relief missions to Japan following earthquakes in 1923 and ’25 plus diplomatic and rescue missions stemming from an unsettled political situation in Asia. During this time, none of them had returned to the United States or been modified on station: with the exception of of jury-rigged sonar, they were equipped as first commissioned.
http://destroyerhistory.org/flushdeck/desron29/
In addition to other books noted in the post ... Make a point to read one of the best books on the four pipers and the loss of the USS Edsall.
