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65-705: USS Vance (DE-387) was an Edsall -class destroyer escort , named after Joseph Williams Vance, Jr. Joseph Williams Vance Jr. was born on 4 December 1918 in Memphis, Tennessee . He enlisted in the Naval Reserve on 26 July 1940 as an apprentice seaman. After serving at sea on the USS ; Arkansas during the late summer and early fall, he was appointed midshipman on 22 November and reported to Prairie State (IX-15) for further training. Commissioned ensign on 28 February 1941, Vance joined USS  Parrott in

130-642: A 2011 survey, and 14 more nests that were deemed potentially active. After 30 years of monitoring produced no evidence of bald eagles in Casco Bay, a nesting pair was spotted in Freeport in 1992, followed by bald eagle pairs in Brunswick and Harpswell in 1994 and 1995. As of 2018, fifteen bald eagle pairs were observed in Casco Bay communities, nine of them in Harpswell. At the time of European contact in

195-490: A Coast Guard-staffed unit, and convoyed a group of oil tankers from Norfolk, Va., to Port Arthur, Tex., and back. Upon its return to Norfolk, it served as a training ship for destroyer escort crews while awaiting the arrival of the rest of its division. In February 1944, the ship conducted local escort operations before joining the New York section of Convoy UGS-33, bound for Gibraltar. Its section rendezvoused off Norfolk with

260-571: A Vietnamese Navy liaison officer to aid in the ship's "visit and search" activities. The crew continued these activities until sailing for Hawaii early in September and arrived at Pearl Harbor on 18 June. Vance , under the command of Marcus Aurelius Arnheiter , returned to "Market Time" station in mid-January 1966. On 15 January 1967, Vance returned to the Far East for another 7th Fleet deployment and relieved USS  Koiner  (DE-331) off

325-622: A Wabanaki attack. Louis de Buade de Frontenac , the Governor General of New France , launched a campaign to drive the English from the settlements east of Falmouth. On May 16, 1690, the fortified settlement on Casco Bay was attacked by a war party of 50 French-Canadian soldiers led by Castin, about 50 Abenaki warriors from Canada, a contingent of French militia led by Joseph-François Hertel de la Fresnière , and 300 to 400 additional natives from Maine, including some Penobscots under

390-516: A communication relay ship for aircraft bringing in vital supplies to the Antarctic stations from New Zealand. The ship remained on station in the cold, bleak, southern waters into March 1962, when it headed home via Melbourne, Australia, and Papeete, Tahiti, to Pearl Harbor. The ship soon resumed duties on the DEW-line and, but for periodic interruptions for maintenance, replenishment, and training,

455-559: A fur-trading business. In 1632, Gorges awarded Arthur Mackworth the island that became known as Mackworth Island , just off the mouth of the Presumpscot River, in what came to be called Casco, renamed Falmouth in 1658 under the governance of the Massachusetts Bay Colony . Historic Falmouth was split into two municipalities in 1786, creating Portland. In 1632, Thomas Purchase and George Way received

520-656: A grant for Harpswell Neck , a few years after Purchase had established a farm, trading post, and fish salting operation on the Androscoggin River north of Casco Bay. William Royall and his wife, Phoebe, moved in 1636 from Salem, Massachusetts , to present-day Yarmouth, building a homestead and farm along what came to be known as the Royal River . That year, George Jewell purchased the Casco Bay island that became known as Jewell Island . In 1640, John Sears moved from Boston to live on Long Island. Little

585-617: A leadership role. In 1626, John Cousins established a homestead in Casco. In 1635, he moved several miles east to a waterway that became known as the Cousins River . Cousins Island and Littlejohn Island are also named for him. Walter Bagnall settled in 1628 on Richmond Island , south of Cape Elizabeth and Casco Bay, and initiated trade with the Wabanaki. Bagnall was deemed an unscrupulous trader, and in 1631 Scitterygusset led

650-477: A number of smaller bays and tidal embayments, including Harpswell Sound, Maquoit Bay , Middle Bay, Quahog Bay and New Meadows River , where depths exceed 150 feet in a narrow channel just south of Cundy's Harbor. Casco Bay's topography produces a tidal range of about nine feet on average. Seawater circulates counterclockwise into Casco Bay via the Gulf of Maine Gyre, which is formed from cold water that passes over

715-990: A number of whale sightings in Casco Bay over the years, including the North Atlantic right whale and the humpback whale . The number of water birds in Casco Bay varies by season and migratory cycles, with studies having shown anywhere from less than 5,000 to 32,000 or more across as many as 150 species, and significant nesting areas on 17 islands. Surveys of seabird populations in 1979 and 1980 identified nearly 5,400 nesting pairs of herring gulls across 56 colonies; close to 4,000 pairs of double-crested cormorants in 15 colonies; almost 3,000 pairs of eider ducks in 45 colonies; more than 2,100 pairs of great black-backed gulls in 37 colonies; and about 560 nesting pairs of common terns in nine colonies. Smaller numbers of horned grebes , common loons , ring-billed gulls , Bonaparte's gulls and laughing gulls have been observed. A 1975 survey determined that Upper Goose Island had

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780-549: A small band to the island to kill him and torch the island homestead. In 1630, George Cleeve obtained a patent from the Council for New England on Richmond Island, and established a homestead there alongside his business partner Richard Tucker. After other British investors challenged the patent, Cleeve and Tucker relocated in 1633 to the mainland and began farming land on Casco Neck. Within four years, Cleeve and Tucker had obtained 1,500 acres of land on Casco Neck and established

845-493: A tender availability at Kaohsiung, Taiwan, rest and recreation at Hong Kong and upkeep at Subic Bay. At the end of its last "Market Time" assignment, the ship patrolled the Taiwan Strait between communist China and Taiwan before returning to Pearl Harbor for routine overhaul. In late 1967, the ship began its final WestPac deployment in which its duties were similar to those of its third deployment. It subsequently returned to

910-636: Is believed that Martin Pring made landfall in Casco Bay as part of a 1603 expedition, with Samuel de Champlain and Pierre Dugua de Mons exploring it in 1605 from a base in Nova Scotia. In establishing the Popham Colony settlement near the mouth of the Kennebec River , George Popham landed in Casco Bay in 1607 while exploring the wider region. After Henry Hudson 's ship Half Moon

975-475: Is known about Sears. In 1642, Cleeve, Tucker, Mackworth, Royall and Smith were among 30 signers of a petition to the British House of Commons asking for relief from administrators assigned by Gorges to the region who were exercising "unlawful and arbitrary power and jurisdiction over the persons and estate of your petitioners and the said other planters to their great oppression utter impoverishment and

1040-572: The 16th century , Abenaki peoples inhabited the region of present-day Casco Bay, including members of the Almouchiquois or Aucocisco group in the vicinity of the Presumpscot River. Some Casco Bay islands have archaeological evidence of Native American visits and camps extending back 4,000 years, including shell middens and harpoon points. It is uncertain whether early European explorers Giovanni da Verrazzano , John Cabot , Estêvão Gomes , or Bartholomew Gosnold entered Casco Bay. It

1105-671: The Philippine Islands on 16 April. Soon after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December (8 December west of the date line), Parrott joined the American-British-Dutch-Australian effort to stem the Japanese tide sweeping down from the north. During the 24 January 1942 Battle of Makassar Strait , Vance was in charge of the destroyer's 12-tube battery of 21-inch torpedo tubes—in effect

1170-727: The Piscataqua River . The first colonial settlement in Casco Bay was that of Christopher Levett , an English explorer and agent of Gorges, who built a house on House Island in 1623–24. His initial settlement, called Machigonne and made up of veterans of the Wessagusset Colony on Massachusetts Bay, failed. At the time, the sachem of the Almouchiquois along the Presumscot was Scitterygusset, also known as Skitterygusset and other alternate spellings in historic records. Scitterygusset's sister Warrabitta also had

1235-547: The Scotian Shelf off Nova Scotia , then in and out of the Bay of Fundy . In Casco Bay, tidal currents are stronger between island channels and weaker in smaller bays in the eastern section. The Presumpscot River is the largest single source of non-saline water emptying directly into Casco Bay, flowing south from its headwaters at Sebago Lake , Maine's second-largest lake. In addition to freshwater entering Casco Bay from

1300-657: The Treaty of Casco at Fort Loyal , in present-day Portland, on April 12, 1678, binding the Wabanaki Confederacy to ending King Philip's War. After the Treaty of Casco, settlers began returning to Maine, in some instances setting up farms and homesteads near protective stockades as a fallback option in case of any renewed tensions. In 1700, a stockade that also served as a trading post was built in Falmouth east of

1365-459: The 17th parallel as a part of Task Unit (TU) 71.1.1 During the assignment, the ship maintained communications between airborne EC-121K and Commander, TU 71.1.1, in USS  John W. Thomason  (DD-760) . Subsequently, from 15 May to 4 June, Vance returned to "Market Time" surface surveillance, this time in the Gulf of Thailand near the border dividing South Vietnam from Cambodia. It operated in company with small minesweepers (MOSs) and embarked

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1430-577: The 20,000 Wabanaki in Maine and part of present-day New Brunswick survived epidemics that broke out through 1619. On August 10, 1622, King James I of England awarded a land patent to Ferdinando Gorges and John Mason for coastal lands and interiors extending from the Merrimack River to the Kennebec. Gorges and Mason eventually split the patent, with Gorges getting land patent rights north of

1495-633: The Casco Bay area occurred on September 10, 1675, at a farm north of Falmouth. Native American warriors killed six people and three more went missing. After another attack at Falmouth in October, heavy snow discouraged further action by either side for the rest of the year. Despite concurrent peace talks by tribes to the east, in August 1676 Wabanaki Confederacy warriors raided several farms in Falmouth, killing or capturing 34 people. Settler Thaddeus Clark reported that survivors fled to Cushing Island, known at

1560-581: The New England coast and inland areas beginning in June 1675, including in the Casco Bay region. If prodded into action by Metacom's militant contemporaries drumming up support in northern New England, many local tribes followed their own counsel in planning attacks in the regional conflict that some historians dub the First Abenaki War , or chose not to initiate hostilities. The first attack in

1625-686: The Pacific Theater when Japan surrendered. One of the ships participated in Operation Dragoon and two were attacked by German guided missiles . A total of 85 Edsall -class destroyer escorts were built. Casco Bay There are multiple theories about the origin of the name "Casco Bay". Aucocisco , an Anglicisation of the Abenaki name for the bay, means "place of herons", "marshy place", or "place of slimy mud". The explorer Estêvão Gomes mapped Maine's coast in 1525 and named

1690-515: The Pacific and the first to sail under the newly organized Pacific barrier patrol. In mid-January 1959. following routine overhaul and refresher training at Pearl Harbor, Vance again took station on the mid-Pacific stretch of ocean on its second DEW-line deployment. Vance continued to conduct regular DEW-line patrols until May 1960, when CortRon 7 was dissolved. At that time, it rejoined CortDiv 5 and served with its old unit into 1961. On occasion,

1755-402: The Pacific. However, it arrived too late to participate in anything but training operations and returned to the east coast for decommissioning. In mid-October 1945, it underwent a pre-deactivation availability before proceeding south to Green Cove Springs, Fla. On 27 February 1946, Vance was decommissioned and placed in reserve . The ship remained in "mothballs" for the next six years, ( Vance

1820-508: The Presumpscot River and called New Casco, with two cairns built to commemorate friendship between the Abenaki people and settlers. The Brothers islands just off present-day Falmouth are thought to have been named for the cairns. The 1678 treaty did little to address simmering disagreements and discord throughout the region between local tribes and settlers, laying the foundation for a renewal of hostilities in 1688. Historians came to consider

1885-522: The Presumpscot River and smaller streams along its length, lower-salinity seawater outside the mouth of the Kennebec River circulates west into Casco Bay. Scientists have defined a distinct Casco Bay Coast Biophysical Region as part of the larger Northeastern Mixed Forest Province. The 2015 Maine Forest Inventory & Analysis determined that the Casco Bay Coast Biophysical Region was 73 percent forested, with red maple

1950-421: The air space of the northwestern United States. On Labor Day 1957, Vance drew emergency duty—an engineering casualty prevented the assigned ship from going out—and got underway in a fast 75 minutes. Although it was only staffed at 60 percent of its complement (because many of its officers and men were ashore on leave or liberty and could not be notified in time to return to the ship before it weighed anchor) Vance

2015-865: The bay "Bahía de Cascos", translated as "Bay of Helmets", based on its shape. Colonel Wolfgang William Römer , an English military engineer , reported in 1700 that the bay had "as many islands as there are days in the year", leading to the bay's islands being called the Calendar Islands, based on the popular myth there are 365 of them. The United States Coast Pilot lists 136 islands; former Maine state historian Robert M. York said there are "little more than two hundred". Casco Bay spans about 229 square miles, with its shore stretching 578 miles. In addition to Portland, Cape Elizabeth, and Phippsburg, municipalities with shorelines fronting Casco Bay include Brunswick , Cumberland , Falmouth , Freeport , Harpswell , South Portland , West Bath , Yarmouth , and

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2080-723: The coastline, including a portion of the northern shore of Casco Bay. The Flying Point Fault in Casco Bay is considered part of the Norumbega Fault system, dividing bedrock formations that have distinct geological characteristics. Around 14,000 BCE during the Wisconsin glaciation period at the end of the last glacial cycle , the Laurentide ice sheet covering the Casco Bay region began to recede, according to radiocarbon dating on marine shells and other materials. The glacier's retreat stripped bare underlying bedrock to form

2145-401: The convoy. Carrying the division doctor on board, Vance on occasion would take on board men from other ships for medical treatment. On 2 May 1945, Vance departed New York with its last Mediterranean-bound convoy. On the morning of 11 May, four days after Germany had surrendered, Vance sighted a light up ahead in the convoy and rang down full speed to investigate. Upon closing on the light,

2210-517: The destroyer escort discovered a surfaced U-boat, U-873 , which had been at sea for 50 days. When the submarine began to run, Vance hailed the erstwhile enemy in German by bullhorn, ordering them to heave to. Vance placed a prize crew on board the U-boat who sailed it to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on 16 May. Vance then underwent alterations to its antiaircraft armament and soon got underway for

2275-607: The first action, Vance was awarded the Bronze Star . He remained on Parrott through the spring, when he was promoted to lieutenant (junior grade) on 15 June 1942. As Allied forces gathered for the assault on Japanese-held Guadalcanal , Vance received orders to HMAS Canberra as a liaison officer with the Royal Australian Navy . On 8 August, the Australian cruiser helped to screen American transports off

2340-590: The guise of parley. In 1677, Gorges's grandson sold his land rights in Maine to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. As Wabanaki peoples got word of colonial authorities reaching out to leaders of the Mohawk people for assistance in Maine, they became more amenable to a truce, though significant attacks continued on Maine coastal settlements west of Casco Bay. Leaders of the Penobscot people signed

2405-553: The highest elevation of any Casco Bay island at 201 feet on a hill called Long Reach Mountain, followed by Chebeague Island at 176 feet. In Casco Bay's western reaches, a line of islands extends west from Chebeague to Cushing Island to create protected anchorages for vessels, as do the narrow peninsulas that jut into the bay's eastern section. A number of deep-water channels lead into the bay's inner sections, including Cushing Island Reach, Hussey Sound, Luckse Sound , Broad Sound , and Merriconeag Sound Casco Bay's shoreline creates

2470-430: The hindrance of the plantation in these parts". As settlers built out farms in the Casco Bay region, more commercial fishermen who were familiar with Casco Bay began making it their home port in the second half of the 1630s. Artisan craftsmen also moved to Casco and other towns on Casco Bay in the following decade, as a growing population supported commerce along with existing trade opportunities with indigenous peoples in

2535-561: The island municipalities of Chebeague Island and Long Island . Researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey have dated volcanic material embedded in exposed bedrock in Casco Bay to the Ordovician period roughly 470 million years ago, predating the formation of the Atlantic Ocean by some 320 million years. The Norumbega Fault developed just inland from the Maine coast, with the geologic fault running roughly parallel to

2600-568: The landing beaches. That night, Canberra was sunk in the Battle of Savo Island , and Vance was killed in action. Vance (DE-387) was laid down on 30 April 1943 at Houston, Tex., by the Brown Shipbuilding Co., launched 16 July 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Joseph W. Vance, mother of the late Lt. (jg.) Vance, and commissioned on 1 November 1943. Following shakedown off Bermuda, Vance became the flagship for Escort Division (CortDiv) 45,

2665-647: The largest number of nesting great blue herons in Maine. Other wading birds in Casco Bay include snowy egrets , black-crowned night herons and the glossy ibis . In addition to eider, other waterfowl in Casco Bay depending on seasons include Canada geese , snow geese , black ducks , goldeneyes , buffleheads , greater scaup , scoters , long-tailed ducks and harlequin ducks . Migratory shorebirds that pass through Casco Bay include sandpipers , plovers , turnstones , dowitchers and greater yellowlegs . Raptor populations on Casco Bay islands and shorelines include osprey , with 86 nesting pairs observed in

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2730-460: The leadership of Madockawando . Fort Loyal was attacked at the same time. About 75 men in the Casco settlement fought for four days before surrendering on May 20 on condition of safe passage. Instead, most of the men, including John Swarton, were killed, and the survivors, including Hannah Swarton and her children, were captured. Swarton was ransomed in 1695. Cotton Mather published her story. Church returned to Casco Bay in September 1690 with

2795-527: The most widespread tree species in the region, followed by eastern white pine , eastern hemlock , northern red oak , red spruce and paper birch . Water temperatures in Casco Bay rose by 3 degrees Fahrenheit over a three-decade period through 2022, with some scientists linking the change to shifting mixes of organisms and wildlife in the bay. In a 2019 study of invasive species threatening Casco Bay eelgrass and kelp beds that other organisms and wildlife depend on, researchers found abundant evidence of

2860-616: The mouth of the Saigon River. Once again, Vance' s duties involved hunting for craft attempting to infiltrate from the north to deliver their cargoes to the Viet Cong . Vance tracked all ocean-sized vessels and stopped and searched junks and sampans ; tedious and frustrating but vital work. Arnheiter was, somewhat notoriously, relieved from command after only 99 days. The ship conducted two more "Market Time" patrols during its third WestPac deployment and, between missions, underwent

2925-652: The mouths of the Harraseeket and Royal Rivers, while James Lane acquired nearby Lanes Island. By 1660, John Bustion had obtained a deed on today's Bustins Island . Will Black Jr. relocated his family from Berwick in 1718 to the island that would become known as Will's Island, and later Bailey Island after its acquisition by Timothy Bailey of Massachusetts. Spurred by the Wampanoag chief Metacom in what came to be known as King Philip's War , Native American warriors attacked colonial farms and settlements along

2990-733: The new conflict in Maine part of the larger King William's War , which in turn marked the first installment of an extended proxy war between England and France that came to be known as the French and Indian Wars , with sporadic raids and atrocities on both sides. In August 1688, in response to an English colonial raid of Penobscot Bay settlements, French officer Jean-Vincent d'Abbadie de Saint-Castin led counter-raids by Acadian militia and Wabanaki Confederacy warriors, including at Yarmouth. In September 1689, English colonial officer Benjamin Church arrived in Falmouth to defend settlers there, fending off

3055-424: The onrushing escort's sharp bow. Vance remained on the scene for 10 hours, subjecting the U-boat to depth charge and hedgehog attacks, until relieved by a squadron of Navy destroyers. Three days later, after an extensive hunt, the relief ships sank U-616 . Altogether, Vance made eight round-trip voyages to the western Mediterranean and followed each with availability at either Boston or New York. Four times

3120-474: The picket ship took Russian trawlers under surveillance—undoubtedly while the communist vessel was returning the compliment. Early in 1961, Vance' s communications capabilities were extensively augmented during an overhaul at Pearl Harbor. After resuming DEW-line patrols late in the spring, the ship received orders in August 1961 designating it an ocean station vessel with TF-43, Operation "Deepfreeze 62." Temporarily based at Dunedin, New Zealand, Vance served as

3185-842: The presence of several types of tunicates , bryozoa , Japanese skeleton shrimp and at one location European green crabs . Casco Bay has an estimated 16,655 acres of intertidal habitats to include mudflats , marshes, beaches and rock formations according to the National Wetlands Inventory, supporting a range of biota and wildlife. Among more than three dozen species of fish found commonly in Casco Bay are bluefin tuna , bluefish , cod , herring , mackerel , menhaden , sharks , smelt , striped bass , and winter flounder . Shellfish include lobsters , crabs , mussels , clams , oysters , scallops and periwinkles . Harbor seal populations have been observed to number between 400 and 500 seals in Casco Bay. There have been

3250-423: The region. In 1659, George Munjoy moved to Casco and built a fortified house on today's Munjoy Hill , which overlooks Casco Bay. In 1666, Munjoy acquired additional land along the Presumpscot River via a deed co-signed by Warrabitta. Islands continued to come under individual settler ownership during the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1658, Hugh Moshier purchased what became Moshier and Little Moshier Islands near

3315-558: The remainder of the convoy and its flagship, Bibb (WPG-32) , and set out across the Atlantic. On 7 March, Vance departed Casablanca with GUS-33 for the return voyage and put into the New York Navy Yard on 23 March for availability. Vance next got underway on 12 April with the other ships of CortDiv 45 and a destroyer escort division to screen the 102 merchantmen of convoy UGS-39 to Tunisia. Arriving at Bizerte on 3 May,

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3380-411: The rocky coast of Casco Bay's shore and islands. According to NOAA's soundings, the bay's deepest point is about 204 feet, southwest of Halfway Rock . A Phippsburg hill called Fuller Mountain has the bay's highest elevation along the immediate shoreline, estimated at 269 feet above sea level by the U.S. Geological Survey in 1980, and 277 feet on more recent topographical maps. Sebascodegan Island has

3445-428: The ship engaged in training exercises out of Casco Bay , sharpening the crew's antisubmarine and gunnery skills. On 14 July 1944, Vance helped to fight off a German air attack against an Allied convoy off Oran. During most of the voyages, the destroyer escort held the "whip" position in the convoy, a grueling and sometimes frustrating detail since merchantmen frequently displayed a lack of discipline and straggled behind

3510-505: The ship's "main battery." On 23 January, DesDiv 58 began a final approach to the town of Balikpapan , Borneo, captured only that day by the Japanese. On 24 January, in the initial phase of the Battle of Makassar Strait, three of Parrott' s torpedoes sank the 3,500-ton transport Sumanoura Maru . Within minutes, Parrott teamed up with USS  Pope and USS  Paul Jones to sink Tatsukami Maru with torpedoes. For his gallantry during

3575-514: The ships originally ordered were completed as United States Navy destroyer escorts. Destroyer escorts were regular companions escorting the vulnerable cargo ships. Late in the war, plans were made to replace the 3-inch (76 mm) guns with 5-inch (127 mm) guns, but only Camp was refitted (after a collision). In total, all 85 were completed by two shipbuilding companies: Consolidated Steel Corporation , Orange, Texas (47), and Brown Shipbuilding , Houston , Texas (38). Most were en route to

3640-597: The time as Andrews Island for settler James Andrews. On Peaks Island that year, seven were killed in a Wabanaki attack after coming over from Cushing Island in search of food. After colonial militia leader Richard Waldron laid a trap under the guise of peace talks to capture several Wabanaki warriors who were then executed or enslaved, tribes intensified attacks on settlements throughout Maine, causing most settlers to flee south. After talks failed at Maquoit Bay in February 1677, Waldron again ambushed Native Americans under

3705-421: The warship left Tunisian waters eight days later, bound for New York with GUS-39. Off Oran on 14 May, a German U-boat slipped through the screen of escorts and torpedoed two merchantmen. Vance , holding the "whip" position of the screen (where the ship had the duty of shepherding stragglers) came up through the convoy, sighted the periscope, and attempted to ram. The U-boat "pulled the plug" and dove deeper, evading

3770-668: The west coast of the United States late in 1968 for inactivation. Placed in reserve at the Inactive Ship Facility, Vallejo, Vance was decommissioned on 10 October 1969, struck from the Navy list on 1 June 1975. The ship was sunk as a target in 1985. Edsall class destroyer escort The Edsall -class destroyer escorts were destroyer escorts built primarily for ocean antisubmarine escort service during World War II . The lead ship, USS  Edsall ,

3835-626: Was USCGC WDE-487 from April, 1952 to 3 April 54) before it was towed to the Mare Island Naval Shipyard in November 1955 for conversion to a radar picket destroyer escort. The extensive alterations involved the addition of: improved air-search radar, extensive communications equipment, and complete facilities for fighter-direction operations. It also entailed the enclosing of the entire main deck areas amidships to provide accommodations for officers and men. Designated DER-387, Vance

3900-469: Was commissioned on 10 April 1943 at Orange , Texas . The class was also known as the FMR type from their Fairbanks-Morse reduction-geared diesel drive, with a type of engine used in the submarines of the time. The FMR's substitution for a diesel-electric power plant was the essential difference from the predecessor Cannon ("DET") class. This was the only World War II destroyer escort class in which all

3965-447: Was damaged in 1608 while attempting to discover a northwest passage to India, Hudson landed in Casco Bay for repairs. In 1616, John Smith published a map of New England that included a depiction of Casco Bay based on his exploration of the region two years earlier. Contact with Europeans exposed Wabanaki peoples to new diseases, with epidemics striking starting in 1616 that produced high mortality rates. By one estimate, just 5,500 of

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4030-505: Was deployed for 12 days and completed a successful mission. On 1 June 1958, the radar picket escort ship's home port was changed to Pearl Harbor; and it began operating with CortRon 7. One month later, it departed Hawaiian waters for a 29-day patrol on the mid-ocean picket lines which provided radar coverage from Alaska to Midway Atoll. Vance thus became the first ship on the Distant Early Warning Line (DEW line) in

4095-627: Was devoted to the task of operating mainly off the Aleutian Islands through February 1965. In the mid-1960s, with the advent of improved radar and early-warning capabilities, the radar picket escort ship was rapidly approaching obsolescence. However, as the United States stepped up its efforts to aid the South Vietnamese government, the ship received a new lease on life. In Vietnam, a ship of this nature could be invaluable for coastal patrol work. Accordingly, in February 1965, Vance

4160-710: Was ordered to the Western Pacific (WestPac). On 25 March 1965, it sailed from Pearl Harbor, in company with USS  Brister  (DER-327) and USS  Forster  (DE-334) , as Task Group (TG) 52.8, bound for the Philippines. En route from Subic Bay to waters off the coast of Vietnam, Vance rescued Capt. Leland D. Holcomb, USAF, who had ejected from a burning F-100 Super Sabre fighter plane. Vance took station in Operation Market Time on 11 April 1965. Up until 24 April, it operated near

4225-525: Was recommissioned on 5 October 1956 at Mare Island. Between March 1957 and the end of the year, Vance was homeported at Seattle, Wash., as a unit of CortDiv 5 and completed eight patrols on various stations of the Radar Early Warning System in the northern Pacific. Each tour lasted approximately 17 days, and the ship maintained a round-the-clock vigil, with air-search radars, tracking and reporting every aircraft entering or approaching

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