USS Paul G . Baker ( DE - 642 ) USS " Paul G . Baker " ( DE - 642 ) was a " Buckley " - class destroyer escort of the United States Navy , named in honor of Lieutenant ( junior grade ) Paul G . Baker ( 1910 – 42 ) , a naval aviator who was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for heroism during the Battle of the Coral Sea . " Paul G . Baker " was laid down on 26 September 1943 by Bethlehem Steel Co . , San Francisco , California ; launched on 12 March 1944 ; sponsored by Mrs . Katherine E . Baker ; and commissioned on 25 May 1944 , Lieutenant Commander W . Gordon Cornell , USNR , in command . Steaming to San Diego on 18 June 1944 for shakedown , " Paul G . Baker " returned to San Francisco on 20 July for post - shakedown repairs and alterations . She departed 11 August for Seattle , Washington , arriving two days later . After picking up a convoy at Port Angeles , she set course for Pearl Harbor on the 19th and arrived on the 27th . " Paul G . Baker " cleared Pearl Harbor on 8 September 1944 as part of an escort carrier task unit which called at Emirau Island en route to Manus Island , Admiralties , where she arrived on 19 September for escort duty under Task Force 11 ( TF 11 ) . On the 24th she headed for Port Purvis , Florida Island , arriving three days later . Her duty in the Solomons was largely escort work . She steamed from Purvis Bay 11 October to pick up merchantman " Mormacsea " at Empress Augusta Bay , Bougainville , for escort to Munda , returning to her base on the 15th . She made a similar voyage 19 – 24 October , escorting SS " Santa Monica " from Lunga Point , Guadalcanal , to Treasury Island and Sasavelle Harbor , Munda , before returning alone to Purvis Bay . From late November through most of December , she shuttled from Purvis Bay to Espiritu Santo , New Hebrides . From 12 January 1945 she trained for the invasion of the Ryukyus . Departing the Russell Islands , 15 March , she steamed via Saipan to Ulithi departing that port 27 March to escort troop - laden transports for the landings on Okinawa . The task unit arrived off Okinawa on the day of the initial landings , 1 April 1945 , and " Paul G . Baker " took station on the inner transport screen off Hagushi Beach . Her first taste of enemy air activity came at dusk that day when she opened fire on a plane which crossed astern . She protected the transports during unloading by day and retirement by night until she departed the invasion area 5 April guarding empty transports to Guam , arriving on the 9th thence to Ulithi to join a convoy for Okinawa . Arriving off Okinawa 18 April 1945 , " Paul G . Baker " joined the dangerous but vital patrol screen which protected Allied forces fighting to capture the island stronghold . On the 22nd , at 17 : 45 , enemy planes attacked without warning . One aircraft crashed into nearby " Isherwood " ( DD - 520 ) and at 18 : 47 another closed " Paul G . Baker " . The plane swerved away and crashed into " Swallow " ( AM - 65 ) which capsized in about four minutes . " Baker " picked up nine officers and 69 men . Other ships also steamed to aid the stricken minesweeper , rescuing all but one of " Swallow " ’ s crew . The air attacks continued to be heavy and frequent for patrol vessels off Okinawa . On 12 May 1945 " Paul G . Baker " opened fire on two suicide plane s attacking " New Mexico " ( BB - 40 ) and although she aided in splashing one of the kamikaze s the other hit the battleship . On the 24th " Baker " joined the fire on a single plane which had wandered into the area . On 11 June , a low - flying airplane made a dive on " Lindenwald " ( LSD - 6 ) , shifted the attack to " Paul G . Baker " , then swerved toward a merchant ship . " Baker " ’ s gunners splashed this enemy fifty feet from its intended target . On 20 June 1945 " Paul G . Baker " sailed in the screen of a battleship and cruiser force to patrol southeast of Okinawa . She returned to Kerama Retto 1 July to commence a series of five escort voyages between Okinawa and Saipan , lasting till 30 August . " Paul G . Baker " steamed from Saipan 11 September 1945 to escort " Malabar " ( AF - 37 ) to Tokyo Bay , arriving at Yokosuka Naval Base on the 17th . Five days later she sailed singly for Saipan , arriving on the 25th . On 4 November 1945 she got underway for the United States arriving at Astoria , Oregon , on the 21st . After overhaul at Portland , Oregon and Bremerton , Washington , she returned to Guam , arriving 23 May 1946 . Departing Guam 26 June , " Paul G . Baker " sailed to Buckner Bay , Okinawa before arriving in Tsingtao , China , 2 July . She exercised off the China coast with destroyers , then sailed on 3 August to visit Hong Kong . " Baker " paid another visit to Sasebo , Japan before departing 10 September . She returned to Tsingtao on12 September , and for the next month conducted exercises with a small hunter - killer training group in the area . Homeward bound for good , " Paul G . Baker " departed Tsingtao 12 October , called at Guam 18 October , visited Pearl Harbor 27 – 28 October , and arrived San Diego 4 November . She decommissioned on 3 February 1947 , and was placed in reserve at San Diego . She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 December 1969 . " Paul G . Baker " received one battle star for World War II service .