USS Nicholas ( DD - 449 ) USS " Nicholas " ( DD / DDE - 449 ) was a " Fletcher " - class destroyer of the United States Navy , which served through most of World War II , and for 27 years and two more wars after . She was the second Navy ship to be named for Major Samuel Nicholas . " Nicholas " was laid down 3 March 1941 by the Bath Iron Works Corp . , Bath , Maine , launched 19 February 1942 ; sponsored by Mrs . Edward B . Tryon , descendant of Major Nicholas ; and commissioned 4 June 1942 , Lieutenant Commander William D . Brown in command . 1942 . Destined to serve in the Pacific through three armed conflicts , " Nicholas " , assigned to Destroyer Squadron 21 ( DesRon 21 ) , departed New York City 23 August 1942 , sailing in the screen of " Washington " ( BB - 56 ) , transited the Panama Canal , and continued on to the Central Pacific , arriving at Espiritu Santo 27 September . Three days later she began escorting Guadalcanal - bound troop and supply convoys . Into 1943 she screened the convoys assembled at Espiritu Santo and Nouméa to " Cactus " area ( Guadalcanal and Tulagi ) , guarded them as they off - loaded and then returned the vessels to their departure point . Periodically assigned to offensive duties she also conducted antisubmarine hunter - killer missions off Allied harbors , sweeps of " the Slot " , bombarded shore targets and performed gunfire support missions for Marine and Army units as they pushed toward the Tenamba River and total control of the long embattled island . January 1943 . In January 1943 , " Nicholas " was one of the Tulagi - based " Cactus Striking Force " ( Task Force 67 ) destroyers which resisted the Japan ese last counterattack for Guadalcanal by pounding the newly built enemy air facilities at Munda ( 4 – 5 January ) ; shelling their Kokumbona - Cape Esperance escape route ( 19 January ) , and blasting their Munda resupply area at Vila on Kolombangara ( 23 – 24 January ) . On 26 January , the executive officer , Lt . Comdr . Andrew J . Hill took command of " Nicholas " . On 1 February , as the Japanese began Operation KE — the evacuation of Guadalcanal , " Nicholas " covered the 2nd Battalion , 132nd Infantry , landing at Verahue and supported them as they began their trek inland to seal off the Cape Esperance area to Japanese reinforcements . " En route " back to Tulagi " Nicholas " , in company with " De Haven " ( DD - 469 ) and 3 LCT s , was attacked by a formation of 14 Aichi D3A " Val " dive bomber s . Three bombs hit " De Haven " and a fourth , a near miss , holed the hull . As her sister destroyer settled in the waters of Ironbottom Sound , " Nicholas " fought off eight planes , receiving only near misses which killed two of her crew and damaged the steering gear . Following repairs , " Nicholas " resumed her varied duties . Escort assignments and two bombardments of the Munda - Kolombangara area of New Georgia took up March . In April , she joined Task Force 18 ( TF18 ) for " Slot " patrol and on the 19th turned her bow toward Australia for an availability at Sydney . By 11 May she was once again with TF18 en route to Kolombangara . On the 13th , while firing on enemy positions there , her # 3 gun jammed and exploded , with no casualties . After repairs at Nouméa , she took up antisubmarine patrol duties and at the end of the month resumed escort duties in the Solomons - New Hebrides area . July 1943 . On 5 July she participated in another bombardment of Kolombangara . In the early morning hours of the 6th she made contact with enemy surface vessels in Kula Gulf . In the ensuing battle , " Helena " ( CL - 50 ) was lost . " Nicholas " , while rescuing 291 survivors , took the Japanese ships under torpedo and gunfire . " Nicholas " and " Radford " ( DD - 446 ) were later awarded Presidential Unit Citation s for their persevering performance during the Battle of Kula Gulf — a token , Admiral Chester Nimitz told the crew , of " the respect and esteem which this ship , her officers and men have well earned throughout the Navy . " On the 12th and 13th she participated in the Battle of Kolombangara ; on the 15th covered the rescue of remaining " Helena " survivors from Vella LaVella ; and on the 16th returned to Tulagi to resume escort duties . In early August , she joined Task Unit 31 . 5 . 1 ( TU31 . 5 . 1 ) and on the 15th screened the advance transport group during landings at Barakoma , Vella LaVella . Back at Tulagi on the 17th , she , with " O ' Bannon " ( DD - 450 ) , " Taylor " ( DD - 468 ) , and " Chevalier " ( DD - 451 ) , was sent out to intercept four Rabaul - based Japanese destroyers as they headed for Vella LaVella to cover the establishment of a barge staging area at Horaniu . Racing up the " Slot " , the American destroyers picked up their Japanese counterparts on surface radar at 00 : 29 , 18 August , 11 miles away . To the west the radar showed a barge group . At 00 : 50 , the American quartet feinted toward the barges . At 00 : 56 , they swung back toward the Imperial Navy ' s destroyers , now five miles ( nine kilometers ) to the northwest . The brief engagement off Horaniu , in which the Japanese " crossed the T " of the American forces but failed to press their advantage , was broken off by the Japanese at 01 : 03 . The American force pursued , scored on " Isokaze " , and finally dropped behind , engineering problems in " Chevalier " limiting them to 30 knots ( 56 km / h ) . They then turned their attention to the scattering barge group , destroying two subchaser s , two motor torpedo boat s , and a barge . " Nicholas " returned to Vella LaVella on 19 and 20 August to conduct barge hunts and on the 24th and 25th to cover mine operations . At the end of the month she steamed to Nouméa thence to New Guinea and Australia . Back in the Solomons by October , she conducted another search for barge traffic and on the 6th covered the unloading of APDs at Barakoma . Then , 22 October , she steamed to Efate to resume escort duties . On 11 November " Nicholas " departed Nadi , Fiji Islands , with Task Group 50 . 1 ( TG50 . 1 ) for raids on Kwajalein and Wotje , after which she headed east , arriving at San Francisco 15 December for overhaul . Comdr . Robert T . S . Keith took command on 10 December . 1944 . On 12 February 1944 she resumed Central and South Pacific escort duties . On 5 April she proceeded , with DesRon 21 , to Milne Bay for temporary duty with the U . S . Seventh Fleet . On the 22nd , she covered the Aitape landings , and until 8 May escorted resupply groups there and to Humboldt Bay . She then returned to the Solomons and the 3rd Fleet shelling Medina Plantation , New Ireland , on the 29th . Spending the first part of June on antisubmarine patrol , she again joined the 7th Fleet on the 14th , serving with TG70 . 8 in the northern Solomons . On 15 August she sailed to Manus Island to join TF74 and until the 27th operated along the New Guinea coast . She then returned to Seeadler Harbor whence she supported the Morotai operation 15 – 30 September . On 18 October , the destroyer , now in TG 78 . 7 escorted reinforcements to Leyte , arriving on the 24th . On the 25th and 26th , she patrolled off Dinagat Island and on the 27th set out again for Manus . On 8 November she sailed for Ulithi , whence she headed for Kossol Roads . En route to the latter , her three - ship formation , " Taylor " and " St . Louis " ( CL - 49 ) , was closed by a submarine , 12 November . Leaving the formation . " Nicholas " pressed home two depth charge attacks , sinking " I - 88 " . Four days later , " Nicholas " joined TG77 . 1 on continuous patrol of the southern end of Leyte Gulf . There until 6 December she survived 4 attacks by kamikaze suicide - plane formations , 27 and 29 November and 2 and 5 December . On 6 December she assisted in a sweep of the Camotes Sea , bombarded Japanese Naval facilities on Ormoc Bay and then covered Allied landings there . On the 10th she sailed for Manus , returning to Leyte on the 28th for further escort work . 1945 . On the first day of the new year , 1945 , the destroyer joined TG77 . 3 , the Close Support Group for the Lingayen Gulf assault . " En route " to Luzon , her group was harassed by enemy midget submarine s and almost constant air raids . After a two day bombardment , Army troops landed at Lingayen Gulf 9 January . Until the 18th , " Nicholas " provided fire support , then patrolled to the west of Luzon with the covering escort carrier group . On the 24th , she captured a motor boat being used by three Japanese to escape from the island and on the 29th provided close cover for the landings in Zambales Province . During the first part of February she escorted vessels between Leyte and Mindoro , whence she proceeded to Manila Bay to shell Corregidor , other islands in Manila Bay , and shore installations at Mariveles . Resuming escort work on the 17th , she guarded minesweeper s as they cleared Basilan Strait in mid - March and then supported the occupation of the Zamboanga area . In April . she returned to Luzon to support the Sixth Army as it fought to reoccupy the island and then on the 24th resumed operations in the Netherlands East Indies . From then until 5 May she supported the Tarakan operation after which she steamed north again to Luzon , thence to Leyte where she joined TU30 . 12 . 2 and departed for Okinawa , 15 June . Following strikes on Sakishima , she joined TG30 . 8 at Ulithi and screened that group as it refueled and resuppIied the fast aircraft carrier s at sea . On 11 August she reported to CTG38 . 4 , a fast carrier task group , and on the 13th screened the carriers during strikes against the Tokyo area . On the 15th hostilities ceased . Approaching Japan in August 1945 , Admiral William Halsey , commander of the U . S . Third Fleet ordered that " Nicholas " and her sisters " O ' Bannon " and " Taylor " be present in Tokyo Bay for Japan ' s surrender " because of their valorous fight up the long road from the South Pacific to the very end . " Assigned to his Flagship Task Group , the " Nick " disseminated Japanese pilots and peace emissaries among the fleet , escorted battleship " Missouri " ( BB - 63 ) into Tokyo Bay , and transported Allied and U . S . representatives to the formal surrender on " Missouri " 2 September . " Nicholas " then joined in the repatriation of Allied POW s . Departing the Far East 5 October , she arrived at Seattle on the 19th and continued on to San Pedro , arriving 1 November to begin inactivation . 1946 – 1959 . Decommissioned 12 June 1946 , " Nicholas " remained in the Pacific Reserve Fleet until hostilities in Korea necessitated her recall . Reclassified DDE - 449 , 26 March 1949 , she was brought out of reserve to begin conversion in November 1950 . Recommissioned 19 February 1951 , she underwent shakedown off the west coast , steamed to Pearl Harbor where she joined CortDesDiv 12 , CortDesRon 1 ; and continued on to the Western Pacific , arriving at Yokosuka 10 June . In Far Eastern waters until 14 November , she screened the carriers of TF77 off the west coast of Korea ; conducted ASW exercises between Yokosuka and Okinawa ; and patrolled the Taiwan Strait . On 3 May 1952 she departed Pearl Harbor again for Korea . A temporary replacement vessel in DesDiv 112 , she served first with TF77 and then swung around the peninsula to the gun line off the Korean east coast and operated there , under CTF95 , until sailing for home in July . She returned to Korea with CortDesDiv 12 in November and remained in the Far East until 20 May 1953 performing missions similar to her 1951 deployment . After Korea " Nicholas " rotated duty in WestPac with 1st Fleet assignments . Her 7th Fleet deployments took her from Japan to Sumatra , while EastPac assignments ranged primarily from Hawaii to the west coast . On occasion 1st Fleet duty sent her to the Central Pacific as in 1954 when she assisted in Operation Castle , an atomic test series . 1960 – 1970 . " Nicholas " underwent a Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization ( FRAM ) update between December 1959 and July 1960 , emerging from the shipyard in time for her annual rotation to WestPac , which , that year , sent her , for the first time since World War II , to the South China Sea for extensive operations . Reclassified DD - 449 on 1 July 1962 , she returned to the South China Sea in March 1965 . There she became one of the first ships engaged in Operation Market Time — patrol of the jagged South Vietnam ese coastline to prohibit smuggling of men , weapons , and supplies into South Vietnam by Viet Cong and North Vietnam ese junks and sampans . Relieved of duty 15 April , " Nicholas " returned to Pearl Harbor only to depart again for Viet Nam in mid - September . Off the embattled coast by 1 October , she carried out surveillance assignments and gunfire support duties until 3 December , when she proceeded to Taiwan for patrol duty in Taiwan Strait . Early in 1966 she returned to Viet Nam for duty on " Yankee Station " in the Gulf of Tonkin , followed by another tour on " Market Time " patrol . Homeward bound at the end of February , she proceeded to Australia , thence to Hawaii , arriving 17 March . Each WestPac tour since that time has followed a similar employment schedule . Her gunfire support missions during her November 1966 – May 1967 tour included participation in Operation Deck House V in the Mekong Delta area , as well as missions close to the DMZ . Most of her 1968 tour was again spent in Vietnamese waters , this time , however , with a greater portion spent on " Yankee Station " and on gunfire support missions . On her return to EastPac in 1968 , " Nicholas " was assigned to support NASA ' s Apollo Program . From 8 to 23 October and again between 19 and 22 December she operated in the Pacific space capsule recovery areas ; first for the Apollo 7 mission , then for Apollo 8 . After each of these assignments she returned to Pearl Harbor for training exercises in Hawaiian waters in preparation for a return to the Western Pacific . On 30 January 1970 , having become the navy ' s oldest active destroyer eight years earlier , the " Nick " was decommissioned in a ceremony at Pearl Harbor ( again side - by - side with " O ' Bannon " ) , stricken from the Navy List , towed to Portland , Oregon , and then broken up in 1972 . At the time she was retired , only seven other " Fletcher " s remained in service with the US Navy . Awards . In addition to her Presidential Unit Citation , " Nicholas " earned 16 battle star s in World War II , placing her among the highest decorated US ships of the Second World War , a total surpassed among destroyers only by her sister , " O ' Bannon " . She earned 5 more in the Korean War and 9 in the Vietnam War for a total of 30 , a number unmatched by any other U . S . Navy ship in the twentieth century .