USS Atherton ( DE - 169 ) USS " Atherton " ( DE - 169 ) , a , was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Lt . ( jg ) John McDougal Atherton , who died when the sank near Guadalcanal during World War II . " Atherton " ( DE - 169 ) was laid down on 14 January 1943 at Newark , New Jersey , by the Federal Drydock & Shipbuilding Co . ; launched on 27 May 1943 ; sponsored by Mrs . Cornelia A . Atherton , the mother of Lt . ( jg . ) Atherton ; completed at the Norfolk Navy Yard ; and commissioned there on 29 August 1943 , Lt . Comdr . Paul L . Mansell , Jr . , USNR , in command . US Service History . " Atherton " began shakedown in September . During this time , conducted exercises in Chesapeake Bay and made two cruises to Bermuda . On 13 November , she got underway for Puerto Rico . Upon her arrival there , the destroyer escort assumed anti - submarine warfare ( ASW ) patrol duties in waters between St . Croix , Virgin Islands , and the Anegada Passage . On 24 November , she attacked a submarine contact , but observed no evidence of damage . The ship was relieved three days later and returned to Norfolk on 30 November . There , she began making daily cruises in Chesapeake Bay to train prospective crew members for destroyer escorts . " Atherton " left Norfolk on 11 December to escort a convoy bound for the Panama Canal but was back in Hampton Roads on 27 December . From January 1944 to May 1945 , " Atherton " operated under the control of Task Force 62 on escort duty for transatlantic convoys . She escorted convoys from Norfolk and New York City to various ports in the Mediterranean . These ports included Casablanca , Morocco ; Bizerte , Tunisia ; and Oran , Algeria . " Atherton " periodically reported to the Boston Navy Yard for overhaul . On 9 May 1945 , while en route from New York to Boston , " Atherton " encountered a U - boat . After four depth charge attacks , pieces of broken wood , cork , mattresses , and an oil slick broke the surface . " Atherton " , in conjunction with , was later credited with destroying the . On 28 May , " Atherton " sailed for Guantanamo Bay , Cuba . She arrived on 1 June and held a week of exercises with Escort Division 13 before sailing on 6 June for the Pacific . Proceeding via the Panama Canal and San Diego , " Atherton " arrived at Pearl Harbor on 29 June . There , the ship underwent a tender availability and carried out a series of exercises before getting underway on 15 July for the Marianas . She reached Saipan on 26 July and conducted antisubmarine patrols off Saipan . On 5 August , she got underway for Ulithi , where she operated on picket station until 18 August . Between 19 August and 16 September , " Atherton " made two round - trip voyages escorting convoys to Okinawa . She was then assigned to rescue station duties out of Saipan which lasted through the end of the war . On 1 November , " Atherton " headed back toward the United States . After stops at Pearl Harbor and San Diego , she transited the Panama Canal and arrived at Jacksonville , Florida , in December . On 10 December 1945 , she was decommissioned and placed in reserve at Green Cove Springs , Florida . On 14 June 1955 , " Atherton " was transferred to Japan ; and , her name was struck from the Navy list . Awards . Crew members of the " Atherton " received a bronze " battle star " for the American Campaign Medal for their actions in the sinking of the last German submarine in American waters during World War II . The battle took place shortly after the U - 853 had torpoedoed the Boston based collier " Black Point " at 5 : 40PM , 5 May 1945 ( just a few days before VE Day ) . The " Atherton " tracked down the U - 853 just eight miles off Block Island , Rhode Island , sinking her in just 100 feet of water . The next day divers were sent down , confirming the only sinking of a submarine with the newly developed " Hedge Hog " anti - submarine weapon . Transfer and Sale . Japan . USS " Atherton " was transferred to Japan in 1955 and commissioned in the Japan Maritime Self - Defense Force as " Hatsuhi " ( DE - 263 ) . After 20 years in service , she was retired in 1975 and was reverted to the United States Navy . Philippines . " Atherton " was transferred to Philippines in 1978 . She was commissioned in Philippine Navy service in 1980 after a refit in South Korea as BRP " Rajah Humabon " ( PS - 78 ) . She was reclassified as patrol frigate and changed the hull number to ( PF - 6 ) . She was decommissioned in 1993 , but was recommissioned in 1995 with a different hull number ( PF - 11 ) . She is still in active service with the Philippine Navy as of 2011 .