USS Bausell ( DD - 845 ) USS " Bausell " ( DD - 845 ) was a " Gearing " - class destroyer in the United States Navy during the Korean War and the Vietnam War . She was named for Marine Corporal Lewis K . Bausell ( 1924 – 1944 ) , who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for " conspicuous gallantry " during the Battle of Peleliu . Post World War II . " Bausell " was laid down on 28 May 1945 at Bath , Maine , by the Bath Iron Works ; launched on 19 November 1945 ; sponsored by Mrs . Lawrence K . Bausell , Corporal Bausell ' s mother . She was commissioned at Boston , Massachusetts on 7 February 1946 , Commander James V . Bewick in command . After a month fitting out at the Boston Naval Shipyard , the destroyer conducted an eight - week shakedown and training cruise to the West Indies . Returning to Boston on 4 June , the warship underwent four weeks of post - shakedown repairs before sailing for duty with the Pacific Fleet on 5 July . Passing through the Panama Canal soon thereafter , she arrived at her new homeport of San Diego , California on the 23d . " Bausell " , although immobilized in port owing to crew shortages , joined Destroyer Division 12 ( DesDiv 12 ) on 30 November . When enough crewmembers became available in January 1947 , she began a more active period of local operations out of San Diego . The destroyer participated in fleet exercises held in the Hawaiian Islands in late February ; and , in early March , she assisted " Tucson " ( CL - 98 ) in a fruitless search for survivors of the foundered merchantman " Fort Dearborn " . Ordered to Pearl Harbor on 8 July , she conducted reserve training duty in that port until sailing for Bremerton , Washington , on 1 October . Upon arrival , the destroyer underwent a four - month modernization overhaul . " Bausell " returned to San Diego in late February 1948 and prepared for her first Far East cruise . Departing San Diego on 9 March , the warship first steamed to Pearl Harbor for two weeks of antisubmarine ( ASW ) exercises . Late that month , she got underway for China , arriving at Tsingtao on 15 April . For the next six months , the destroyer ranged the length and breadth of the Yellow Sea , escorting American shipping in the region , until the Chinese government closed the mainland ports to American warships . She returned to San Diego on 26 November . For the next year , " Bausell " conducted local operations out of San Diego with DesDiv 12 . These continued until 11 November 1949 , when she again sailed for the western Pacific . Arriving at Subic Bay on 30 November , " Bausell " remained in Philippine waters through the end of the year . On 7 January 1950 she set course for the Chinese coast to assist SS " Flying Arrow " , a merchant ship that had been damaged by gunfire from a Chinese ship and was anchored off the Yangtze estuary . On 10 January , in company with " Stickell " ( DD - 888 ) and HMS " Black Swan " ( L57 ) , the destroyer shielded the merchant ship . " Bausell " then conducted surveillance operations off the Yangtze estuary , outside Tsingtao , and near the Barren Islands , returning to Subic Bay on 27 January . Korean War . The destroyer conducted patrols in Philippine and Japan ese waters before setting out for the west coast on 20 May . After a leisurely voyage during which she stopped at Guam and Pearl Harbor , " Bausell " arrived in San Diego on 13 June . She spent the three months after her return engaged in local operations and then entered Mare Island Naval Shipyard for an eight - week overhaul . On 19 February 1951 , the destroyer sailed for Korean waters in company with two other DesDiv 12 ships , " Agerholm " ( DD - 826 ) and " Richard B . Anderson " ( DD - 786 ) . The warship made Sasebo , Japan , on 18 March and , three days later , joined Task Force 77 ( TF 77 ) off the east coast of Korea . Operating with HMS " Cockade " during this tour , " Bausell " patrolled the Songjin - Wonsan area for North Korean small craft and conducted shore bombardment missions from 24 to 28 April . Reassigned to the Taiwan Strait Patrol , a presence established in June 1950 to discourage the two Chinese governments from widening the war , the destroyer cruised near the Pescadores Islands from 11 June to 18 July . Returning to Korean waters on 7 August , she engaged in five more weeks of patrol operations before sailing for San Diego on 16 September . " Bausell " spent the next seven months conducting local operations , practicing her gunnery , and training new crew members . Underway for Korean waters on 20 May 1952 , the destroyer returned to patrol operations with TF 77 off the east coast of Korea . She conducted naval gunfire support as needed , engaging in gunnery duels with shore batteries four times over the course of the summer . On occasion , the warship also screened carrier task force s and carried out planeguard duties in their area of activity . Her tour of duty over , she set course for San Diego early in December , arriving there on the 20th . On 29 January 1953 , " Bausell " commenced a six - month overhaul at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard . After the repairs were finished in July , the destroyer spent two months conducting refresher training in preparation for her fifth Far East deployment . Departing San Diego on 8 September , she returned to Korean waters and helped other 7th Fleet units monitor the on the peninsula . " Bausell " steamed off Korea and Taiwan for six months , putting into such ports as Yokosuka , Pusan , and Keelung infrequently for upkeep and repair . Relieved in late March 1954 , she returned to San Diego on 16 April . The warship made her sixth western Pacific cruise between November 1954 and April 1955 . Although initially operating out of Subic Bay , " Bausell " received orders sending her north after Chinese communist aircraft engaged Chinese nationalist shipping at Ichiang , in the Tachen Islands , on 10 January 1955 . The destroyer patrolled the surrounding seas for the following three weeks , while diplomats tried to resolve the crisis . In early February , when the decision was made to evacuate the Chinese nationalists from the islands , she stood by in support of that operation . Following a port visit to Hong Kong and a short repair period at Sasebo , the destroyer returned to the United States early in April 1955 . Interwar years . Over the next four years , " Bausell " deployed to the western Pacific three more times . During these cruises , she conducted ASW exercises with other 7th Fleet units , patrolled the seas off China and Korea , and trained with other navies in Philippine and Australian waters . This pattern of operations came to be fairly characteristic of a Navy warship ' s tours of duty in the Far East in the period of relative peace between the Korean War in 1953 and the intensification of the Vietnam War just over a decade later . In July 1960 , " Bausell " entered the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard to undergo alterations as part of the Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization ( FRAM ) program . Devised to counter growing numbers of Soviet submarines , the conversion process armed " Bausell " with antisubmarine rockets ( ASROC ) and ASW torpedo es , added helicopter equipment and advanced electronics gear , and improved her radar and sonar capabilities . After these modifications were completed on 15 July 1961 , the warship made a short shakedown cruise to Vancouver , B . C . , before steaming to San Diego . There , for the next 14 months , she conducted sea trials and weapons exercises to test her new equipment . During the summer of 1962 , the destroyer visited Seattle , Washington for the World ' s Fair and participated in the Rose Festival in Portland , Oregon . On May 11 , 1962 , the USS " Agerholm " ( DD - 826 ) test fired a nuclear ASROC missile towards " Bausell " to test its capability to withstand the radioactive " base surge " resulting from the underwater explosion . The entire crew disembarked from the ship prior to the test , leaving behind test instruments . The base surge never reached the ship . Vietnam War . " Bausell " sailed for the Far East again in November 1962 . There , the destroyer spent six months patrolling in the South China Sea and conducting goodwill visits to Singapore , Djakarta , and Darwin . Returning home on 30 June 1963 , she carried out local operations out of San Diego into November . Following an extended maintenance period at the Naval Repair Facility , San Diego , " Bausell " resumed local operations out of that port on 22 March 1964 . These activities , including helicopter qualification trials and weapons exercises , continued through July . On 5 August , the destroyer sailed for duty in the western Pacific . " Bausell " soon joined other 7th Fleet forces concentrating in the South China Sea . This provided escort services for the growing numbers of American carriers and amphibious units operating off Vietnam . These patrols continued through the new year until the destroyer returned to San Diego in February 1965 . Over the next 11 months , " Bausell " kept busy fulfilling training and other commitments stateside . These included night planeguard assignments for aircraft carriers off the California coast , intensified ASW training to cope with the new Soviet submarine s operating in the Pacific , and a six - week midshipmen cruise to Tacoma , San Francisco , and Pearl Harbor during the summer . Owing to widened American participation in combat operations in southeast Asia , " Bausell " set course for Vietnam on 7 January 1966 . Her first assignment in the South China Sea consisted of monitoring the movements of the Russian trawler " Protractor " and preventing that ship from intercepting Navy tactical communications . In addition to providing planeguard and screening services for " Ranger " ( CVA - 61 ) and " Ticonderoga " ( CVA - 14 ) , she also served as a naval gunfire support ( NGFS ) ship and on the Tonkin Gulf search and rescue ( SAR ) station . In March and April , the destroyer fired over 7 , 000 5 - inch rounds at shore targets ; and , in company with " Worden " ( DLG - 18 ) , the warship also rescued four downed pilots . She then visited Subic Bay and several other Far Eastern ports before steaming for home on 27 June . Upon returning to San Diego , the warship prepared for a regular overhaul at the San Francisco Bay Naval Shipyard . Beginning on 23 September , shipyard workers modernized her 5 - inch gun mounts , reworked the main engineering plant , and overhauled the sonar , fire - control radar , and electronic counter - measures ( ECM ) gear . After a successful sea trial on 22 December , " Bausell " began a series of exercises — including gunnery , shore bombardment , planeguard , and helicopter training — that lasted through April 1967 . The warship departed San Diego on 15 May and arrived at Subic Bay on 12 June after visits to Pearl Harbor , Midway , and Yokosuka . " Bausell " loaded supplies and ammunition , getting underway for " Yankee Station " on the 17th . There , she provided escort and ASW services to " Constellation " ( CVA - 64 ) and " Intrepid " ( CVS - 11 ) until 14 July . After a brief call at Sasebo , the destroyer returned to the Gulf of Tonkin and served with " Oriskany " ( CVA - 34 ) until 17 August when she was ordered to the gunline off Vietnam . For the next 10 days , " Bausell " conducted shore - bombardment missions off Dong Hoi , remaining on call into September . On the 13th , she returned to the Gulf of Tonkin for escort duties . Three weeks later , after an ASW exercise with " Sabalo " ( SS - 302 ) , she sailed for the west coast , arriving in San Diego on 25 October . Following 10 months of local operations the warship prepared for her 15th Far Eastern deployment . Departing San Diego on 7 September 1968 , she stopped at Yokosuka and Subic Bay , before joining " Coral Sea " ( CVA - 43 ) in the Gulf of Tonkin on 10 October . Four days later , after rendezvous with " Canberra " ( CA - 70 ) , she conducted a week of naval gunfire missions against North Vietnamese coastal targets . After returning to the carriers in late October , the destroyer conducted planeguard and ASW assignments on " Yankee Station , " served on the gunline off Danang , and completed four weeks on SAR station with " Worden " , before steaming out of the combat zone in February 1969 . Although she departed Yokosuka for San Diego on the 21st , she made a brief detour to the Ogasawara Islands on the 23d . There , she rescued the crew of a burning Japanese fishing vessel before resuming her voyage home . Arriving at San Diego on 4 March , the warship served as an engineering school ship and conducted other local operations until 28 July when she entered Long Beach Naval Shipyard . Completing a three - month overhaul on 4 November , the destroyer resumed local operations out of San Diego . " Bausell " returned to the familiar operations off the Indochinese peninsula in June 1970 . She served on the northern SAR station , acted as planeguard on " Yankee Station " for " Oriskany " and " America " ( CVA - 66 ) , and carried out positive identification radar advisory zone ( PIRAZ ) duty in the Gulf of Tonkin through August . The warship cruised on the gunline in September , firing at targets as needed , and screened " Bon Homme Richard " ( CVA - 31 ) on " Yankee Station " in October . After a brief diversion north to the Paracel Islands to investigate Russian trawler traffic , the destroyer headed for home on 14 November . Arriving in San Diego on 1 December , the warship spent the first eight months of 1971 either in port at San Diego or conducting local exercises off the California coast . On 1 September , " Bausell " learned of her assignment to a new home port — Yokosuka , Japan — as part of the Navy ' s forward deployment program . She departed San Diego on 20 October and moored at Yokosuka on 11 November . Her first mission , that began on 1 December , took the ship from Sasebo to Subic Bay on an amphibious convoy exercise . While off Taiwan , the destroyer successfully defended the convoy when she scored a simulated ASROC " kill " against " Harder " ( SS - 568 ) . On 14 December , because of increased tension between East Pakistan , India , and West Pakistan , the task group - which became Task Force 74 - received orders sending it through the Strait of Malacca . The amphibious forces , supported by " Enterprise " ( CVAN - 65 ) , cruised off Ceylon in case American citizens needed emergency evacuation . With the Indian Army ' s intervention in Kashmir and East Pakistan , the fighting soon ended and the crisis ebbed with the establishment of the Bangladeshi government in the former East Pakistan the following month . Detached from Indian Ocean operations on 6 January 1972 , " Bausell " steamed to the combat zone adjacent to Vietnam . In company with " Parsons " ( DDG - 33 ) , the destroyer conducted a naval gunfire support mission off Point Virna before putting into Vung Tau on 11 January . At sea again the following day , the warship visited Hong Kong and Okinawa before returning to Yokosuka on 20 January . " Bausell " remained in Japan for upkeep and training until 18 February when she headed back to Vietnam . On 4 March , the destroyer joined " Coral Sea " ( CVA - 43 ) on " Yankee Station . " She conducted screen and lifeguard operations for several days , dutifully rescuing a man overboard from " Camden " ( AOE - 2 ) on 6 March , until ordered to the Vietnamese coast . For the next two months , the warship served on the gunline , firing support missions to aid friendly forces ashore and repeatedly suppressing shore batteries on Hon Matt Island . After a brief call at Yokosuka in mid - May , the destroyer returned to the gunline on the 21st and conducted harassing , interdiction , and illumination fire into June . On 10 June , while off Hon La Island , North Vietnam , the destroyer was hit by a single shell . It started a small fire in an empty ASROC launcher cell , which was quickly put out ; and " Bausell " continued on assigned duties . She returned to Japan in early July . Over the next four months , the warship served on the gunline three more times , conducting NGFS missions , surveillance duties , and assisting PIRAZ ships . On 28 October , " Bausell " rendezvoused with " Cochrane " ( DDG - 21 ) ; and , together , they commenced bombardment missions on petroleum storage sites , shore batteries , and roads in the Dong Hoi area . During these operations , which lasted until 7 November , she also fired two " Shrike " radar - homing missiles at North Vietnamese Army ( NVA ) shore installations . Ordered south to evade a typhoon , the destroyer returned to the gunline on 16 November for eight days of fire support missions before steaming to Yokosuka on 5 December . " Bausell " sailed back to the gunline on 22 January 1973 , this time off Point Allison near the demilitarized zone ( DMZ ) . Underway replenishment kept her on the line , firing at harassment and interdiction targets as well as at the occasional hostile shore battery , until the truce began on 28 January . Following port visits to Bangkok , Thailand , and to Singapore , the warship steamed home to Yokosuka for three weeks of upkeep and repair . Underway on 22 March , " Bausell " visited Kobe , carried out gunnery shoots near Okinawa , and conducted ASW exercises with ( SS - 572 ) " Sailfish " . After a day in Buckner Bay to load fuel and supplies , she joined " Gurke " ( DD - 783 ) and " Leonard F . Mason " ( DD - 852 ) for a large combined US / ROKN amphibious exercise off Yang Po Ri , South Korea . The destroyer also visited Hong Kong before returning to Yokosuka on 28 April . Following the 34th Black Ship Festival at Shimoda , Japan , commemorating Commodore Matthew C . Perry ' s visit to Japan in 1854 , the ship entered the Sumitomo Shipyard on 25 June for overhaul . Completing refresher training on 10 January 1974 , the destroyer steamed to Pusan , Korea , for an ASW exercise with the South Korean Navy . Working with South Korean warships , " Bausell " practiced tactical coordination and attack procedures against " Darter " ( SS - 227 ) . For the next several months , the warship operated with " Midway " ( CVA - 41 ) , conducting carrier operations and type training , from the Philippines to the East China Sea . In May , she escorted an amphibious task force to the Coral Sea for exercises with British , Australian , Fijian , and New Zealand ships . Afterwards , on 18 June , she visited Mackay and Sydney , Australia , before returning to Yokosuka , via Subic Bay , on 21 July . In September , " Bausell " conducted ASW exercises with South Korean warships against " Sailfish " , and visited Sasebo and Hong Kong . She then served as planeguard for " Constellation " and took the time to shadow and gather intelligence on a Soviet Kresta II - class cruiser . Following a month of upkeep at Yokosuka , the warship returned to the Yellow Sea in late November for more ASW exercises with the South Koreans . After a short period of screening duty with Midway , the destroyer returned to Yokosuka on 20 December . " Bausell " continued these types of local operations during the first three months of 1975 . She conducted training exercises off Okinawa , visited ports in the Philippines and Taiwan , and screened 7th Fleet aircraft carrier s . On 4 April , in company with " Coral Sea " , the destroyer began a cruise intended to reach into the Indian Ocean and to Australia . The communist advance on Saigon , however , diverted the warships to the Vietnamese coast on 11 April . During the ensuing Operation Frequent Wind , the destroyer screened other Navy ships as they evacuated Americans and South Vietnamese from the Saigon area . After steaming to Singapore for three days of upkeep and liberty , the task group resumed its cruise to Australia on 11 May . Two days later , the ships received orders to proceed to the Gulf of Siam to participate in the rescue of the hijacked American containership SS " Mayagüez " . " Bausell " supported Coral Sea for the next five days as the carrier provided air support and cover for the marines on Koh Tang Island . In the wake of " Mayagüez " ’ s release , the task group finally made Australia , with " Bausell " mooring at Albany on 31 May . Following a week - long visit , the destroyer returned to Yokosuka , via the Philippines , on 22 June . Over the next six months , the warship confined her operations to the waters around Japan . These included refresher training , escort services with " Midway " , and participation in Exercise " Tae Kwon Do IX " with elements of the South Korean Navy . The destroyer steamed near Honshū and Hokkaidō in the first two months of 1976 , providing escort services for 7th Fleet carriers , before conducting ASW exercises with Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force ( JMSDF ) warships . Similar operations out of Yokosuka occupied her until October when " Bausell " and " Midway " embarked on a two - week circumnavigation of Japan . The transit of the Sea of Japan provoked numerous overflights by Soviet Tupolev Tu - 95 Bear D bombers ; and , for several days , a Soviet Kanin - class guided missile destroyer shadowed the task group . On 10 November " Bausell " began a six - week drydock and repair period at Yokosuka , during which it was determined she would return to the United States the following year for retirement . More than a year of service remained to the destroyer , however , and the warship resumed operations out of Yokosuka in January 1977 . These included carrier task force operations in February and March , during which " Bausell " drew the task of shouldering a persistent Soviet Krivak - class destroyer away from " Midway " , and more ASW exercises with South Korean and Japanese warships . In June , she participated in " Dolphinex 1 - 77 " , an ASW exercise with units of the Philippine Navy . In July , the destroyer made one last visit to Korea and , after a short cruise to the Philippines early in September , " Bausell " made final preparations at Yokosuka to return to the United States . On 26 October , the destroyer left Japan for her last long voyage . She stopped for liberty calls at Keelung , Bangkok , Singapore , and Rabaul , before putting in at Sydney , Australia in late November . After a brief stop at Auckland , the warship pressed on , stopping at Tonga , Fiji , and Pago Pago , American Samoa , before arriving in Hawaii on 31 January 1978 . The last leg of the voyage was completed when the warship finally returned to San Diego on 13 February . The destroyer underwent several inspections before entering fleet standdown status on 15 March . Notified in late March that she would not be sold to a foreign navy , the reduced crew began more drastic inactivation procedures . " Bausell " was decommissioned on 30 May 1978 , and her name was struck from the Navy list that same day . She was transferred to the Pacific Missile Test Center for use in the Harpoon missile development program and was finally sunk as a target on 17 July 1987 . Awards . " Bausell " received nine battle star s for Vietnam War service . As of 2006 , no other ship in the United States Navy has been named " Bausell " .