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USS ROWAN (DD-405)

CLASS - BENHAM As Built.
Displacement 2250 Tons (Full), Dimensions, 340' 9" (oa) x 35' 6" x 12' 10" (Max)
Armament 4 x 5"/38AA, 4 x 0.5" MG 16 x 21" tt.(4x4).
Machinery, 50,000 SHP; Westinghouse Geared Turbines, 2 screws
Speed, 38.5 Knots, Range 6500 NM@ 12 Knots, Crew 184.
Operational and Building Data
Laid down by Norfolk Navy Yard June 25 1937.
Launched May 5 1938 and commissioned September 23 1939.
Fate Sunk by German Motor Torpedo Boats Off Salerno Italy September 11 1943
202 of her crew were lost with the ship and remain on duty.

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Rowan 51kStephen C. Rowan, born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1805, came to the United States at the age of 10 and lived in Piqua, Ohio. Appointed midshipman in the U.S. Navy on 1 February 1826, he took an active role in the Mexican War, serving as executive officer of Cyane during the capture of Monterey on 7 July 1846 and in the occupation of both San Diego and Los Angeles. Captain of the steam-sloop Pawnee at the outbreak of the Civil War, he made gallant attempts to relieve Fort Sumter and to burn the Norfolk Navy Yard. In the fall of 1861, he assisted in the capture of the forts at Hatteras Inlet; then, taking command of a flotilla in the North Carolina sounds, he cooperated in the capture of Roanoke Island in February 1862. Promoted to captain for gallantry, he then supported the capture of Elizabeth City, Edenton, and New Bern. During the summer of 1863, he commanded New Ironsides on blockade duty off Charleston and the following August assumed command of Federal forces in the North Carolina sounds. Commissioned rear admiral on 25 July 1866, Rowan served as Commandant of the Norfolk Navy Yard until 1867, when he assumed command of the Asiatic Squadron. Returning in 1870, he was appointed vice admiral in August of that year and served as Commandant of the New York Navy Yard from 1872 to 1876, as Governor of the Naval Asylum at Philadelphia in 1881, and as Superintendent of the Naval Observatory, Washington, D.C., from 1882 until his retirement in 1889. Vice Admiral Rowan died in Washington, D.C., on 31 March 1890. Photo #: NH 46119, Rear Admiral Stephen C. Rowan, USN photographed circa 1869. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.Tony Cowart/Robert M. Cieri
Rowan 121kPhoto #: 19-N-23833, USS Rowan (DD-405) Ship's Historical Data Plate, photographed at the Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, Virginia, on 24 November 1939. Photograph from the Bureau of Ships Collection in the U.S. National Archives.Tony Cowart
Rowan 22kUndated, location unknown.-
Rowan 54kUndated, taken while passing orders to US Naval transports off Fedala, North Africa..Robert Hurst
Rowan 141kUndated prewar image, location unknown.Marc Piché
Rowan 37kStarboard bow photo of USS Rowan (DD-405) in an undated pre-World War II photo. A Benham class destroyer built by Norfolk Navy Yard, she mounts a single searchlight atop her aft superstructure. Of interest is the mast mounted crows nest above the bridge.Mike Green
Rowan 184kUSS Rowan (DD-405) and USS Stack (DD-406) christening May 5 1938 at Norfolk Navy Yard.Ron Reeves
Rowan 78kPhoto #: NH 103502, USS Rowan (DD-405) underway at sea, circa 1939-1940. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.Tony Cowart
Rowan 221kUSS Rowan (DD-405) underway, at sea on August 8, 1940. U.S. Naval Historical Center, Photo No. NH 103502.Ron Titus/Mike Green
Rowan 79kPhoto #: NH 103504, USS Rowan (DD-405) receiving provisions via "high-line" from USS Augusta (CA-31) while operating at sea, 4 December 1942. Collection of Vice Admiral Robert C. Giffen, USN. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.Tony Cowart
Rowan 295kNewspaper clipping showing some of the survivors of the Rowan, sunk off Salerno Italy September 11 1943.Ron Reeves
Rowan 116kShip's patch.Don McGrogan

USS ROWAN DD-405 History
View This Vessels DANFS History Entry
(Located On The hazegray Web Site, This Is The Main Archive For The DANFS Online Project.)

Commanding Officers
Thanks to Wolfgang Hechler & Ron Reeves

LCDR Beverley Randolph Harrison Jr.    Sep 23 1939 - Oct 10 1942
LCDR Robert Stephens Ford    Oct 10 1942 - Sep 11 1943 (Later RADM)

Crew Contact And Reunion Information

Contact Name: Loren R. Melton FTCM USN (Ret)
Address: 1491 Park Ave., Port Hueneme, CA 93041-2400
Phone: (805) 483 0566, FAX (805) 240-4675
E-mail: iceburg72@msn.com


Note About Contacts.

The contact listed, Was the contact at the time for this ship when located. If another person now is the contact, E-mail me and I will update this entry. These contacts are compiled from various sources over a long period of time and may or may not be correct. Every effort has been made to list the newest contact if more than one contact was found.


Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
Tin Can Sailors Website
Destroyer History Foundation
Destroyers Online Website
Official U.S.Navy Destroyer Website

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