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John Mercer Brooke (18 December 1826 - 14 December 1906) was born at Tampa Bay FL, the son of an Army officer. He became a U.S. Navy Midshipman in 1841, graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1847 and achieved the rank of Lieutenant in 1855. His Navy career was marked by sea duty and scientific assignments. While stationed at the Naval Observatory in Washington DC during the early 1850s, he developed a device for accurately mapping the deep sea floor. He also took part in surveying and exploring expeditions in the Pacific during the middle and later parts of the decade and helped instruct officers of the fledgling Japanese Navy.
As the secession crisis deepened, Brooke resigned his commission in April 1861 and "went south", joining the Confederate Navy soon after as a Lieutenant. He was deeply involved in the conversion of the burned steam frigate Merrimack into the ironclad CSS Virginia and in the design and production of heavy rifled guns for the Southern war effort. Promoted to Commander in September 1862, he became Chief of the Confederate Navy's Bureau of Ordnance and Hydrography in March 1863 and served in that post until the Civil War ended more than two years later. After the war, Brooke became a professor at the Virginia Military Institute, at Lexington VA while continuing his technological pursuits. After a long career of teaching, he retired in 1899 and made his home in Lexington until his death on 14 December 1906.
USS Brooke DEG-1 was the first ship named in his honor. (US Navy photo #NH58902 from the US Naval Historical Center) |
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Nearly identical to the Garcia class frigates, except for the replacement of the aft 5"/38 gun with a Mk 22 missile launcher and radar improvements. |
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unknown date/location, Brooke launching an ASROC missile during trials in the Pacific |
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unknown date/location, Brooke underway during trials in the Pacific |
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15 June 1982: NavSta Subic Bay, Luzon, Philippine Islands - An aerial view of the US Naval Ship Repair Facility. Berthed at the shipyard are the Knox-class frigate USS Roark (FF-1053) and USS Harold E. Holt (FF-1074). Moored alongside them is Brooke. (US Navy photo DVID #DN-SN-84-06232 by PH1 David MacLean from the Defense Visual Information Center) |
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2 November 1983: Apra Harbor, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands - A port bow view of Brooke, front, and the frigate USS Badger (FF-1071) moored at a pier. (US Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-90-07741 by PHAN M. Anderson from the DVIC) |
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17 January 1988: off San Clemente Island CA - Head-on aerial view. (US Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-04-09284 by PHC T.R. Dupree from the DVIC) |
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17 January 1988: off San Clemente Island CA - Starboard view. (US Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-04-09283 by PHC T.R. Dupree from the DVIC) |
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17 January 1988: off San Clemente Island CA - Port view. (US Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-04-09282 by PHC T.R. Dupree from the DVIC) |
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8 February 1989: NavSta San Diego CA - The Pakistani navy ships PNS Aslat (F-265), left, and PNS Khaibar (D-163) lay tied up at a pier following their commissioning. The Aslat and Khaibar, formerly the frigate USS O'Callahan (FF-1051) and the guided missile frigate Brooke, respectively, are being leased to the government of Pakistan for five years. (US Navy photo DVID #DN-ST-90-03785 by PH1 Michael D.P. Flynn from the DVIC) |
