Records (1943–1946) of the escort ship USS Hopping (DE-155), attached to Escort Division 6 of the Atlantic Fleet during World War II and including war diaries, action reports, and miscellaneous material relating to U-Boat attacks, anti-submarine warfare, etc.
The escort ship USS Hopping (DE-155) was commissioned on 21 May 1943. During World War II, the ship was attached to Escort Division 6 of the Atlantic Fleet and was assigned to escort duty between New York and Northern Ireland. The Hopping was converted (October–November 1944) to a high speed transport (APD-51) and served the remainder of the war with the Pacific Fleet. She was decommissioned on 5 May 1947, and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. The ships commanding officer was Louis F. Loutrel Jr. Also, it is currently unknown whether the donor of the papers served aboard the ship himself.
The collection contains war diaries, action reports and miscellaneous materials. The war diaries are in two forms, the official Navy printed version (1 December 1943–30 June 1944) by Louis F. Loutrel Jr., the ships commanding officer, and a handwritten diary (8 May 1944–30 April 1946) by W.J. McNulty(?) Early entries concern the ship's escort duty of convoys between Northern Ireland and New York (1 December 1943–30 September 1944) and note daily convoy positions, course changes, sonar contacts, speed, dry dock locations, and training exercises.
Further diary entries mention conversion to a high speed transport (7 October–18 November 1944, p. 73) and the Hopping's assignment to the Pacific Theatre including tests and training near Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands (19 November–19 December 1944, pp. 73–78). Specific topics detailed include activities around Okinawa (1 April, 23 June 1945) that include reports of kamikaze attacks (6 April, 17 May, and 2 June 1945, pp. 104–105, 111, 116); damage to the Hopping by shore fire (9 April 1945, pp. 106–107); and the transport of liberated American prisoners of war from Guam, Wake Island, and the Philippine Islands (15–19 September 1945, pp. 130, 131). The diary concludes with entries concerning the pre inactivation overhaul of the ship (1 January, 30 April 1946; pp. 145–148).
Official Navy action reports detail an incident involving the escort ship USS Donnell (DE-56) and damage caused by a German torpedo. An anti submarine action report of the Hopping notes sea condition, attack times, range, bearing, speed, course, target depth, and the type of attack the Hopping used against the U-boat that fired the torpedo (3 May 1944). Other action reports note the contact with the U-boat and counterattack strategies that included depth charges (6–9 May 1944). The care and transfer of the Donnell's wounded is detailed by further action reports from escort ship USS Reeves(DE-156), as is the towing of the Donnell to Northern Ireland (8 May 1944).
Other items in the collection include the Hopping's commissioning program; drawings of the escort ship and two converted high speed transports; and a list of the Hopping's ports of call throughout its career, including the dates of arrival and departure.
For related collections, sell also the Destroyer Escort Commanding Officers Collection: Louis F. Loutrel Jr. Papers (#564-008).
Gift of Mr. Charles J. Buice
Processed by J. Holland; M. Boccaccio; A. Merriman, November 1999
Encoded by Apex Data Services
Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.