USS Murray (DD-576) - World War II Service

World War II Service

After shakedown in the Caribbean, Murray served on escort duty in the Atlantic Ocean, then sailed to join Destroyer Squadron 26 at Pearl Harbor in September 1943. Sailing with a carrier task force, Murray took part in strikes on Wake Island 5-6 October, then voyaged to the South Pacific to support the landings on Bougainville 8-9 November, splashing three enemy aircraft. Two days later, while covering US 3rd Fleet aircraft carriers in a strike against Rabaul, Murray shot down two of a force of about 150 enemy aircraft attacking her formation.

Hewing to a demanding pace of operations, Murray was on antisubmarine patrol in the Gilbert Islands from 20 November to 8 December during the occupation of Tarawa and Abemama, then for the next month guarded shipping into the newly acquired islands. In January 1944 Murray performed outstandingly in fire support missions for the capture of Kwajalein, then screened transports carrying invasion forces to Eniwetok. Two months of escort duty in the western ocean routes followed, until she joined in the bombardment of Kavieng, New Ireland, 20 March.

Joining the 7th Fleet Murray took part in the assault on Aitape, New Guinea, 23 to 28 April, downing another enemy aircraft during an aerial torpedo attack. Rejoining the 6th Fleet in June, she screened amphibious craft during the assault on Saipan, then sailed to Guam for close - in fire support and transport screening duty 20 July to 26th. After patrol and escort duties for the consolidation of the Mariana Islands until late in August, Murray returned to the continuing operations around New Guinea. She bombarded Wewak 30 August to cover British minelaying operations, and in September covered the landings on Morotai. Returning to Hollandia, she prepared for the invasion of the Philippines, sortieing in escort of the transports for Leyte. On 20-21 October, she conducted shore bombardment, moving in as close as reefs would allow to fire over the landing force into enemy installations and at the same time aiding in repelling enemy air attacks.

Departing the Philippines immediately after the landings Murray overhauled at San Francisco, California, then in January 1945 escorted a battleship division to Pearl Harbor while en route to join Task Force 58. She screened the aircraft carriers and acted as picket during the first carrier raid on Tokyo 16 February and attacks on Iwo Jima and the Ryukyu Islands 26 February to 1 March, sinking a Japanese picket ship about 200 miles off the coast of Japan on 26 February. Murray next prepared for the Okinawa operation, during which she screened battleships from submarine attack during the initial preinvasion bombardment. Hit by a Japanese bomb 27 March, she retired to Pearl Harbor for repairs.

While returning to the forward areas by way of Eniwetok, Murray was ordered 2 July to locate, board, and search Japanese hospital ship Takasago Maru, bound for Wake Island and suspected of carrying arms or supplies, contraband for a hospital ship. She located the ship the next day, but search revealed nothing in violation of international law, so the hospital ship was allowed to proceed to Wake to embark sick and wounded Japanese.

Rejoining her force, now Task Force 38, Murray guarded the fast carriers in the raids against Honshū, Hokkaidō, and Kyūshū through the last 2 months of the war. In one of the most daring raids of the war, Murray and others of her squadron penetrated Suruga Bay, Honshū, 30 July to bombard the city of Shimizu, perhaps the deepest penetration of Japanese waters by any surface craft during the war.