USS Nicholson (DD-52) - World War I

World War I

Nicholson was commissioned into the United States Navy on 30 April 1915 under the command of Lieutenant Commander A. E. Watson in command. After a shakedown cruise in the North Atlantic, Nicholson operated in the Caribbean and along the east coast until early 1917.

After the United States declared war on Germany on 6 April 1917 entering World War I, Nicholson was put to sea from New York on 15 May with Cummings, Cushing, O'Brien, and Sampson. The destroyers arrived at Queenstown, Ireland, 24 May for duty in the war zone.

In mid-October, Nicholson was part of the destroyer escort, for the eastbound convoy HS 14. At 0850, an SOS was received from J. L. Luckenbach, traveling independently some 90 nmi (100 mi; 170 km) ahead of the convoy. Commander Alfred W. Johnson on USS Conyngham (DD-58), the commander of the escorting destroyer unit, dispatched Nicholson to steam ahead to assist J. L. Luckenbach, which was being shelled by a German submarine. Luckenbach was equipped with guns of her own, but they were outranged by the pair of 8.8 cm (3.5 in) deck guns on her attacker, U-62. By the time Nicholson arrived on the scene at about 1230, U-62 had been shelling J. L. Luckenbach for over three hours. Despite many rounds fired, only about a dozen had hit the American steamer; some of the hits, however, had ignited Luckenbach's cargo of cotton. Nicholson trained her 4 in (100 mm) guns on the U-boat and, by the time her gunners had fired a second round, U-62 submerged and disappeared. The destroyer transferred a damage control party aboard the Luckenbach which helped extinguish the fire and repair some of the damages to the ship. A few hours later, J. L. Luckenbach and Nicholson joined and rejoined the convoy, respectively.