View source for USS Taylor (DD-94)

{{Short description|American Wickes-class destroyer}}
{{other ships|USS Taylor}}
{{good article}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=USSTaylorDD94.jpg
|Ship caption= USS ''Taylor'' in New York Harbor
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1938}}
|Ship name=USS ''Taylor''
|Ship namesake=[[Henry Clay Taylor|Henry Taylor]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=[[Mare Island Navy Yard]], [[California]]
|Ship laid down=15 October 1917
|Ship launched=14 February 1918
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=1 June 1918
|Ship decommissioned=21 June 1922
|Ship identification=DD-94
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship recommissioned=1 May 1930
|Ship decommissioned= 23 September 1938
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=6 December 1938
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship honors=
|Ship fate=Sold for scrap, August 1945
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class= {{sclass|Wickes|destroyer}}
|Ship displacement= {{convert|1,090|t|lk=in|0}}
|Ship length= {{convert|314|ft|1/2|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam= {{convert|30|ft|11+3/4|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft= {{convert|9|ft|0|in|m|abbr=on|1}}
|Ship propulsion=* 2 × [[Curtis steam turbine]]s
* 4 × [[Yarrow boiler]]s
* {{convert|24,200|shp|lk=in|abbr=on|0}}
|Ship speed= {{convert|35|kn|lk=in|0}}
|Ship range= {{convert|2,300|nmi|lk=in|abbr=on|0}} at {{convert|15|knot|0}}
|Ship complement=122 officers and enlisted
|Ship armament=* 4 × [[4"/50 caliber gun]]s
* 1 × [[3"/23 caliber gun]]
* 12 × [[Mark 15 torpedo|{{convert|21|in|mm|abbr=on|0}}]] [[torpedo tube]]s
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

'''USS ''Taylor'' (DD-94)''' was a {{sclass|Wickes|destroyer}} built in 1918 for the [[United States Navy]], which saw service in [[World War I]] and the years following. She was named for [[Rear Admiral]] [[Henry Clay Taylor|Henry Taylor]].

One of 111 ships of her class, ''Taylor'' was [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] near the end of World War I and patrolled in the [[Atlantic Ocean]] during and immediately following the war, though she saw no service supporting the war. After eight years out of commission, she returned to service in 1930 patrolling along the [[East Coast of the United States]] and in [[Latin America]]. [[Ship commissioning#Ship decommissioning|Decommissioned]] in 1938, she then became a training [[hulk (ship)|hulk]]. During [[World War II]] her forward section was removed and grafted onto {{USS|Blakeley|DD-150|6}} after the latter ship was damaged in a [[submarine]] attack. ''Taylor'' continued to serve as a training hulk until she was sold for [[Ship breaking|scrap]] in 1945.

== Design and construction ==
{{main|Wickes-class destroyer}}

''Taylor'' was one of 111 {{sclass|Wickes|destroyer}}s built by the [[United States Navy]] between 1917 and 1919. She, along with seven of her [[sister ship|sisters]], were constructed at [[Mare Island Navy Yard]] in [[San Francisco, California]], using detailed designs drawn up by [[Bath Iron Works]].{{sfn|Gardiner|Gray|1985|p=124}}{{sfn|Friedman|2003|p=40}}

She had a [[standard displacement]] of {{convert|1,090|t}} an [[length overall|overall length]] of {{convert|314|ft|.5|in|m|1}}, a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|30|ft|11.75|in|m|1}} and a [[draft (hull)|draught]] of {{convert|9|ft|0|in|m|1}}. {{cnspan|On [[Sea trial|trials]], ''Taylor'' reached a speed of {{convert|35|knot|lk=in}}.|date=September 2024}} She was armed with four [[4"/50 caliber gun]]s, one [[3"/23 caliber gun]], and twelve [[torpedo tube]]s for {{convert|21|in|mm|abbr=on|0}} [[Mark 15 torpedo|torpedoes]]. She had a regular crew [[Ship's company|complement]] of 122 officers and [[Enlisted rank|enlisted]] men.{{sfn|DANFS|1981|p=69}} {{cnspan|She was coal-powered, and driven by two [[Curtis steam turbine]]s powered by four [[Yarrow boiler]]s|date=September 2024}} with an [[indicated horsepower]] of {{convert|24,200|shp}}.{{sfn|Gardiner|Gray|1985|p=124}}

Specifics on ''Taylor''{{'}}s performance are not known, but she was one of the group of ''Wickes''-class destroyers known unofficially as the 'Liberty Type' to differentiate them from the destroyers constructed from detail designs drawn up by [[Bethlehem Steel]], which used Parsons or Westinghouse turbines. {{cnspan|The 'Liberty' type destroyers deteriorated badly in service, and in 1929 all 60 of this group were retired by the Navy.|date=September 2024}} Actual performance of these ships was far below intended specifications especially in [[fuel efficiency|fuel economy]], with most only able to make {{convert|2,300|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|15|knots}} instead of the design standard of {{convert|3,100|nmi}} at {{convert|20|knots}}.{{sfn|Gardiner|Gray|1985|p=124}}{{sfn|Friedman|2003|p=41}} The class also suffered from poor maneuverability and were overweight.{{sfn|Friedman|2003|p=46}}

She was the first U.S. Navy ship to be named USS ''Taylor'', commemorating Navy admiral [[Henry Clay Taylor]].{{sfn|DANFS|1981|p=69}} A second {{USS|Taylor|DD-468|2}} would be [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] in 1942, a {{sclass|Fletcher|destroyer|1}} named for [[William Rogers Taylor]]. That ship saw extensive service in [[World War II]], the [[Korean War]], and the [[Vietnam War]].{{sfn|DANFS|1981|pp=70–74}}

==History==
''Taylor'' was [[Keel laying|laid down]] as Destroyer No. 94 on 15 October 1917 by the Mare Island Navy Yard, and [[ship launching|launched]] on 14 February 1918. She was commissioned on 1 June 1918, sponsored by Ms. Mary Gorgas.{{sfn|DANFS|1981|p=70}}

Upon commissioning, ''Taylor'' joined Destroyer Division 12 of the [[U.S. Atlantic Fleet|Atlantic Fleet]]. She cruised with that fleet during [[World War I]] but saw no action. Following the war on 1 April 1919, she was assigned to Destroyer Division 8. In 1920, ''Taylor'' was placed in reduced commission though still operating on the Atlantic coast. That summer, on 17 July, the Navy adopted the alpha-numeric hull designation system, and ''Taylor'' became DD-94. In October, she was placed back in full commission and, until the summer of 1922, operated with Destroyer Division 8, Flotilla 8, Squadron 3. On 21 June 1922, the ship was placed out of commission at [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]].{{sfn|DANFS|1981|p=70}}

''Taylor'' remained inactive there until 1 May 1930, when she was placed back in commission under the command of Commander George B. Keester. She was assigned to Destroyer Division 33, Squadron 7, which was part of the [[Scouting Fleet]]. During this time, she operated from [[Charleston, South Carolina]], until November when she was placed in reduced commission once again. At the same time, ''Taylor'' was detached from the Scouting Fleet and transferred to Destroyer Division 47, Squadron 16 of the [[Training Squadron]]. She was assigned to the 6th and 7th Naval Districts to train reservists and to carry [[Reserve Officer Training Corps]] [[midshipmen]] on summer cruises.{{sfn|DANFS|1981|p=70}} By 1 April 1931, Scouting Fleet became Scouting Force, and the destroyer was reassigned as an element of Division 28 of the Training Squadron. She operated with that unit until early in 1934 when she joined Squadron 19 of the rotating reserve with which she remained until late 1931.{{sfn|DANFS|1981|p=70}}

On 1 September, she relieved the destroyer {{USS|J. Fred Talbott|DD-156|2}} on duty with the [[Special Service Squadron]]. She patrolled the [[West Indies]] and the [[Gulf of Mexico]] with that force for one year due to instability in [[Latin America]]. By 1 October 1935, ''Taylor'' was back with the Training Squadron as a unit of the newly established Division 30. She trained reservists until early in 1937 when she returned to the Special Service Squadron in relief of the destroyer {{USS|Manley|DD-74|2}}. She returned to patrols in the [[Caribbean]] area. Returning to the United States in 1938, ''Taylor'' was moored at Philadelphia to prepare for inactivation. The destroyer was placed out of commission on 23 September 1938. Her name was struck from the [[Naval Vessel Register]] on 6 December 1938, and she was offered for sale in July 1939. However, on 11 July 1940, she was redesignated Damage Control Hulk No. 40 and tasked to train damage control parties.{{sfn|DANFS|1981|p=70}}

On 25 May 1942, sister ship {{USS|Blakeley|DD-150|2}} was struck by a torpedo fired from {{GS|U-156|1941|6}} while patrolling off [[Martinique]]. The torpedo struck between frames 18 and 24 at about {{convert|4|ft}} below ''Blakeley''{{'}}s water line, and the force of the impact blew off {{convert|60|ft}} of her [[bow (ship)|bow]] and [[forecastle]].{{sfn|Bonner|1996|p=11}} Sailing under her own power to Philadelphia Naval Yard, ''Blakeley'' had the forward 60 feet of ''Taylor''{{'}}s hull grafted onto her throughout the summer of 1942. This was completed in September 1942, and ''Blakeley'', with ''Taylor''{{'}}s forward hull, served through the remainder of the war.{{sfn|Friedman|2003|p=62}}{{sfn|Bonner|1996|p=11}} The remaining {{convert|255|ft}} of ''Taylor'' spent the remainder of World War II in her duties as a [[hulking|training hulk]]. She was sold for [[Ship breaking|scrap]] in 1945, and delivered on 8 August.{{sfn|Bonner|1996|p=11}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Sources==
* {{citation|last=Bonner |first=Kermit H. |title=Final Voyages |publisher=[[Turner Publishing Company]] |location=[[Paducah, Kentucky]] |isbn= 978-1-56311-289-8 |year=1996}}
* {{citation|title=Dictionary of American naval fighting ships / Vol.7, Historical sketches: letters T through V |publisher=[[United States Department of the Navy|Department of the Navy]] |url=http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/ |location=[[Washington, D.C.]] |year=1981 |oclc=551573855 |ref= {{harvid|DANFS|1981}} }}
* {{citation|last=Friedman |first=Norman |title=United States Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History |publisher=[[Naval Institute Press]] |location=[[Annapolis, Maryland]] |year=2003 |isbn=978-1-55750-442-5}}
* {{citation|last1=Gardiner |first1=Robert |last2=Gray |first2=Randal |title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921, Volume 2 |publisher=[[Naval Institute Press]] |location=[[Annapolis, Maryland]] |year=1985 |isbn=978-0-87021-907-8}}

==External links==
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/094.htm NavSource Photos]

{{Wickes-class destroyer}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor (Dd-94)}}
[[Category:Wickes-class destroyers]]
[[Category:World War I destroyers of the United States]]
[[Category:Ships built in Vallejo, California]]
[[Category:1918 ships]]