US Navy - Commander, Destroyer Division 252

DESCRIPTION

Accession NumberP366Title (extended title only)US Navy - Commander, Destroyer Division 252DescriptionUS Navy Plaque – COMDESDIV 252
This plaque has a wooden base with a painted metal centrepiece. The centrepiece is etched into the badge for COMDESDIV 252 (Commander, Destroyer Division 252). The paint is chipped in a few areas and there are some scratches on the wood base. There are no inscriptions.DateBetween 23rd April 1979 and 27th April 1979ProvenanceThe provenance of this plaque is extremely difficult to track and almost impossible to 100% confirm. COMDESDIV is designated to the commander of the destroyer division which is one of two divisions belonging to a destroyer squadron (DESRON). Destroyer Division 252 was formed 1 July 1955, originally as a unit of Escort Squadron One. The division was home-ported in Pearl Harbor, conducting operations in Hawaii and the Western Pacific. DESDIV 252 was most commonly deployed under DESRON 25 which was usually under Task Force 70, a task force under the Seventh Fleet. The Seventh Fleet was founded 15 March 1943 as part of the United States Pacific Fleet, which itself was founded in 1907. Destroyer divisions and squadrons were not permanent and destroyer ships could be reassigned and due to this numerous destroyers served as part of DESDIV 252. DESDIV as an acronym in the US Navy has fallen out of use beginning toward the last quarter of the 20th century as Destroyer ships have become more advanced and capable, a Destroyer Squadron features less ships making the need for divisions unnecessary. With seemingly no comprehensive list of the division lineage publicly available it is difficult to pinpoint the origin of the plaque. However, it appears the only time a destroyer ship that had been the flagship of DESDIV 252 visited Fremantle was USS Cochrane (DDG-21) in April 1979. Newspaper articles from this time however do not refer to DESDIV 252, only DESRON 25 so while it is almost certainly the origin of the plaque it cannot be definitively confirmed. USS Cochrane was Laid down by Puget Sound Bridge and Drydock, Seattle on July 31 1961. It was launched July 18 1962 and commissioned March 21 1963 before being decommissioned 1 October 1990, stricken 20 November 1992 and scrapped 28 September 2001. It was made flagship of
DESDIV 252 in March 1964 and while it moved around different divisions and squadrons, during the 1979 trip belonged to DESRON 25 and presumably DESDIV252. The USS Cochrane visited Australia as part of a South Pacific tour starting in 24 January and ending 30 May 1979. It arrived in Fremantle 23 April and departed 27 April with the crew also represented the United States at the Perth ANZAC ceremony. Commander Mack C. Gaston (later Rear Admiral) was the commanding officer who served at the ships’ commanding officer from 18 October 1977 – 22 October 1979. The mayor of the City of Fremantle at this time was William A. McKenzie, who held office from 1972-1984.
RelevanceRelevance to the CityGifted to the City of Fremantle, most likely to Mayor William A. McKenzie from Commander Mark C. Gaston and the USS Cochrane between 23-27 April 1979.

SubjectUnited States NavyCollectionCivic Collection

INTERNAL

LocationCivic Collection

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US Navy - Commander, Destroyer Division 252