Rediscovering USS Ward’s Namesake:
James Harmon Ward, USN by James H. Bruns
An hour after Lieutenant Outerbridge radioed this report to the Fourteenth Naval District headquarters at Pearl Harbor, the first wave of the Japanese attacks began on the “date which will live in infamy.” Three years to the day after USS Ward fired the first shots by the United States in World War II, the destroyer was struck by a kamikaze during the Battle of Surigao Straight—Leyte Gulf, Philippines. The bomber exploded, and fire broke out amidships aboard the destroyer, ultimately leading her commanding officer to order his crew to abandon ship. Other US Navy destroyers stood by to receive her crew, including USS O’Brien (DD-725), commanded by none other than Lt. Commander William Outerbridge. With all survivors safely aboard the other ships, the task group was ordered to sink the ship with gunfire. Although the location of the destroyer’s remains was not in dispute, the depth of the water where she sank made access to the wreck site impractical, and, until a few months ago, no one had seen the ship since she slipped beneath the waves in 1944. It took the development of advanced technology in deep-sea exploration, funding, a dedicated and highly skilled team of scientists and crew, and the determination of the expedition’s sponsor, Paul Allen, to locate the shipwreck and document it. USS Ward was named for another “first” in a major US war, and the re-discovery of the ship named for James Ward affords an opportunity to USS Ward burning in Ormoc Bay, 7 December reflect upon his contribution to American history. 1944, with USS O’Brien standing off to assist.
J
ames Harmon Ward was the first Union naval officer killed in action during the Civil War. He was born in Hartford, Connecticut, on 25 September 1806. Upon graduation from what would become Norwich University in 1823, he accepted a commission as a midshipman in the United States Navy. During his naval career at sea, Ward served in the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, and off the west coast of Africa as part of the Navy’s anti-slavery patrols. Ashore, he helped establish the United States Naval Academy; but perhaps his greatest accomplishment was saving the Potomac River from Confederate control at the start of the Civil War. The idea for the Potomac Flotilla was like something lifted from the pages of a Vietnam-era navy playbook. The idea was to create a swift, agile, shallow-water riverine force that could be used in interdicting enemy supply lines, conducting reconnaissance of enemy troop movements, threatening enemy strong-points, convoying supplies and merchant ships, conveying military dispatches, engaging with small troop concentrations or light shore batteries, and inserting landing shore parties for 16
limited search-and-destroy missions. This concept, however, came nearly 100 years before its Vietnam brown-water counterpart. Ward possessed impressive academic and naval credentials. He attended the American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy, the precursor of Norwich Uni-
Commander James H. Ward, USN (1806–1861)
all images courtesy us navy, nhhc
“We have attacked, fired upon, and dropped depth charges on a submarine operating in defensive sea areas.” —Lieutenant William Outerbridge, USS Ward, just outside the entrance to Pearl Harbor, 7 December 1941.
versity, which Lincoln’s navy secretary, Gideon Welles, also attended; he accepted a commission as a midshipman in the US Navy at age seventeen; and he served in the Mediterranean aboard USS Constitution. After his tour in Constitution, in 1828 he was allowed to return to school, attending Washington College in Connecticut for a year. He completed his studies and was then assigned to the sailing sloops USS Warren and USS Concord, both cruising in the Mediterranean. Ward was promoted to lieutenant in 1831. His assignments during the 1830s to mid-1840s included tours aboard sailing sloops USS Falmouth and USS St. Louis, the side-wheel steamer USS Fulton, and the brig USS Dolphin. In 1845 Lieutenant Ward was tapped to help found the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland. He served as its first Commandant of Midshipmen, and was a founder of the Academy’s library. Back at sea during the Mexican-American War, in 1847 Ward commanded the sailing frigate USS Cumberland, Commodore Matthew C. Perry’s flagship in actions off Mexico. In 1849 Ward was promoted SEA HISTORY 162, SPRING 2018