USS Jacob Jones DD-130

The USS Jacob Jones (DD-130) was a Wickes-class destroyer built by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation at Camden, New Jersey and launched on 20 November 1918. She was commissioned on 20 October 1919 under command of Lt. Cmdr. P. H. Bastedo.

Early Record

After being outfitted in Philadelphia, Jacob Jones sailed in December for shakedown in the Atlantic. She arrived Pensacola, Florida on 22 December for further crew training before sailing for the Pacific in January 1920. She operated along the California coast on anti-aircraft and firing exercises until entering the Mare Island Navy Yard in August for repairs and overhaul. Returning to duty the following June, she operated out of San Diego until placed in mothballs on 24 June 1922.

The Jones was reactivated on 1 May 1930. Her crew trained in coastal waters from Alaska to Mexico, serving as a plane guard for the Navy's new fleet of aircraft carriers. Following Battle Fleet maneuvers during August, she entered Mare Island in November for repairs. In February 1931, she sailed for maneuvers in the Caribbean, then returned to the United States in May for joint Army-Navy maneuvers in the Chesapeake Bay. During the remainder of the summer, she operated with Destroyer Division 7 along the New England coast before retiring to the Boston Navy Yard on 2 October for another overhaul. The vessel followed a similar pattern during the remainder of the years leading up to the Second World War.

World War II

After two months of maintenance and inspection at the Norfolk, Virginia, NOB, Jacob Jones sailed for Charleston in April 1940 to join the Neutrality Patrol, monitoring the movements of German and British vessels in American waters. In September, Jones departed Norfolk for New London, Connecticut where her crew underwent sonar training. She resumed operations with the Neutrality Patrol in March 1941, patrolling the waters from Key West to Yucatan Channel. In May, she joined the ships that guarded the waters surrounding the islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe, which were controlled by the Vichy (Axis-controlled France), maintaining her Caribbean operations throughout the summer.

On 30 September 1941, the Jones was assigned to escort duty in the North Atlantic. After two months of upkeep and inspection at Norfolk, she departed for convoy escort training along the New England coast, beginning her official escort duties on 12 December.

Fate

On the morning of 27 February 1942, Jacob Jones departed New York harbor and steamed southward along the New Jersey coast. Shortly after her departure, she received orders to concentrate her patrol activity in waters off Cape May and the Delaware Capes. At 3:30 in the afternoon, she spotted the burning wreckage of tanker R. P. Resor, torpedoed the previous day. Jones circled the ship for two hours as her crew searched for survivors. Finding none, she proceeded southward.

The next morning, German submarine U-578 fired a spread of torpedoes at Jones, hitting her port side. According to survivors, the first torpedo exploded the ship's magazine. The resulting blast sheared off everything forward of the point of impact, including the bridge, the chart room and the officers' and petty officers' quarters. As she stopped moving in the water, a second torpedo struck about 40 feet forward of the fantail, destroying the aft crew's quarters.

Jones went down in forty-five minutes, taking her captain and all but about 30 crewmen down with her. As her stern went under, her depth charges exploded, killing several survivors on a nearby raft. Ultimately, only 11 men survived the sinking of the USS Jacob Jones.

Asbestos Risks

Practically all compartments of a ship such as the USS Jacob Jones posed a significant level of asbestos exposure, but a vessel's engine room and engineering compartments were usually the sections where a crewman or maintenance worker was likely to be in danger of inhaling airborne asbestos. Increased risk of undergoing harmful levels of asbestos exposure occurred whenever a craft was in conflict.

Inhaling airborne asbestos fibers has been known to cause the development of several asbestos-related diseases, including lung cancer, asbestosis and mesothelioma. Those who have been diagnosed with one of these conditions may have options for compensation as many have received financial assistance to help pay for medical expenses. For more information about compensation, asbestos exposure and treatment options, please fill out the request form on this page to receive a complimentary packet.

Sources:

Destroyers Index