Scott # 634 Naval Ship Cover USS Preble

Dated 5/28/1935  USS Preble

On 7 December 1941 when the Japanese forces launched their attack, Preble was being overhauled at Pearl Harbor and was unable to get underway. As necessary guns and ammunition were not aboard, a large number of Preble’s crew handled ammunition, fought fires, and cared for the wounded aboard Pennsylvania (BB-38). On 30 January 1942 Preble completed her yard overhaul and joined the patrol operating just off the Pearl Harbor entrance. On 1 April she departed Pearl Harbor with units of Mine Division 1 to lay a large minefield at French Frigate Shoals, 500 miles northwest of Oahu. In July she assisted in laying a defensive minefield around the base at Kodiak, Alaska, returning to Pearl Harbor via Seattle, Washington, for overhaul and patrol operations. On 6 December she departed Pearl Harbor for the Fiji Islands and Noumea, New Caledonia, serving on escort duty in the New Hebrides during January 1943.

On the night of 31 January Tracy (DM-19), Montgomery (DM-17), and Preble laid mines in the mouth of the Tenambo River, Guadalcanal, to prevent the evacuation of enemy troops. During the next two months Preble performed escort duties to the New Hebrides and Russell Islands.

On the night of 6 May Preble with minelayers Gamble (DM-15) and Breese (DM-18) in company with Radford (DD-446) laid mines in Ferguson Passage between Gizo and Wanawana Islands in the Solomons. On the night of 7–8 May these mines sank a Japanese destroyer and damaged two others which were sunk the next day by torpedo bombers from Guadalcanal.

On 24 May Preble rescued 85 survivors from torpedoed SS Stanvac Manila. On the night of 28 June Breese, Gamble, and Preble mined the waters near Shortland Island to prevent units of the Japanese fleet based there from interfering with landing operations on Rendova Island in the New Georgia Group, which were to be carried out at dawn. During July and August Preble again served as an escort vessel. On 9 September she departed Nouméa for San Francisco.

After overhaul and convoy escort duty to Pearl Harbor, Preble reached Majuro, Marshall Islands, 3 February 1944 where she served as antisubmarine screen and mine layer before returning to Pearl Harbor. She then made three escort voyages from Pearl Harbor to Marshall Islands ports. After minesweeping training, Preble departed Purvis Bay, Florida Island, 6 September, with minesweeping units of Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf‘s TG 32.5. Arriving off Peleliu in the early morning of 12 September, while fire support ships opened bombardment, Preble separated to investigate the shoals between Anguar and Peleliu Islands where the enemy had been suspected of planting acoustic mines. The next day she helped rescue survivors of Perry (DMS-17) which had struck a mine. She continued to perform various screening and minesweeping duties.

Preble arrived at Manus, Admiralty Islands on 1 October, where she joined mine sweeping Task Group 77.5 which arrived off the entrance to Leyte Gulf 17 October where she remained laying buoys and acting as mine destruction vessel for 6 days before returning to Manus. After training at Manus, she returned to San Pedro Bay 1 January 1945, but steamed a month later for Pearl Harbor and much needed repairs in the States, arriving San Francisco 8 March.

Returning to Pearl Harbor 8 May, Preble was redesignated a miscellaneous auxiliary vessel (AG-99) 5 June. She was assigned to duty escorting aircraft carriers engaged in training, acting as anti-submarine patrol vessel and plane guard during flight operations. She reached Guam with Vella Gulf (CVE-111) 20 July, subsequently escorting Vella Gulf to Okinawa. After returning to Guam, she escorted Sitkoh Bay (CVE-86) to Samar, Philippines, arriving 20 September.