USS Porter (DD-59)

USS Porter (Destroyer No. 59/DD-59) was a Tucker-class destroyer built for the United States Navy prior to the American entry into World War I. The ship was the second U.S. Navy vessel named in honor of both David Porter and his son David Dixon Porter.

Porter was laid down by the William Cramp and Sons of Philadelphia, in August 1914 and launched in August of the following year. The ship was a little more than 315 ft in length, just over 30 ft abeam, and had a standard displacement of 1090 LT. She was armed with four 4 in guns and had eight 21 in torpedo tubes. Porter was powered by a pair of steam turbines that propelled her at up to 29.5 knots.

After her April 1916 commissioning, Porter conducted her shakedown cruise in the Caribbean. After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Porter was part of the first U.S. destroyer squadron sent overseas. Patrolling the Irish and Celtic Sea out of Queenstown, Ireland, Porter severely damaged the German submarine SMU U-108 in April 1918. Upon returning to the United States after the war, Porter operated off the east coast until she was decommissioned in June 1922. In June 1924, Porter was transferred to the United States Coast Guard to help enforce Prohibition as a part of the "Rum Patrol". She operated under the name USCGC Porter (CG-7) until 1933, when she was returned to the Navy. Later that year, the ship was renamed DD-59 to free the name Porter for another destroyer. She was sold for scrap in August 1934.

Design and construction
Porter was authorized in 1913 as the third ship of the Tucker-class destroyer which, like the related O'Brien-class destroyer, was an improved version of the Cassin-class destroyers authorized in 1911. Construction of the vessel was awarded to William Cramp and Sons of Philadelphia, which laid down her keel on 24 August 1914. Twelve months later, on 26 August 1915, Porter was launched by sponsor Miss Georgiana Porter Cusachs, a descendant of the ship's namesakes, Commodore David Porter (1780–1843) and son Admiral David Dixon Porter (1813–1891), both notable U.S. Navy officers. As built, Porter was 315 ft in length and 30 ft abeam and drew 9 ft. The ship had a standard displacement of 1090 LT and displaced 1205 LT when fully loaded.

Porter had two Curtis steam turbines that drove her two screw propellers, and an additional steam turbine geared to one of the propeller shafts for cruising purposes. The power plant could generate 18000 shp and move the ship at speeds up to 29.5 knots.

Porter's main battery consisted of four 4 in/50 Mark 9 guns, with each gun weighing in excess of 6100 lbs. The guns fired 33 lbs armor-piercing projectiles at 2900 ft/s. At an elevation of 20°, the guns had a range of 15920 yards.

Porter was also equipped with eight 21 in torpedo tubes. The General Board of the United States Navy had called for two anti-aircraft guns for the Tucker-class ships, as well as provisions for laying up to 36 floating mines. From sources, it is unclear if these recommendations were followed for Porter or any of the other ships of the class.

United States Navy career
USS Porter was commissioned into the United States Navy on 17 April 1916 under the command of Lieutenant Commander Ward K. Wortman. Following her commissioning, Porter's shakedown was conducted in the Caribbean.

After the United States entry into World War I on 6 April 1917, Porter was readied for overseas duty and departed from New York on 24 April with the other five ships of her division—USS Wadsworth (DD-60) (the flagship), USS Davis (DD-65), USS Conyngham (DD-58), USS McDougal (DD-54), and USS Wainwright (DD-62). The sextet arrived at Queenstown, Ireland, on 4 May and began patrolling the southern approaches to the Irish Sea the next day. Based at Queenstown, Porter met and escorted convoys from the United States as they entered the war zone.

On 16 October 1917, Porter came to the aid of American destroyer USS Cassin (DD-43), which had been torpedoed by German submarine SMU U-61 about 20 nmi south of Mind Head, Ireland. Cassin's stern had nearly been blown off and her rudder was gone, leaving the ship unable to steer. Porter arrived at about 16:00 and stayed with Cassin until dusk when two British sloops, HMS Jessamine (1915) and HMS Tamarisk (1916), took over for Porter; Cassin was towed to safety and later returned to patrol duty.

On 28 April 1918, Porter severely damaged SMU U-108 while that German submarine was steaming to intercept a convoy. The destroyer was transferred to Brest, France, on 14 June. She returned to the United States at the end of the war, and operated off the East Coast until she was decommissioned on 23 June 1922.

United States Coast Guard career
On 17 January 1920, Prohibition was instituted by law in the United States. Soon, the smuggling of alcoholic beverages along the coastlines of the United States became widespread and blatant. The Treasury Department eventually determined that the United States Coast Guard simply did not have the ships to constitute a successful patrol. To cope with the problem, President Calvin Coolidge in 1924 authorized the transfer from the Navy to the Coast Guard of twenty old destroyers that were in reserve and out of commission. Porter was reactivated and transferred to the Treasury Department on 7 June 1924 for use by the Coast Guard.

Designated CG-7, Porter was commissioned on 20 February 1925, and was stationed in New York for duties on the "Rum Patrol" to aid in the attempt to enforce prohibition laws. During her Coast Guard service, Porter captured the rum-running vessel Conseulo II (the former Louise) off the coast of Long Island.

After the United States Congress proposed the Twenty-first Amendment to end prohibition in February 1933, plans were made for Porter to be returned to the Navy. On 27 May 1933, Porter arrived at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, and was decommissioned nine days later, on 5 June. Porter was transferred back to the Navy on 30 June. Later in 1933 the ship was renamed DD-59 in order to free the name Porter for a new destroyer of the same name. DD-59 remained in noncommissioned status until struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 5 July 1934. She was sold for scrap on 22 August in accordance with the London Naval Treaty.