When the keels for the USS Nicholas and USS O’Bannon were first laid down in 1941 as construction on the ships began at Bath Iron Works in Maine, they became sister ships and were some of the first of 175 Fletcher class destroyers set to sea in 1942 during World War II.
Now, some 81 years after the ships first set to sea, members of the USS Nicholas Veterans Association, other local veterans and their friends and family gathered at the Veterans Memorial Museum in Chehalis on Friday, Aug. 2, for a dedication ceremony for the Nicholas Mast Memorial.
“Samuel Nicholas, Presley O’Bannon. Two (U.S.) Marines, namesakes for the first two of a new class of destroyers — the Fletchers, the largest and most decorated class of ships in United States Navy history,” John Bailey, USS Nicholas Veterans Association member and ceremony organizer, said.
The Nicholas was named after Major Samuel Nicholas, the first commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps during the American Revolutionary War, and the O’Bannon was named after Marine Corps First Lieutenant Presley O’Bannon, whose exploits are immortalized in the Marine Corps Hymn with the line, “to the shores of Tripoli.”
Veterans who served aboard the Nicholas and O’Bannon were in attendance, coming from as far away Pennsylvania, and even the great-granddaughter — who currently lives in the United Kingdom — of a U.S. Navy sailor who was at Normandy, was there for the ceremony.
“This has been a labor of love and taken several years to do,” USS Nicholas Veterans Association President Mike Daniels said. “Being assigned to the ship was something else. We were all kids, I joined when I was 18 in 1966, and served until 1969.”
Daniels was a gunner’s mate responsible for the ship’s various armaments. U.S. Marines were present for the ceremony and helped set grave markers honoring both Nicholas and O’Bannon, along with raising the colors on the mast. The Marines also placed soil samples from the graves of both Nicholas and O’Bannon under the grave markers.
The Nicholas earned the nickname “Road Runner” as it was the fastest ship in the fleet, topping out at nearly 40 knots, while the O’Bannon became known as the “Lucky’O” because, despite the numerous battles the ship’s crew endured, not one crew member was given a Purple Heart for being wounded.
During the ceremony, U.S. Navy veteran Larry Erwin from Louisiana, who served aboard the Nicholas, and U.S. Navy veteran Mike Riordan from California, who served aboard the O’Bannon, raised the “Road Runner” and “Lucky’O” flags of their perspective ships on the mast.
Both ships also earned Presidential Unit Citations, a prestigious unit award signified by blue, gold and red pennants, which were raised along with the ships’ flags.
As for their time in service during WWII, both ships were involved in numerous battles during the island-hopping campaign in the Solomon Islands and Guadalcanal as a part of Admiral William Halsey’s fleet.
By the end of WWII, the Nicholas had earned 16 battle stars, the second most of any destroyer in the war, while the O’Bannon earned the most with 17.
It was rumored that U.S. Navy Admiral Chester Nimitz viewed the Nicholas as his favorite ship, and Halsey was known to love the O’Bannon.
Nimitz held all 175 Fletcher class destroyers in high regard, as evidenced by his Jan. 28, 1944, speech during the Nicholas’ Presidential Unit Citation award ceremony.
“Our destroyers have truly been the silent part of our service, but their exploits and their capabilities are well known to those who have to know. Congratulations from the Pacific Fleet to every officer and man of Nicholas. Well done,” Nimitz said.
After the Japanese surrendered in August 1945, the Nicholas was given the honor of being the lead destroyer escorting the USS Missouri into Tokyo Bay for the signing of surrender documents, and the O’Bannon sailed in this formation into the bay too.
And while both ships served beyond WWII in both the Korean War and Vietnam War, the Nicholas saw historic service outside of the wars as well, according to Bailey.
“Nicholas participated in two Apollo missions, (including) witnessing Apollo 8’s trans-lunar injection burn which took humans beyond close-earth orbit for the very first time,” Bailey said.
The O’Bannon also saw action in Hollywood, with the ship having a background cameo appearance in a scene of the 1965 film “In Harm’s Way” starring John Wayne and Kirk Douglas — with the ship’s hull number, 450, being somewhat obscured but still visible on its bow.
On Jan. 30, 1970, the Nicholas and O’Bannon were decommissioned alongside each other again, this time for the final time, with the ships being sold for scrap.
The Nicholas was towed to Portland where it was broken up in 1972, with the top portion of its mast being saved and displayed at the Portland Sea Scout base near the Portland International Airport.
In 2020, the Sea Scouts were told by the Portland Airport Authority the mast needed to go, so they reached out to the USS Nicholas Veterans Association and asked if they wanted to save it.
It was cut up into pieces then transferred up to Chehalis to be reassembled.
The Nicholas’ mast now stands outside the museum displayed next to the Bell AH-1 Cobra helicopter and the “Desert Fox” Republic F-105 Thunderchief outside of the Veterans Memorial Museum in Chehalis.
For more information on both the Nicholas and O’Bannon, visit http://www.sisterships.us/.
