Guest DD- 472

Guest

Commodore John Guest was born in Missouri 7 March 1822; appointed Midshipman 16 December 1837; served in frigate Congress during the Mexican War; and, protected foreign residents from Chinese Imperial forces at Shanghai in April 1854. He commanded Owasco and Sangamon in the Civil War, passing the forts for the capture of New Orleans and engaging Confederate batteries in the sedge of Vicksburg. He also took part in the capture of the forts at Galveston, Tex., and the capture of Fort Fisher, N. A. Commodore Guest died 12 January 1879.

(DD-472: dp. 2,050: 1. 376'6"; b. 39'8"; dr. 17'9"; s. 35.5 k.; cpl. 329; a. 5 5" .38 car., 2 40mm., 11 20mm., 10 21"tt., 6 dcp., 2 dct.; el. Fletcher)

Guest was launched 27 September 1941 by the Boston Naval Shipyard; sponsored by Mrs. Ann Guest Walsh, granddaughter of Commodore John Guest; commissioned 15 December 1942, Comdr. Henry Crommelin in command.

After shakedown training at Guantanamo Bay, Guest made a cruise to Trinidad with aircraft carrier Independence (CVL-22). This was followed by a convoy escort voyage from New York to Casablanca and return to Boston (28 April-31 May 1943). She departed Boston 20 July for brief training in Hawaiian waters, then joined the 3d Fleet 28 August at Efate. New Hebrides Islands. After an offensive sweep to the Santa Cruz Islands and several escort missions to Noumea, New Caledonia, she departed Efate 28 October for invasion of Bougainville. She guarded transports during the initial landings 1 November assisting in shooting down two enemy bombers. In the following months she escorted troop and logistic convoys from Guadalcanal to Cape Torokina, twice driving off bombers and torpedo planes which attacked her convoy She silenced Japanese coastal defense guns at Motupene Point, Bougainville, 4 December 1943, and bombarded the Saba River area 25 January 1944.

Guest protected transports landing the marine raiders on Green Island 31 January 1944. As the raiders reembarked the next morning, she made two depth charge attacks for tremendous explosion on a diving submarine. Hudson (DD 475) followed up this attack to complete the kill of 1,400-ton Japanese submarine I-lYl. Guest again screened transports during invasion of Green Islands 15 February 1944. She bombarded Kavieng, New Ireland 25 February, and, the Sanba River area on Bougainville 17 March. She rescued the crew of PT0-63 on the latter date. Her 5-inch gunfire destroyed the grounded Japanese freighter Meisyo Maru 30 April to the east of Nemto Island. After amphibious assault training in the New Hebrides, she departed Roi, Marshall Islands, 10 June 1944 for the invasion and capture of the Marianas Islands.

Guest poured gunfire ahead of troops landing on Saipan 15 June 1944, then helped repel four massive air raids against Admiral Mitcher's Fast Carrier Task Force in the Battle of the Philippine Sea. She also conducted pre-invasion bombardment of Guam and gave direct gunfire support to the landings there 21 July 1944. She remained on bombardment support and patrol stations until 9 August, then sailed for amphibious warfare exercises in the Solomons.

Guest departed Purvis Bay, Solomon Islands, 6 September 1944. A unit of Rear Admiral Oldendorf's Western Fire Support group, she bombarded Anguar in the Malau Islands 12 September 1944. The following day she rescued 7 officers and 45 men of destroyer Perry who hit q mine and sank off Anguar. She departed the area.

25 September and entered San Francisco Bay 25 October 1944 for overhaul. This was followed by training in Hawaiian waters until 27 January 1943 w hen she departed with a task group bound via the Marianas for Iwo Jima Her 5-inch guns blasted that island during the initial invasion 19 February 1945. She continued gunfire support until 28 February when she sailed to join the screen of escort carriers in San Pedro Bay, Philippine Islands.

Guest departed San Pedro Bay 27 March to guard escort carriers giving direct support to the invasion of Okinawa. Detached 9 May, she was assigned to antiaircraft defense station in the Okinawa’s western transport area. The night of 25 May a suicide plane glanced off her mast and crashed alongside to starboard without causing damage. She remained on antiaircraft defense station until 1 July 1945. She was then routed via Ulithi and the Marshalls in the screen of escort carriers bound to Adak, Alaska, thence to Ominato, Japan. After plane guard duty with carriers along the coast of Honshu, she returned via Adak to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard 15 November 1945. She decommissioned at San Diego 4 June 1946 and remained in reserve until transferred 5 June 1959 on loan to the government of Brazil. She serves the Brazilian Navy as Para (D-27).

Guest received eight battle stars for service in World War II.