Two Sisters for Normandy: USS Raven (AM 55) and USS Osprey (AM 56)

By CAPT Alexander Monroe, USN (Ret.)
HRNM Volunteer

Construction of USS Raven (AM 55) and USS Osprey (AM 56) came about in part because Franklin D. Roosevelt faced two major problems when he assumed the presidency on March 4, 1933: the United States was at the nadir of the Great Depression and the U.S. Navy faced obsolescence of the fleet. It was estimated that by 1936, the destroyer type ships would reach the end of their service life. The period was marked by growing international tension. In June 1933, Congress enacted, and Roosevelt approved, the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) and FDR earmarked $237 million to build 32 ships. Congress took further action in the Naval Act of 1938 (Public Law 75-238), which mandated a 20% increase in fleet size and corresponding improvements in shore activities.[i] Work was not to begin before 1939. The act authorized the President to “construct 75,000 tons of auxiliary vessels of such size, type and design as he might consider best suited for national defense.” Accordingly, on August 23, 1939, keels for the two minesweepers were laid at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY).

Keel laying party lays the keel for USS Osprey (AM 56) at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, June 28, 1939. (NNSY)

Keels for USS Raven (AM 55) and USS Osprey (AM 56) in Drydock #2, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, June 28, 1939. (NNSY)

Building the ships was carried out in Drydock number 2 and was carried out simultaneously with the vessels alongside each other. Construction took fourteen months, and the ships were launched on August 24, 1940, with Elizabeth Baker and Margaret Kays, daughters of two NNSY officers, serving as sponsors. Both ships were “fully dressed” with colorful signal flags, and oversized “holiday” ensigns flew at the main truck. It was a stirring scene full of U.S. Navy tradition. The ships were moved to another location at the Yard for the outfitting. On November 11, 1940, Raven was commissioned with Lieutenant Commander Joe Warren Stryker in command. On December 16, 1940, Osprey was commissioned with Lieutenant Commander Cecil Llewellyn Blackwell—a 1925 U.S. Naval Academy graduate—in command. The ships were capable of minesweeping and antisubmarine warfare.

Launching of USS Raven and USS Osprey at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, August 24, 1940. (NNSY)

Commissioning of USS Osprey (AM 56). LCDR Cecil L. Blackwell and ship's officers at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, December 16, 1940. (NNSY)

Following fitting out and shakedown, both ships were assigned to Mine Division Twenty One at Norfolk. They conducted local training operations and also escorted ships in and out of the naval base and along the East Coast, which assumed greater importance with the increasing tensions in an unsettled world. The cruises ranged from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to the Panama Canal Zone. While on an escorting operation on March 23, 1942, Osprey rescued one survivor of the tanker Naeco, which had been torpedoed near Cape Lookout, North Carolina.[ii] Osprey and Raven participated in the November 8-11 invasion of North Africa known as Operation Torch, ensuring the safety of landing craft involved in the ship-to-shore movement. They performed anti-submarine operations and returned to the United States in early 1943 as part of a convoy. Each ship resumed escort duties until April 3, 1944, when they departed Hampton Roads bound for England and ultimately Normandy as a part of Operation Neptune, the maritime portion of Overlord, the invasion of continental Europe.

USS Osprey (AM 56), full view (NNSY)

The voyage to Europe is well documented in Osprey's war diary for April 1944. The ship and its sister were “moored at N.O.B. [Naval Operating Base] Norfolk” until their 8:04 am departure in accordance with Operation Order 1-44 of Commander Task Force 66 on the 3rd in a convoy of 34 ships, Yard Minesweepers (YMSs), and troop carrying landing craft (LCIs) with destroyer type ships as escorts.[iii] The twenty-one day crossing was broken into two legs, one from Norfolk to Horta in the Azores, and the other to Southwest England. In port at Horta, the ships were slowed by a collision between two LCIs, which required a stop for repairs.[iv] Nevertheless, the convoy made landfall in the Scilly Islands on April 24, 1944, and by 5:33 pm, they were anchored at Falmouth, England.[v] The ships undertook some minesweeping and reached Tor Bay later, remaining there until sailing for Normandy on June 5.

USS Osprey's war diary, April 1944, page 4 (NNSY)

Raven and Osprey, along with other minesweepers, left Tor Bay, Cornwall, at 6:30 am on June 5, 1944. They proceeded in an easterly direction, passing Portland Bill, until reaching Point How. Then, they turned toward Normandy. They were to drop lighted dan buoys to mark a safe channel. In the late afternoon, Osprey struck what its commanding officer stated was a moored contact mine.[vi] The nearby Raven’s commanding officer remarked that Osprey was “struck by a violent explosion and orange flame girded her amidships.” [vii] He noted that fifteen to twenty men “appeared in the water directly astern of the Osprey,” and rescue of the ship’s crew was undertaken by USS Chickadee (AM 59). Raven proceeded on duty assigned. The crew tried in vain to save the ship. The six crewmen lost—one officer and five enlisted men—“led the way” in the invasion of Normandy, according to the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Mike Gilday. They were LT (jg) Van Hamilton, Fireman Walter O’Bryan, Quartermaster 2nd Class Emery Parichy, Motor Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class Joseph Vanasky, Motor Machinist’s Mate 3rd Class Cleo Whitschell and Seaman John Medvic.

USS Osprey's loss report, June 17, 1944, page 1 (NNSY)

USS Raven's report of operations, June 5-15, 1944, page 3 (NNSY)

Raven, as part of Minesweeper Task Unit 125.9.3, sailed on to Normandy, dropping lighted dan buoys to mark a channel safe for transit by others.[viii] In the area near Utah Beach, Raven and other minesweepers carried out daylight sweeping operations to ensure that areas safe for landing were marked, and that areas for gunfire support ships were identified. At night, Raven performed underwater listening watches at the western extremity of the Amphibious Objective Area to prevent intrusion by enemy forces. On June 6, those aboard Raven observed “friendly transport planes showing amber lights crossing overhead at low altitude.”[ix] The ship maneuvered to pick up a British aviator who been shot down, though this was in fact accomplished by USS Nuthatch (AM 60). On the nights of the 7th and 8th, from its anchorage two miles north of Grandcamp, France, Sailors aboard Raven observed heavy volumes of anti-aircraft fire ashore. On the 9th, Raven was taken under fire by German shore batteries and returned fire, silencing them.[x] The daily pattern of sweeping operations in daylight and listening watches at night continued for the Raven until June 15, 1944, when the ship, in company with USS Chickadee (AM 59) departed the area to return to England. Raven returned to the United States in June 1945 and was decommissioned on May 31, 1946, placed in reserve at San Diego. Stricken from the Navy register on May 1, 1967, Raven was later sunk as a target, an ignominious end for ship that had served the Navy well.

USS Raven's report of operations, June 5-15, 1944, page 6 (NNSY)

USS Raven's report of operations, June 5-15, 1944, page 12 (NNSY)

There are two talismans of the service of the two sisters. The wreck of Osprey became a site frequented by amateur divers in the vicinity of the Isle of Wight, and in a somewhat unusual, mysterious fashion, the bell from the ill-fated ship was turned over to the British Maritime and Coast Guard Agency Receiver of Wrecks in 2019. The bell was restored to its pristine condition and turned over to the United States. It was unveiled by Admiral Gilday, along with the commissioning pennant of the first commanding officer provided by his son—also a Naval Academy graduate—for display in the American Embassy in London. As the CNO observed on August 18, 2022, in an unveiling ceremony at the embassy, “the Osprey Bell echoes with history proclaiming the honor, courage and commitment of those who served so nobly at sea.”[xi]

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday reveals the USS Osprey ship's bell during a dedication ceremony held at the U.S. Embassy in London, England, Aug. 18, 2022. (US Navy)

Author's Note: Special thanks to Marcus W. Robbins, Norfolk Naval Shipyard Historian, for his assistance with this blog.

Notes:
[i] Gray Hulls and Black Oil, Fast Tankers and Replenishment at Sea 1922-1992, Thomas Wildenburg, U.S. Naval Institute Press, 1996. The text references a memo entitled “The Navy’s needs written to Roosevelt by Admiral William V. Pratt, Chief of Naval Operations.
[ii] The Naeco had been sunk by U-124 while enroute from Houston, Texas to Seawaren, New Jersey
[iii] War Diary, USS Osprey (AM 56), AM 56/A12, Serial 0182 (C/DECL) 25 May 1944
[iv] Ibid, War Diary, p1.
[v] Ibid., War Diary,pp.3-5
[vi] Ltr(S/DECL) w/ends, Commanding Officer, USS Osprey (AM 56) to Secretary of the Navy, USS Osprey-Report of Loss of, 17 June 1944, p.1. The endorsement of Commander Mine Squadron Seven praises the Commanding Officer’s “valiant attempt to save his ship.”
[vii] Ltr(S/DECL) w/ends, Commanding Officer USS Raven (AM 55) to Commander Western Task Force, Chronological Report of Operations of USS Raven(AM 55) 5 June 1944 through 14 June 1944-Operation Neptune, p.3.
[viii] Ltr(S/DECL) w/ends, Commanding Officer, USS Osprey (AM 56) to Secretary of the Navy, USS Osprey-Report of Loss of, 17 June 1944, p.1. The endorsement of Commander Mine Squadron Seven praises the Commanding Officer’s “valiant attempt to save his ship.”
[viii] Ltr(S/DECL) w/ends, Commanding Officer USS Raven (AM 55) to Commander Western Task Force, Chronological Report of Operations of USS Raven(AM 55) 5 June 1944 through 14 June 1944-Operation Neptune, p.3.
[ix] Ibid., Chronological Report of Operations, p.6.
[x] Ibid., Chronological Report of Operations, p.12.
[xi] CNO Press Office, Speech by Admiral Mike Gilday, USN, August 18, 2022.