View source for USS Chauncey (DD-3)

{{Short description|Bainbridge-class destroyer}}
{{other ships|USS Chauncey}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}

{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=USS Chauncey (DD-3).jpg
|Ship caption=USS ''Chauncey'' photographed prior to World War I. 
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1917}}
|Ship name=''Chauncey''
|Ship namesake= [[Commodore (United States)|Commedore]] [[Isaac Chauncey]]
|Ship ordered=4 May 1898
|Ship awarded=1 October 1898
|Ship builder=[[Neafie and Levy Ship and Engine Building Company]] of [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]]
|Ship laid down=2 December 1899
|Ship launched=26 October 1901
|Ship commissioned=20 November 1902 (reduced commission)
|Ship decommissioned=2 December 1902 (placed in reserve)
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship commissioned=21 February 1903
|Ship decommissioned=3 December 1905
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship commissioned=12 January 1907
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship out of service=19 November 1917
|Ship struck=17 December 1917
|Ship fate=Sunk in collision with cargo ship SS ''Rose'' {{convert|110|mi|abbr=off}} west of [[Gibraltar]] 19 November 1917
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption={{sfn|Willshaw}}
|Ship class={{sclass|Bainbridge|destroyer}}
|Ship displacement=
*{{cvt|420|LT|lk=on}} (standard)
*{{cvt|592|LT}} (full load)
|Ship length=
*{{cvt|245|ft|1}} ([[Length between perpendiculars|pp]])
*{{cvt|250|ft|1}} ([[Length overall|oa]])
|Ship beam={{cvt|23|ft|7|in|1}}
|Ship draft={{cvt|6|ft|6|in|0}} (mean)
|Ship power=
*4 × [[Thornycroft boiler]]s
*{{cvt|8000|ihp|lk=on}}
|Ship propulsion=
*2 × [[Vertical triple expansion#Multiple expansion engines|Vertical triple expansion engines]]
*2 × [[Propeller]]s
|Ship speed=
*{{cvt|29|kn|lk=in}} (designed speed)
|Ship range=
|Ship complement=
*3 officers
*72 enlisted men
|Ship sensors=
|Ship armament=
*2 × [[3"/50 caliber gun|{{cvt|3|in|0}}/50]] [[caliber (artillery)|caliber]] guns
*5 × [[QF 6-pounder Hotchkiss#American service|6-pounder ({{cvt|57|mm|1}}) guns]]
*2 × {{cvt|18|in|0}} [[Torpedo tube|torpedo tubes]]
|Ship armor=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

The first '''USS ''Chauncey''''' was a {{sclass|Bainbridge|destroyer}}, also referred to as a "[[Torpedo-boat]] destroyer", in the [[United States Navy]] named for [[Commodore (United States)|Commodore]] [[Isaac Chauncey]]. She was launched in 1901 and sunk in 1917.

==Construction and design==
''Chauncey'' was [[Keel laying|laid down]] at [[Neafie and Levy Ship and Engine Building Company]] of [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]] on 2 December 1899 as a member of the ''Bainbridge'' class,{{#tag:ref|Some sources state that Torpedo Boat Destroyers 1–5 comprised the ''Bainbridge'' class,{{sfn|Chesneau|Kolesnik|1979|pp=157–158}}{{sfn|Osborne|2005|p=45}} while other sources state that four more very similar ships (Torpedo Boat Destroyers 10–13) were also part of the same class.{{sfn|Friedman|1982|p=17}}|group=lower-alpha}} and was launched on 26 October 1901.{{sfn|Chesneau|Kolesnik|1979|p= 157}}

''Chauncey'' was {{cvt|249|ft|9+7/8|in|2}} long [[length overall|overall]] and {{cvt|244|ft|2+7/8|in|2}} [[waterline length|at the waterline]], with a [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{cvt|23|ft|5|in}} and a [[Draft (hull)|draft]] of {{cvt|6|ft|6|in|2}}.{{sfn|Chesneau|Kolesnik|1979|p= 157}}{{sfn|Friedman|1982|p=392}} As the ''Bainbridge'' class was intended to be more seaworthy than the US Navy's torpedo boats, the ship had a raised [[forecastle]] instead of the "turtleback" forecastle common in European designs.{{sfn|Friedman|1982|pp=14–15}} Design [[displacement (ship)|displacement]] was {{convert|420|LT|lk=on}} and {{cvt|631|LT}} full load,{{sfn|Friedman|1982|p=392}} although all ships of the class were overweight.{{sfn|Friedman|1982|p=17}} Four [[Thornycroft boiler]]s fed steam at {{cvt|250|psi}} to [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|triple expansion steam engines]] rated at {{cvt|8000|ihp|lk=in}} driving two shafts for a design speed of {{cvt|28|kn}}. Four funnels were fitted.{{sfn|Chesneau|Kolesnik|1979|p= 157}}{{sfn|Friedman|1982|p=392}} Armament consisted of two [[3"/50 caliber gun|{{convert|3|in|0|adj=on}}/50 caliber]] guns, five [[QF 6-pounder Hotchkiss#American service|6-pounder ({{convert|57|mm|1}}) guns]] and two {{convert|18|in|0|adj=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s.{{sfn|Chesneau|Kolesnik|1979|p= 157}}

''Chauncey'' was placed in reduced commission on 20 November 1902, then placed in reserve on 2 December 1902 and received full [[ship commissioning|commission]] on 21 February 1903. [[Lieutenant (navy)|Lieutenant]] Stanford Elwood Moses was placed in command and ''Chauncey'' reported to the [[United States Fleet Forces Command|Atlantic Fleet]].{{sfn|DANFS|2015}}

==Pre-World War I==
''Chauncey'' served with the [[Coast Squadron]] until 20 September 1903, when she was transferred to the [[Asiatic Fleet]] and left [[Key West]] for the [[Orient]] on 18 December. After sailing by way of the [[Suez Canal]], she arrived at [[Cavite]] to join the force representing US interest in the Far East as it cruised in the [[Philippines]] during winters and off [[China]] during summers. Aside from the period of 3 December 1905 – 12 January 1907, when she was in reserve at Cavite, ''Chauncey'' continued this service until the entrance of America into [[World War I]].{{sfn|DANFS|2015}}

===Sinking===
The destroyer sailed from Cavite on 1 August 1917 for [[convoy]] escort duty in the eastern [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]], based at [[St. Nazaire]], France. On 19 November, while about {{convert|110|mi|km|abbr=on}} west of [[Gibraltar]] on escort duty, ''Chauncey'' was rammed by the [[United Kingdom|British]] merchantman SS ''Rose'' as both ships steamed in war-imposed darkness. At 03:17, ''Chauncey'' sank in {{cvt|1500|fathom|ft m}} of water, taking to their death 21 men including her [[Captain (naval)|captain]], [[Lieutenant commander (United States)|Lieutenant Commander]] [[Walter E. Reno]], the namesake of the {{sclass|Clemson|destroyer|1}} {{USS|Reno|DD-303|2}},{{sfn|DANFS DD-303|2016}} and [[Lieutenant (junior grade)|LTJG]] [[Charles F. Wedderburn]], the namesake of the {{sclass|Fletcher|destroyer|1}} {{USS|Wedderburn|DD-684|2}}.{{sfn|DANFS DD-684|2016}} Seventy survivors were picked up by ''Rose'', and carried to port.{{sfn|DANFS|2015}}

==''Chauncey'' in literature==
The novel [[Delilah (novel)|''Delilah'']] was written by a survivor of ''Chauncey'', Marcus Goodrich, and is a fictional account based on his experience serving aboard ''Chauncey'' as an enlisted man.{{Citation needed|date=October 2016}}

==Noteworthy commanding officers==
* [[Ensign (rank)#United States|Ensign]] Joseph Rollie Defrees (26 September 1905 – 3 December 1905) (Later [[Rear admiral (United States)|Rear Admiral]])
* [[Lieutenant (navy)|Lieutenant]] [[Frank Jack Fletcher]] (18 April 1912 – 21 December 1912) (Later [[Admiral (United States)|Admiral]]) - [[Fletcher-class destroyer|''Fletcher''-class destroyer]] named for his uncle, Medal of Honor recipient [[Frank Friday Fletcher|Admiral Frank F. Fletcher]].

==Notes==
{{notelist|group=lower-alpha}}
===Citations===
{{reflist|30em}}

== Bibliography ==
===Books===
*{{cite book
  |last1=Chesneau
  |first1=Roger
  |last2=Kolesnik
  |first2=Eugene M.
  |title=Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905
  |year=1979
  |publisher=Conway Maritime Press
  |location=London
  |isbn=0-85177-133-5
  }}
* {{cite book
  |last=Friedman
  |first=Norman
  |author-link=Norman Friedman
  |title=U.S. Destroyers: An Illustrated History
  |year=1982
  |publisher=Naval Institute Press
  |location=Annapolis, Maryland, USA
  |isbn=0-87021-733-X
  }}
* {{cite book
  |last=Osborne
  |first=Eric W.
  |title=Destroyers: An Illustrated History of their Impact
  |year=2005
  |publisher=ABC-Clio
  |location=Santa Barbara, California, USA
  |isbn=1-85109-484-9
  |url=http://ebookbrowsee.net/destroyers-an-illustrated-history-of-their-impact-pdf-d152844223
  }}

===Online sources===
* {{cite web
  |last=Willshaw
  |first=Fred 
  |url=http://www.navsource.net/archives/05/003.htm
  |title=USS Chauncey (DD-3) 
  |website=NavSource 
  |access-date=12 June 2015
  }}
* {{cite DANFS
  |title=Chauncey I (DD-3)
  |url=http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/c/chauncey-i.html
  |publisher=Naval History and Heritage Command
  |date=30 June 2015
  |accessdate=29 October 2016
  |ref={{sfnRef|DANFS|2015}}
  }}{{PD-notice}}
* {{cite DANFS
  |title=Wedderburn (DD-684)
  |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/w/wedderburn.html  |publisher=Naval History and Heritage Command
  |date=5 April 2016
  |accessdate=3 March 2017
  |ref={{sfnRef|DANFS DD-684|2016}}
  }}
* {{cite DANFS
  |title=Reno I (Destroyer No. 303)
  |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/r/reno-i.html
  |publisher=Naval History and Heritage Command
  |date=25 February 2016
  |accessdate=3 March 2017
  |ref={{sfnRef|DANFS DD-303|2016}}
  }}
* {{cite journal
  |last=Haislip
  |first=Harvey, CAPT USN. 
  |title=A Memory of Ships 
  |publisher=United States Naval Institute 
  |journal=Proceedings CIII      
  |date=1977
  }}

==External links==
{{Commons category|USS Chauncey (DD-3)}}

{{Bainbridge class destroyer}}
{{November 1917 shipwrecks}}
{{coord missing|Atlantic Ocean}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chauncey (DD-3)}}
[[Category:Bainbridge-class destroyers]]
[[Category:World War I destroyers of the United States]]
[[Category:Ships built by Neafie and Levy]]
[[Category:Ships sunk in collisions]]
[[Category:World War I shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean]]
[[Category:1901 ships]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in November 1917]]