USS Hugh Purvis

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USS Hugh Purvis (DD-709) was a Sumner-class destroyer in the U.S. Navy from 1945 to 1972. It was named for Marine Hugh Purvis, a Medal of Honor recipient who served from 1869 to 1884. The ship was built in Kearny, New Jersey, launched in December 1944, and commissioned in March 1945. After shakedown in the Caribbean, it trained in Hawaiian waters and then operated out of Newport, Rhode Island.

In the late 1940s and 1950s, Hugh Purvis sailed with the U.S. 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean, took part in NATO exercises, and supported peacekeeping efforts. It played roles during the Suez Crisis of 1956 and the Lebanon crisis in 1958.

In 1960–1961 the destroyer underwent a Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) overhaul at Boston, receiving a helicopter deck and hangar and improved anti-submarine gear, including the DASH drone helicopter. It also helped recover John Glenn’s Mercury space capsule in 1962.

During the Cuban Missile Crisis, Hugh Purvis provided gunfire support off Cuba. The ship continued antisubmarine operations along the Atlantic and Caribbean coasts and, in 1968, deployed to the Western Pacific near Vietnam, supporting aircraft carriers and gunfire missions and assisting in the salvage of the submarine USS Safeguard. For these actions, it earned the Meritorious Unit Commendation and the Combat Action Ribbon.

After more training duties, Hugh Purvis was decommissioned in June 1972. It was sold to Turkey in July 1972 and renamed TCG Zafer (D356). The Turkish ship served until 1993 and was scrapped in 1994.

Specifications (quick view): Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer, about 2,200 tons, length 376 feet 6 inches, beam 40 feet, top speed around 34 knots, crew about 336. Armament included six 5-inch guns, numerous anti-aircraft guns, torpedoes, and depth charges.