USS John R. Craig DD885 List of Deployments and Major Events
A big thank you to our Historian Hank Lehtola for compiling the data.

Month Year To Month Year Deployment / Event
November 1944       Keel Laid: November 17, 1944
April 1945       Launched: April 14, 1945
August 1945       Commissioned: August 20, 1945
February 7 1946 to January 31 1947 Occupation Forces - Japan Repatriation of POW's
April 1950       Oriental Cruise / Korea
May 1950       Screen USS Boxer CV-21
June 25 1950       Korean War Begins
February 1951 to September 1951 4th - West Pac - Korea
April 26 1951       Cross the Equator
May 7 - 14 1951       The USS John R. Craig, along with other US destroyers pound the airfield, truck and rail traffic in the Kalmagak area.
May 1951       Inspection tour of Chichi Jima, Bonin Islands.
September 18 1951       Wonsan, Korea, attack and shootout at Kalmagak Island.
May 31 1952 to February 1953 5th - West Pac / Korea
August 12 1952       Shell North Korean shore batteries near Hungnam.
October 1952       Yellow Sea - Screen British Carriers HMS Ocean R-68 and HMS Glory R-62.
October 13 1952       Kijin-ni area silenced shore batteries after receiving counter battery fire during a fire mission. No damage or casualties.
October 18 1952       Kosong received shore battery fire, no damage or casualties.
July 27 1953       Korean War Ends
August 7 1953 to March 13 1954 6th - West Pac
November 1953       Formosa Patrol.
December 10 - 17 1953       Formosa Patrol
October 1954 to April 1955 7th - West Pac Tour.
February 12 1955       Vietnam War Begins - The first US military advisors arrive in Vietnam.
February 1955       Assist in the evacuation of Nationalist Chinese from Tachen Islands.
November 1955 to May 1956 8th - West Pac Tour
December 16 1955       Cross the Equator Shellback Initiation - Pacific Ocean
February 1956       Operation "NAVMARLEX" (Navy-Marine Assault Exercise).
March 12 1956       Stand by to assist after the collision of the USS Floyd B. Parks DD-884 with the USS Columbus CA-74.
January 1957 to June 1957 9th - West Pac Tour
March 1957       Operation "Beacon Hill" (Pacific Fleet Training Exercise).
Date??         Exercises with the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Forces.
February 20 1958 to September 1958 10th - West Pac Tour
February 28 1958       Cross the Equator Lat. 000, Long. 165-3000.
April 28 1958 to May 22 1958 Operation Hardtack I
(Nuclear bomb Test)
June 1960 to November 1960 11th - West Pac
September 7 1960 to October 13 1960 Formosa Straits Operations.
August 1961 to February 1962 12th - West Pac
September 24 1961 to October 16 1961 Formosa Straits Operations.
October 20 1961 to November 1 1961 Formosa Straits Operations.
March 6 1962 to February 1963 FRAM I Hunters Point Naval Ship Yard, San Francisco, CA.
November 9 1962       JRC crew helps to battle a pier fire at Hunters Point Shipyard.
October 17 1963 to April 16 1964 13th - West Pac - Viet Nam
November 16 1963 to December 5 1963 Formosa Patrol.
November 23 1963       The Death of President Kennedy - Moored in Kaohsiung Harbor, Taiwan.
December 13 - 21 1963       South China Sea, Screen USS Midway CVA-41.
February 28 1964 to March 11 1964 Desoto Patrol
March 6 1965 to September 11 1965 14th - West Pac - Viet Nam
April 8 1965 to June 11 1965 "Yankee Station" Screen USS Midway CVA-41.
June 11 1965 to July 3 1965 "Yankee Station" Screen USS Oriskany CVA-34.
July 20 1965 to August 11 1965 Command ship gun fire support group DaNang-Viet Nam area.
July 28 1965 to July 29 1965

While responding to a Mayday on 28–29 July 1965 in the Da Nang area, John R. Craig supported U.S. Marine and Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) units with naval gunfire support. At night with danger close, she fired 348 5-inch rounds, preventing the overrun of 3rd Platoon, Hotel Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marines on and near the beach as well as two platoons of the ARVN 2nd Regional Force by a larger Viet Cong (VC) unit. In doing so she effectively destroyed the 7th VC Battalion engaging Marines on the Ca De River Bridge and the northern sector of Da Nang. Some additional Info on this action:  USS Stoddard Article and William Scott Article

August 10 1965       Moored in DaNang, Vietnam Harbor to transfer personal ashore to send back to states.
July 28 1966 to January 1967 15th - West Pac - Viet Nam
August 1966       Marjorie Sterrett Battleship Fund Award - Pacific Winner
September 2 1966       "Yankee Station" Screen USS Coral Sea CVA-43.
September 17 - 27 1966       Operation Golden Fleece (gun fire support).
November 7 - 20 1966       Operation Traffic Cop/Sea Dragon (DMZ supply interdiction)
December 28 1967 to July 5 1968 16th - West Pac - Viet Nam
January 31 1968 to February 22 1968 Operation Formation Star (USS Pueblo AGER-2 Incident)
March 4 1968 to March 21 1968 Sea of Japan screen USS Kearsarge CVS-33 and USS Ticonderoga CVA-14.
March 1968 to April 1968 "Yankee Station" Screen USS Enterprise CVN-65.
May 3 1968 to May 7 1968 Gun Fire Support - Vietnam.
June 1968       Vietnam waters, screen USS Yorktown CVS-10.
June 3 1969 to November 3 1969 17th - West Pac - Vietnam
July 1 1969 to August 7 1969 "Yankee Station" Screen USS Ticonderoga CVA-14.
August 7 1969 to August 22 1969 Gun Fire Support - Vietnam.
August 22 1969 to August 30 1969  "Yankee Station" Screen USS Bon Homme Richard CVA-31.
September 20 1969 to October 8 1969 "Yankee Station" Screen USS Bon Homme Richard CVA-31.
September 9 1970       Missing Helm Wheel.
October 26 1970 to April 22 1971 19th - West Pac - Viet Nam
November 27 1970 to December 13 1970 Gulf of Tonkin USS Chicago CG-11.
December 13 - 18 1970       "Yankee Station" Screen USS Ranger CVA-61.
January 2 - 4 1971       Gun Fire Support - Vietnam.
January 15 1971 to February 11 1971 Sea of Japan Patrol w/ USS Huel DDG-13 and USS Gridley DLG-21.
March 2 -16 1971       Gulf of Tonkin North SAR (Search and Rescue) area w/ USS Halsey DLG-21.
March 19 - 23 1971       "Yankee Station" Screen USS Hancock CVA-19.
March 25 1971 to April 1 1971 Gun Fire Support - Vietnam.
November 16 1971 to July 20 1972 20th - West Pac - Viet Nam
December 16 - 23 1971       Gun Fire Support south of DaNang.
December 23 1971 to January 1972 "Yankee Station" Screen USS Coral Sea CVA-43.
February 25 1972       Army UH-1H helicopter crash w/loss of life.
April 3 1972       Man lost at sea, Gulf of Tonkin, Thomas Richard Muren FA.
April 9 1972       While supporting ARVN and American units close to the Vietnamese Demilitarized Zone, the USS John R. Craig took North Vietnamese artillery fire, using 105 mm howitzers captured from the ARVN. Hundreds of artillery shells fell around her and she was struck by numerous fragments as well as five direct hits which started several fires. One hit at the waterline flooded a compartment with 3 feet (0.91 m) of water, and was dead in the water until the electrical systems and power could be restored. After a quick fix with a soft patch at Da Nang she returned to fight and support allied units the next day, again receiving enemy fire, but did not take any hits. I was on her at that time Don Caldwell.
May 17 1972       Cross the Equator. Lat000, Long. 105-20E.
January 1973 to July 1973 21st - West Pac - Vietnam
February 6 - 16 1973       Vietnam Area.
February 27 1973 to March 12 1973 Vietnam Area
January 1974       Transferred to Naval Reserve Force
April 30 1975       VIETNAM WAR ENDS
Unknown Dates 1977       West Coast Cruise.
June 1977       Portland Rose Festival.
July 27 1979       Decommissioned - July 27,1979
June 5 1980       Sunk as a target 030o 19' North, 119o 32' West.


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