In the Month of March 1940

US NAVY

Friday, 1 March 1940

            U.S. freighter Exeter is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 4 March).

Saturday, 2 March 1940

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities, but is released the same day. Some 80of 200 items of cargo, however, are detained subject to guarantees as to their destinations.

Monday, 4 March 1940

            U.S. freighter Exeter, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 1 March, is released, but not before 155 sacks of mail for Germany are removed, as are 95 sacks for Italy and 59 for Switzerland. Some 140 sacks previously removed from other neutral ships, however, are brought on board and the ship is permitted to sail.

Friday, 8 March 1940

            War again comes to the Americas: Canadian destroyer HMCS Assiniboine stops German freighter Hannover in Mona Passage, off the coast of the Dominican Republic, at which point the merchantman's crew sets fire to the ship and abandons her. Boarding party from British light cruiser HMS Dunedin, however, saves Hannover from destruction. Conflicting representations by British and German diplomats as to Hannover's exact position prompt the Dominican government to drop the question of violation of territorial waters (see 24 May). Hannover will ultimately be converted into the escort carrier HMS Audacity. The effort expended to capture Hannover, however, allows German freighters Mimi Horn and Seattle to escape the Caribbean and make a break for Germany.

            Mimi Horn is scuttled to avoid capture in Denmark Strait on 28 March; Seattle is lost during the early phases of the invasion of Norway on 8‑9 April.

Saturday, 9 March 1940

            U.S. freighter Exmoor is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 11 March).

Sunday, 10 March 1940

            U.S. freighters Explorer, Exchester, and West Cohas are detained at Gibraltar by British authorities; all are released, however, after only several hours.

Monday, 11 March 1940

            U.S. freighter Exmoor, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 9 March, is released.

Tuesday, 12 March 1940

            Russo‑Finnish War ends. Finnish desire to win back territory lost to Soviet encroachment (city of Viborg and areas along Finland's eastern borders) will push them closer toward the Axis.

Wednesday, 13 March 1940

            Fleet Landing Exercise (FLEX) No. 6 concludes at Culebra, Puerto Rico. The Fleet Marine Force makes progress in developing techniques for rubber boat landings, getting heavy combat materiel ashore, and improving ship‑to‑shore supply.

Saturday, 16 March 1940

            President of Panama transmits protest to King of England over British violation of Pan‑American Neutrality Zone in the Wakama Incident that took place off the coast of Brazil on 12 February.

Thursday, 21 March 1940

            Auxiliary Bear (AG‑29) and Interior Department motorship North Star (U.S. Antarctic Service) depart Bay of Whales for the United States. Staying behind are the men who will spend the long winter night at East and West Bases.

Monday, 25 March 1940

            Heavy cruiser Augusta (CA‑31) is damaged when she strikes an uncharted pinnacle in Coron Bay, P.I.

 

On The Week of 25 February – 2 March 1940

US NAVY

Sunday, 25 February 1940

            U.S. freighter West Camargo is stopped by unidentified French cruiser off north coast of Venezuela, 11°30'N,66°20'W; French make no attempt to board but only request information "where from, where bound, and what cargo” before allowing the merchantman to proceed after a 20 minute delay.

            U.S. freighter Exochorda is detained for several hours at Gibraltar by British authorities, but is allowed to proceed.

Monday, 26 February 1940

            Captain Raymond A. Spruance relieves Commander Reuben L. Walker as Commandant Tenth Naval District.

            U.S. passenger liner Washington is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities.

Tuesday, 27 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Sundance is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities.

Thursday, 29 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Cold Harbor is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities.

Friday, 1 March 1940

            U.S. freighter Exeter is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 4 March).

Saturday, 2 March 1940

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities, but is released the same day. Some 80of 200 items of cargo, however, are detained subject to guarantees as to their destinations.

On The Week of 18 – 24 February 1940

US NAVY

Wednesday, 21 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Sahale is detained by British authorities at Gibraltar (see 22 February); freighter Exhibitor, detained since 17 February, is allowed to proceed.

Thursday, 22 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Sahale, detained by British authorities at Gibraltar the previous day, is released.

Friday, 23 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Lehigh is detained for several hours at Gibraltar by British authorities, but is allowed to proceed the same day.

Saturday, 24 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Scottsburg is detained for several hours at Malta by British authorities, but is allowed to proceed the same day.

On The Week of 11 – 17 February 1940

US NAVY

Sunday, 11 February 1940

            U.S. Antarctic Service West Base main building is completed sufficiently to permit occupation. Over the next two months, the base‑‑three buildings connected to an elaborate system of tunnels and caches‑‑is finished by the time the sun sets for the winter on 21 April.

Monday, 12 February 1940

            War again comes to the Americas: British heavy cruiser HMS Dorsetshire stops German freighter Wakama 12 miles off Cabo Frio, Brazil; Wakama's crew scuttles her so that their ship will not fall into British hands (see 16 March).

            U.S. Ambassador to Brazil Jefferson Caffery reports to Secretary of State Hull on 20 March 1940 that the Brazilian government’s protesting Dorsetshire's stopping Wakama had not pleased the British. The British maintained that they were protecting Brazilian commerce. "Indeed you are not," the Brazilian Minister for Foreign Affairs Oswaldo Aranharetorts, "you are definitely not protecting our commerce by maintaining your warships off our coast. It is apparent to me that your blockade of Germany is plainly ineffective. If it were effective, you could stop the German boats [sic] on the other side before they entered German ports."

Tuesday, 13 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Exford, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 5 February, is released.

Wednesday, 14 February 1940

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan is detained at Gibraltar for several hours by British authorities but allowed to proceed; not as fortunate is freighter Exermont, which is also detained there (see 16 February).

Thursday, 15 February 1940

            President Roosevelt embarks in heavy cruiser Tuscaloosa (CA‑37) at Pensacola, Florida, for a cruise to Panama and the west coast of Central America to discuss Pan‑American defense and to inspect the Panama Canal.

            Destroyer Goff (DD‑247) collides with and sinks harbor tug Wicomico (YT‑26) in Hampton Roads, off Naval Operating Base, Norfolk. Goff, her bow damaged in the mishap, rescues Wicomico's 11‑man crew.

Friday, 16 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Excalibur is detained for several hours by British authorities at Gibraltar but is released; freighter Exermont, detained since 14 February, is allowed to proceed as well.

            British destroyer HMS Cossack violates Norwegian territorial waters, boards German tanker Altmark in Jøssing fjord, and recovers 303 merchant seamen from ships destroyed by German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee during her commerce‑raiding activities.

Saturday, 17 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Exhibitor is detained by British authorities at Gibraltar (see 21 February).

 

 

On The Week of 4 – 10 February 1940

US NAVY

Sunday, 4 February 1940

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan, detained at Gibraltar the previous day, is released, but not before British authorities seize 390 sacks of German mail. American diplomatic mail pouches, however, are not disturbed.

Monday, 5 February 1940

            Light cruiser Helena (CL‑50) arrives at Santos, Brazil, on her shakedown cruise (see 10 February).

            U.S. freighter Exford is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 13 February).

Tuesday, 6 February 1940

            German freighter Konsul Horn, which had departed Aruba on 7 January, reaches Norwegian waters having eluded or deceived the U.S. Neutrality Patrol as well as British and French warships.

Thursday, 8 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Scottsburg is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 9 February).8

Friday, 9 February 1940

            U.S. freighter Scottsburg, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities the previous day, is released.

Saturday, 10 February 1940

            Light cruiser Helena (CL‑50) departs Santos, Brazil, winding up her shakedown cruise.

            U.S. freighter West Chatala is detained for several hours at Gibraltar by British authorities but is released to continue her voyage.

On The Week of 29 January – 3 February 1940

US NAVY

Sunday, 28 January 1940

            U.S. freighter Sarcoxic is detained temporarily at Gibraltar for several hours by British authorities; freighter Waban, bound for Italy and Greece, is also held there briefly but is allowed to proceed after one item of cargo is seized as contraband and 34 detained for investigation.

Monday, 29 January 1940

            British Admiralty orders that no American ships should, under any circumstances, be diverted into the war zone delineated by President Roosevelt in the provisions of the Neutrality Act.

            Light cruiser Helena (CL‑50) steams from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Montevideo, Uruguay, on her shakedown cruise (see 2 February).

            U.S. freighter Exochorda is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 1 February).

Tuesday, 30 January 1940

            U.S. freighters Examelia (detained at Gibraltar since 20 January) and Cold Harbor (detained there since 27 January) are released by British authorities.

Wednesday, 31 January 1940

            U.S. passenger liner Washington is detained for several hours at Gibraltar by British authorities, but is allowed to proceed the same day; freighter Jomar is also detained there (see 1 February).

Thursday, 1 February 1940

            President Roosevelt writes First Lord of the Admiralty Winston S. Churchill, concerning the detention of U.S. merchantmen, and frankly informs him of adverse American reaction to the British policy. "The general feeling is,” Roosevelt informs Churchill, "that the net benefit to your people and the French is hardly worth the definite annoyance caused to us.”

            U.S. freighter Exminster is detained by British authorities at Gibraltar (see 9 February); freighters Exochorda (detained since 30 January) and Jomar (detained since 31 January) are released.

Friday, 2 February 1940

            Light cruiser Helena (CL‑50), at Montevideo, Uruguay, on her shakedown cruise, sends party to inspect wreck of German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee.

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan is stopped by French auxiliary patrol vessel Vaillant about 25 miles southeast of Cape St. Vincent, Portugal, and ordered to proceed to Gibraltar for examination (see 3‑4 February).

Saturday, 3 February 1940

            Light cruiser Helena (CL‑50) departs Montevideo, Uruguay, for Brazilian waters as her shakedown cruise continues (see 5 February).

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 4 February).

On The Week of 22 – 28 January 1940

US NAVY

Sunday, 21 January 1940

            Auxiliary Bear (AG‑29) follows leads in the ice spotted on the 19th; the ship's Barkley‑Grow floatplane flies over the northern limits of the Edsel Ford Mountains.

            Minesweeper Penguin (AM‑33) transfers 24 survivors of Japanese fishing schooner No. 1 Seiho Maru, stranded off the southeast coast of Guam, M.I., on 15 January, to Japanese freighter Saipan Maru.

            British light cruiser HMS Liverpool stops Japanese passenger liner Asama Maru 35 miles off Nozaki, Chiba Prefecture, Japan, and removes 21 Germans from the ship. All but nine are naval reservists, survivors of the scuttled passenger liner Columbus; the nine civilians are released. The incident further strains relations between Great Britain and Japan.

            U.S. freighter Nishmaha is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 22 January).

Monday, 22 January 1940

            Joint amphibious exercise concludes in the Monterey, California, area, having afforded the Fleet profitable experience in joint planning. It also demonstrates interservice cooperation.

            Light cruiser Helena (CL‑50) arrives at Buenos Aires, Argentina, on her shakedown cruise (see 29 January).

            Rear Admiral Adolphus E. Watson becomes Commandant Fourth Naval District and Commandant Philadelphia Navy Yard in the wake of the death of Rear Admiral Julius C. Townsend on 28 December 1939.

            U.S. freighter Excellency is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 23 January); freighter Nishmaha, detained there the previous day, is released.

Tuesday, 23 January 1940

            Great Britain and France announce they will attack any German vessels encountered in Pan‑American Safety Zone.

            Destroyer J. Fred Talbott (DD‑247) arrives at Wreck Bay, Galapagos Islands, to assist U.S. tuna boat City of SanDiego (see 24 January).

            U.S. freighter Excambion, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 17 January, is released to proceed on her voyage to Genoa, Italy, but not before 470 sacks of mail (bound for Germany and Italy) are seized; freighter Excellency, detained at Gibraltar the previous day, is released.

Wednesday, 24 January 1940

            Interior Department motorship North Star (U.S. Antarctic Service) departs Bay of Whales, Antarctica for Valparaiso, Chile, for additional supplies and equipment to establish East Base. Construction of West Base commences immediately at the site chosen that lies at 78°29'06"S, 163°50'10"W, two miles from the edge of the ice barrier and five miles northeast of the site of Little America I and Little America II, the previous Byrd expedition bases. Until the main building is completed for habitation, the men live in regulation army tents (see 11 February).

            Gunboat Erie (PG‑50) joins destroyer J. Fred Talbott (DD‑247) at Wreck Bay, Galapagos Islands, to assist U.S. tuna boat City of San Diego. The gunboat takes on board the craft's chief engineer (pneumonia) and sails the following day for Balboa, where the man will be transferred ashore for medical attention.

Thursday, 25 January 1940

            Auxiliary Bear (AG‑29) (U.S. Antarctic Service) reaches 77°43'S, 143°52'W; it marks the deepest penetration by any ship into the Antarctic region.

Friday, 26 January 1940

            United States‑Japanese Trade Treaty of 1911 expires.

            Minesweeper Quail (AM‑15) arrives at Palmyra Island with first construction party to begin building a naval air station there.

Saturday, 27 January 1940

            U.S. freighter Cold Harbor, bound for Odessa, is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 30 January).

On The Week of 14 – 20 January 1940

US NAVY

Sunday, 14 January 1940

            Auxiliary Bear (AG‑29) reaches Bay of Whales, Antarctica. Along with Interior Department motorship North Star, Bear will establish the two bases to be used in the U.S. Antarctic Service's 1939‑1941 expedition under Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd, USN (Ret.).

            British Minister in Panama Charles Dodd transmits response of British government to note sent by the President of Panama on behalf of the 21 American Republics concerning the violation of American neutrality that occurred in the Battle of the River Plate. The British "reserve their full belligerent rights in order to fight the menace presented by German action and policy and to defend that conception of law and that way of life, which they believe to be as dear to the peoples and Governments of America as they are to the peoples and Governments of the British Commonwealth of Nations" (see 12 February and 8 March).

            U.S. freighter Narbo detained at Gibraltar by British authorities the previous day, is released to continue her voyage to Italy, Yugoslavia, and Greece, but not before some items from her cargo are removed as contraband.

Monday, 15 January 1940

            Joint amphibious exercise begins in the Monterey, California, area, to provide training for the Army and Navy in planning and executing Joint operations, to train Army troops in embarking and disembarking, and to afford an opportunity for elements of the GHQ Air Force and Navy patrol squadrons to work together and with ground forces (see 22 January). Commander Battle Force (Admiral Charles P. Snyder) conducts the Navy portion of the exercise.

            Japanese fishing schooner No. 1 Seiho Maru is stranded on reef off southeast coast of Guam, M.I. A detail of Guam Militia (12th Company) renders necessary assistance during salvage operations (see 21 January).

            Minesweeper Penguin (AM‑33) rescues the 24‑man crew.

Wednesday, 17 January 1940

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan and freighter Excambion are detained at Gibraltar by British authorities; the former is kept there for only a few hours before being allowed to proceed (see 23 January).

            British Foreign Office replies to U.S. protest on treatment of mail, concluding that "His Majesty's Government find themselves unable to share the views of the United States government that their [the British] action in examining neutral mail in British or neutral shipping is contrary to their obligations under international law."

Thursday, 18 January 1940

            British commence censorship of air mail passing through Bermuda; censor there removes through‑bound mail for European destinations from Lisbon‑bound Pan American Airways Boeing 314 American Clipper. A written protest is lodged and no assistance in the unloading process is offered.

Friday, 19 January 1940

            Auxiliary Bear (AG‑29) steams eastward to begin flight operations in the vicinity of Biscoe Bay; the ship's embarked Barkley‑Grow floatplane (Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd, navigator) reconnoiters Sulzberger Bay to determine leads in the ice to permit Bear's movement further to the east.

Saturday, 20 January 1940

            United States protests British treatment of American shipping in the Mediterranean.

            U.S. freighter Examelia is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 31 January); passenger liner Washington, bound for Genoa, is detained only a few hours before being allowed to proceed.

On The Week of 7 – 13 January 1940

US NAVY

Sunday, 7 January 1940

            U.S. freighter City of Flint departs Narvik for Baltimore, Maryland. For his "skill, fine judgement [sic], and devotion to duty" during City of Flint's ordeal, Captain Joseph A. Gainard, the freighter's master, will receive the Navy Cross.

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities the previous day, is released.

            German freighter Konsul Horn escapes from Aruba and, disguised as a Soviet merchantman, manages to deceive U.S. Navy patrol planes from the Neutrality Patrol and British light cruiser HMS Enterprise (see 6 February).

Tuesday, 9 January 1940

            U.S. freighter Western Queen is detained at Gibraltar for several hours by British authorities.

Wednesday, 10 January 1940

            U.S. steamship President Van Buren, bound for Genoa, Italy, and New York, is detained at Port Said, Egypt, and subsequently discharges items of cargo, deemed as contraband, at Alexandria, Egypt, before being allowed to proceed.

Thursday, 11 January 1940

            Fleet Landing Exercise (FLEX) No. 6 begins at Culebra, Puerto Rico. Lack of transports compels the Navy to substitute combatant ships in that role for purposes of the exercise; an important exception is the prototype high speed transport Manley (APD‑1), converted from a World War I‑emergency program "flush‑deck, four‑pipe" destroyer, which amply proves her worth.

            Gunboat Charleston (PG‑51) suffers damage when she runs aground at Colon, Canal Zone.

            U.S. freighter Tripp is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 13 January).

Friday, 12 January 1940

            Interior Department motorship North Star (U.S. Antarctic Service) reaches Bay of Whales, Antarctica, and immediately begins discharging cargo to establish West Base. Ice conditions prohibit unloading at the original chosen site, King Edward VII Land.

Saturday, 13 January 1940

            U.S. freighter Narbo, bound for Italy, Yugoslavia, and Greece, is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 14January). Freighter Tripp, detained at Gibraltar by the British since 11 January, is released, but not before some items of her cargo are seized as contraband.

On The Week of 1 – 6 January 1940

Monday, 1 January 1940

            Tenth Naval District with headquarters at San Juan, Puerto Rico, is established, Commander Reuben L. Walker is first commandant (see 26 February).

            U.S. freighter City of Flint, her odyssey almost at an end, is damaged in collision with British steamship Baron Blytheswood. Repairs to City of Flint will keep her at Narvik, Norway, for another six days.

            U.S. freighter Exeter is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities.

            Uruguayan government interns German freighter Tacoma at Montevideo as an auxiliary war vessel.

            Charles Edison of New Jersey becomes Secretary of the Navy; he had been Acting Secretary since the death of Claude A. Swanson on 7 July 1939. Department of State releases statement to press telling of the delivery of "vigorous protest" (dated 27 December 1939) to the British Foreign Office concerning the British removing and censoring U.S. mail from British and U.S. and neutral ships.

Wednesday, 3 January 1940

            U.S. freighter Mormacsun is intercepted by British naval vessel and diverted to Kirkwall, Scotland, into the zone designated as a combat area. Freighter Nashaba is detained by British authorities at Gibraltar; freighter Executive, detained at Gibraltar since 20 December 1939, is released to proceed on her voyage to Greece, Turkey, and Rumania.

Thursday, 4 January 1940

            U.S. freighter Exiria is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities.

Friday, 5 January 1940

            German tanker Nordmeer reaches Vigo, Spain, after her voyage from the Netherlands West Indies.

Saturday, 6 January 1940

            Admiral James O. Richardson relieves Admiral Claude C. Bloch as Commander in Chief U.S. Fleet on board battleship Pennsylvania (BB‑38) at Pearl Harbor, T.H. Admiral Charles P. Snyder hoists flag as Commander Battle Force on board battleship California (BB‑44).

            U.S. passenger liner Manhattan is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 7 January).

 

On The Week of 24-31 December 1939

US NAVY

Wednesday, 27 December 1939

            Department of State dispatches "vigorous protest" to British Foreign Office concerning the British practice of removing and censoring U.S. mail from British and U.S. and neutral ships (see 2 January 1940).

            U.S. Consul General in Hamburg Keblinger reports that German prize control authorities have released all but seven neutral vessels detained in German ports for the evaluation of cargo deemed contraband.

            U.S. freighter Oakwood, en route from Gibraltar to Genoa, is intercepted by French naval vessel and diverted to Villefranche after boarding officer mistakes notation in log as an order to proceed to Marseilles. Once the mistake is realized, the ship is released to proceed on her way within a few hours.

Thursday, 28 December 1939

            Rear Admiral William L. Calhoun assumes duty as Commander Base Force and breaks his flag in auxiliary Argonne (AG‑31).

            Rear Admiral Julius C. Townsend, Commandant Fourth Naval District and Philadelphia Navy Yard, dies of bronchial cancer at U.S. Naval Hospital, Brooklyn, N.Y.

            U.S. freighter Exilona is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities.

Friday, 29 December 1939

            U.S. steamship President Adams is detained at Port Said, Egypt, by British authorities. Cargo suspected of being contraband is discharged at Alexandria, Egypt.

Saturday, 30 December 1939

            Uruguayan government gives German freighter Tacoma 24 hours to leave the port of Montevideo, deeming the ship an auxiliary war vessel since she had assisted various maneuvers of armored ship Admiral Graf Spee and embarked her crew when that warship was scuttled (see 1 January 1940).

Sunday, 31 December 1939

            U.S. freighter Excalibur, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 17 December, is released.

On The Week of 17-23 December 1939

US NAVY

Sunday, 17 December 1939

            Destroyers Ellis (DD‑154) and Cole (DD‑155) relieve Lea (DD‑118) and Philip (DD‑76) of shadowing German passenger liner Columbus.

            British RFA oiler Olynthus refuels New Zealand light cruiser HMNZS Achilles off Rouen Bank, the southernmost channel of the River Plate estuary. Light cruiser HMS Ajax and heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland cover the evolution.

            German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee, her allotted time in neutral Uruguayan waters for repair of damage received in the Battle of the River Plate having expired, and her crew transferred to freighter Tacoma, puts to sea from Montevideo, Uruguay, and is scuttled about five miles west‑southwest of the entrance of Montevideo harbor, 35°11'S,56°26'W. The destruction of Admiral Graf Spee comes, as First Lord of the Admiralty Winston S. Churchill later declares "like a flash of light and colour on the scene, carrying with it an encouragement to all who are fighting, to ourselves, and to our Allies" (see 30 December 1939 and 1 January 1940). Admiral Graf Spee had sunk nine British merchantmen during her cruise, totaling 50,089 tons of shipping. Not a single life had been lost in the process. In World War I, the famed German raider Emden had sunk 16 ships of 66,146 tons before her demise under the guns of Australian cruiser HMAS Sydney.

            U.S. freighters Meanticut and Excalibur are detained by British authorities at Gibraltar (see 18 and 31 December, respectively).

Monday, 18 December 1939

            Destroyers Greer (DD‑145) and Upshur (DD‑144) relieve destroyers Ellis (DD‑154) and Cole (DD‑155) of shadowing German passenger liner Columbus. Later that same day, heavy cruiser Tuscaloosa (CA‑37) replaces the destroyers in trailing the passenger ship.

            U.S. freighter Meanticut, detained by British authorities at Gibraltar the previous day, is released.

Tuesday, 19 December 1939

            British destroyer HMS Hyperion intercepts German passenger liner Columbus 450 miles east of Cape May, New Jersey; the latter is scuttled to prevent capture. Two crewmen perish in the abandonment. Heavy cruiser Tuscaloosa (CA‑37) rescues Columbus's survivors (567 men and 9 women stewardesses) and sets course for New York City, the only U.S. port that can handle such a large and sudden influx of aliens.

            British light cruiser HMS Orion intercepts German freighter Arauca off Miami, Florida; the latter puts in to Port Everglades to avoid capture. Destroyer Truxtun (DD‑229) has trailed the merchantman at one point; destroyer Philip (DD‑76) is present when Arauca reaches sanctuary. USAAC B‑18 (21st Reconnaissance Squadron), however, witnesses the shot that Orion fires over Arauca's bow (in the attempt to force the latter to heave‑to) splashing inside American territorial waters off Hialeah, Florida. Learning of this incident, Secretary of State Cordell Hull instructs U.S. Ambassador to the Court of St. James Joseph P. Kennedy to remind the British Foreign Office that, as neutrals, the American republics are entitled to have their waters "free from the commission of any hostile act by any non‑American belligerent nation." The U.S. Navy eventually commissions Arauca as refrigerated storeship Saturn (AF‑40).

            U.S. freighter Nishmaha is free to sail from Marseilles to continue her voyage, but port conditions and weather prevent her from sailing as scheduled.

Wednesday, 20 December 1939

            Submarine tender Bushnell (AS‑2), operating out of Tutuila, Samoa, as a survey ship under the auspices of the Hydrographic Office, completes Pacific Island surveys, having covered a total of 76,000 nautical square miles since commencing that work on 1 July.

            Heavy cruiser Tuscaloosa (CA‑37) disembarks scuttled German passenger liner Columbus's "distressed mariners" at Ellis Island, New York City.

            Destroyer Twiggs (DD‑127), on neutrality patrol in Yucatan Channel, relieves Evans (DD‑78) of duty trailing British RFA tanker Patella.

            German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee's former commanding officer, Kapitan zur See Hans Langsdorff, commits suicide at Montevideo, Uruguay.

            U.S. freighter Exochorda arrives at Naples with the 45 tons of tin plate condemned by the British prize court at Gibraltar among her cargo, having been permitted to sail by her master's agreeing to ship the 45 tons of tin to Marseilles from Genoa. Another 100 tons of tin, however, consigned to a Swiss buyer, are put on the "detained list” and held in Genoa at the disposal of the British consul. That turn of affairs prompts U.S. Ambassador in Italy William Phillips, to take up the matter with the British Ambassador, who expresses his awareness of the "irritation and resentment...in American commercial and shipping circles" over the seemingly "arbitrary, careless, and casual” methods shown by the British contraband control people.

            U.S. freighters Oakwood, bound for Genoa, Italy, and Executive, bound for Greece, Turkey, and Rumania, are detained by British authorities at Gibraltar (see 23 December 1939 and 3 January 1940, respectively).

Thursday, 21 December 1939

            Destroyer Twiggs (DD‑127), on neutrality patrol in Yucatan Channel, continues trailing British RFA tanker Patella.

Friday, 22 December 1939

            Destroyer Philip (DD‑76) relieves Twiggs (DD‑127) of neutrality patrol duty trailing British RFA tanker Patella off east coast of Florida; while en route to Fort Lauderdale, Twiggs observes British light cruiser HMS Orion off Port Everglades and anchors to keep an eye on the British warship as the latter prowls the coast.

Saturday, 23 December 1939

            Typhoon passes within 100 miles of Guam, M.I.; although the gale force winds cause little damage to Navy property, they cause widespread crop and property damage in the native quarters.

            U.S. freighters Explorer (detained at Gibraltar since 9 December) and Oakwood (detained there since 20 December) are released by British authorities.

On The Week of 10-16 December 1939

US NAVY

Sunday, 10 December 1939

            U.S. freighter Steel Engineer is detained at Gibraltar by British authorities (see 11 December).

Monday, 11 December 1939

            U.S. freighter Azalea City, detained at London by British authorities since 27 November, is released to proceed to Antwerp, and Rotterdam, Holland, after certain cargo is detained for guaranties. Freighter Steel Engineer, detained at Gibraltar by the British the previous day, is released.

Wednesday, 13 December 1939

            British heavy cruiser HMS Exeter, light cruiser HMS Ajax, and New Zealand light cruiser HMNZS Achilles (Commodore Henry H. Harwood, RN, flag in Ajax), which had rendezvoused the previous day, engage German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee in the Battle of the River Plate. The "pocket battleship" knocks Exeter out of action and damages her consorts, but is compelled by the damage inflicted by her lesser‑gunned adversaries (which are fought, as First Lord of the Admiralty Winston S. Churchill writes, "with the utmost resolution and skill") to retire toward Montevideo, Uruguay. Exeter, badly damaged, withdraws to the Falkland Islands (see 14 December.). The U.S. Navy studies the Battle of the River Plate from a perspective of drilling gunners to maintain fire by local (rather than a centralized director) control. To this end, a scenario similar to the River Plate engagement is included in an exercise in 1940. In addition, the Director of Fleet Training considers the "proper use of smoke either as a defense measure or as a means of covering movements of an attacking force" extremely important, and points out the demonstrable effectiveness of a smoke screen "as a means of protection for light forces" employed by Commodore Harwood in the battle with Admiral Graf Spee.

            U.S. freighter Exochorda, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 5 December, is released.

Thursday, 14 December 1939

            League of Nations, in response to the Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November, expels the USSR from its membership.

            Heavy cruiser Vincennes (CA‑44) and destroyers Evans (DD‑78) and Twiggs (DD‑127) (the latter destroyer having shadowed British destroyer HMS Hereward a short time before) trail Australian light cruiser HMAS Perth which is prowling the Gulf of Yucatan waiting for the emergence of German passenger liner Columbus. The Americans maintain such a close and persistent surveillance of the Australian warship that Perth's commanding officer, Captain Harold B. Farncomb, RAN, is said to have remarked in exasperation, "Queer idea of 'neutrality' these Americans have!" German freighter Arauca departs Vera Cruz, Mexico, followed subsequently by passenger liner Columbus, the third largest ship in Germany's merchant marine. Destroyer Benham (DD‑397), soon joined by destroyer Lang (DD‑399), trails Columbus. A succession of U.S. ships will, over ensuing days, send out plain‑language position reports (see 15‑20 December).

            German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee puts in to Montevideo, Uruguay, for repairs. British light cruiser HMS Ajax and New Zealand light cruiser HMNZS Achilles maintain patrol off the 120‑mile wide River Plate estuary. British heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland reinforces Ajax and Achilles that night.

            Interior Department motorship North Star (U.S. Antarctic Service), with the permission of the British government, visits Pitcairn Island to take on water and discovers the islanders in need of certain foodstuffs and medical supplies, which she provides. The provisions include flour, sugar, potatoes, matches, lard, gasoline and lubricating oil. The supplies will be replaced in New Zealand with funds turned over to Rear Admiral Byrd by the Chief Magistrate.

            U.S. freighter Extavia, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 29 November, is released.

Friday, 15 December 1939

            Destroyer Jouett (DD‑396) relieves Benham (DD‑397) at sea; the latter attempts to locate German freighter Arauca, while Jouett joins Lang (DD‑399) in shadowing passenger liner Columbus.

            British RFA oiler Olynthus refuels light cruiser HMS Ajax at Samborombon Bay, off the coast of Argentina; heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland covers the evolution lest German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee should attempt to sortie.

            U.S. freighter Exmoor, detained at Gibraltar by British authorities since 7 December, is released.

Saturday, 16 December 1939

            Destroyers Schenck (DD‑159) and Philip (DD‑76), soon joined by Lea (DD‑118), relieve destroyers Jouett (DD‑396) and Lang (DD‑399) in trailing German passenger liner Columbus off Key West, Florida. Jouett and Lang steam to join destroyer Davis (DD‑395) in attempting to locate freighter Arauca. Schenck soon proceeds on other assigned duties.

            British light cruiser HMS Ajax, heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland and New Zealand light cruiser HMNZS Achilles patrol off River Plate estuary; Ajax's Seafox reconnoiters the area.