AH-WR-0524

USS Bancroft

Destroyer · United States · Lost 1945 · Cape Cod & Nantucket Shoals

A World War I-era Clemson-class destroyer that sank in a collision off Cape Cod in July 1945.

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

USS Bancroft was a Clemson-class destroyer of the United States Navy that sank following a collision off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in July 1945, at the close of the Second World War.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Steel
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Steam turbine, twin screw
Owners: United States Navy

Loss

Date: July 1, 1945
Cause: Collision
Location: Off Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: War grave; naval vessel

Position

Coordinates: 41.46° N 71.11° W
Accuracy: Reported, unconfirmed
Nearest: Off Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Region: Cape Cod & Nantucket Shoals

As HMCS St. Francis (ex-USS Bancroft), lost by collision on 14 July 1945 at Inner Mayo Ledge, Buzzards Bay off Westport, MA; position 41-27-42N/71-06-20W reported by a New England wreck-diving reference and consistent with the Massachusetts BUAR site description; this is further offshore/southwest than the 'off Cape Cod' description in some general references, but multiple sources confirm it is the same vessel and event.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Sparsely documented (30/100)

Precise date, casualty figures, position, and circumstances of the collision are not established in the sources reviewed.

List of shipwrecks of Massachusetts, Wikipedia
Loss date, cause, and location.
Hunting New England Shipwrecks (wreckhunter.net)
wreck position
Massachusetts Board of Underwater Archaeological Resources
wreck location description