USS Worden
Destroyer · United States · Lost 1943 · The Aleutians & the Bering Sea
A Navy destroyer driven onto rock at Amchitka in January 1943 during the opening move of the Aleutian campaign.
The Vessel and Her Loss
USS Worden was a Farragut class destroyer built at the Puget Sound Navy Yard and commissioned in 1935. In January 1943 she escorted the American landing force that occupied Amchitka Island, far out along the Aleutian chain. Withdrawing from the anchorage on 12 January she was carried onto a submerged rock and lost power in heavy surf. Fourteen men died as the ship was abandoned; the hull broke apart where it lay.
Vessel
- 1934
- DD-352
- Puget Sound Navy Yard
- Bremerton, Washington
- Steel
- 341 ft
- 34 ft
- Not established
- Steam turbines, twin screw
- United States Navy
Loss
- January 12, 1943
- Grounding
- Constantine Harbor, Amchitka Island, Aleutian Islands
- Bering Sea and North Pacific, Aleutian Islands
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- 14
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- Not established
- Broken up in the surf; remains scattered in shallow water.
- Not established
- Not established
- United States Navy property; sunken military craft
Position
- 51.42° N 179.28° E
- Approximate position
- Amchitka Island, Alaska
Position given for the Constantine Harbor approach where the destroyer stranded.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Partially documented (74/100)
The present depth and condition of the remains are not established in the sources reviewed.
Naval History and Heritage Command, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
Construction, service history, date and circumstances of loss, casualty figure.
United States Army Center of Military History, The Aleutians Campaign
Context of the Amchitka landing of January 1943.
