This month, we are featuring a brass battle lantern that would have illuminated the decks or interiors of USS Delphy, flagship of Destroyer Squadron 11, as it steamed south off the Santa Barbara County coast. The squadron’s voyage ended in disaster 99 years ago tonight. The tragedy at Honda is still considered the greatest peacetime loss of Navy ships in U.S. history. Of the fourteen ships in the squadron, seven ran aground, two others struck offshore reefs and escaped, and the remaining ships saw the distress signals in time. Though many mistakes were made before the disaster, only twenty-three lives were lost because of Navy discipline and extraordinarily brave acts by the crews.
The morning of September 8, 1923, Commodore Edward H. Watson led the squadron out to sea from San Francisco for gunnery drills. At 1100 hours, they started south at 20 knots. An endurance run to San Diego was an excellent way to simulate wartime conditions with the ships and their young crews, eager to prove.
Delphy would be responsible for the navigation of the entire squadron. The other destroyers were barred from contacting radio stations for bearings, leaving the formation to sight the coastline or slow to take a depth sounding. Had they used the sounding weight on display in the exhibit upstairs, this disaster would not have occurred. Instead, navigation of the ship was left to Lieutenant Commander Hunter, who also took full responsibility for all calculations, despite navigational help from Lieutenant Blodgett. Hunter was a skilled officer, but he relied primarily on dead reckoning from the last landmark sighted at 1130.
Three radio bearings were received from Point Arguello Radio Station between 1800 and 1900, all indicating the squadron was still to the northwest of the Santa Barbara Channel; but Hunter’s dead reckoning placed the squadron so far south they were in danger of hitting San Miguel Island, as the SS Cuba had done earlier that day. Distrustful of the new radio technology, Hunter asked for reciprocal bearings to justify his own calculations. He failed to account for the forward momentum lost as the rudders fought the wind and sea to stay on course, nor did he make any attempt to sight land and confirm his actual speed. After some discussion among the three officers, Watson approved the fatal decision to turn east without radioing the other ships or slowing down because that would have ruined their performance run.
At 2100 Delphy turned hard to port, plowing through thick fog which suddenly appeared. Only five minutes later, Delphy fell prey to Honda. Fast aground, Delphy’s crew desperately tried to make radio contact, as breakdown lights and sirens were activated, and the engines were reversed to back off. It was all in vain. As waves dragged the hull across the reef, power was lost as the ship filled with water. Placing full trust in their flagship for navigation, six destroyers ran aground within minutes: S.P. Lee, Young, Woodbury, Nicholas, Fuller, and Chauncey. Farragut and Somers hit offshore reefs and suffered light damage. Total loss was estimated at $13 million.
Through the night and following day, crews stood by their posts until ordered to abandon ship by their captains, even as power failures plunged them into darkness. Then came the treacherous task of making it through the oily, surging sea to jagged rock cliffs, where they were eventually discovered and aided by the generous townspeople of Lompoc.
Navigators Circle members RSVP to Martha Donelan at mdonelan@sbmm.org
General members — REGISTER HERE
On the museum’s harborview patio with great food & music!
Generously sponsored by Montecito Bank And Trust
Curated Cocktails, sbmm,