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underway 1991
underway 1991
underway 1991
underway 1991
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii - 1991
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii - 1991
San Diego, California - 1991
USS Gridley (CG 21) fires a RUR-5 ASROC
missile-torpedo near Coronado Island - September 1990
1990
1987
USS Jouett (CG 29), USS William H.
Standley (CG 32) and USS Gridley (CG 21) during Exercise RIMPAC 86 - Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii - 1986
USS Jouett (CG 29), USS William H.
Standley (CG 32) and USS Gridley (CG 21) during Exercise RIMPAC 86 - Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii - 1986
USS Jouett (CG 29), USS William H.
Standley (CG 32) and USS Gridley (CG 21) during Exercise RIMPAC 86 - Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii - 1986
USS Jouett (CG 29), USS William H.
Standley (CG 32) and USS Gridley (CG 21) during Exercise RIMPAC 86 - Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii - 1986
during Exercise RIMPAC 86 - Pearl Harbor,
Hawaii - 1986
1981
1981
1981
1979
1979
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Captain Charles
Vernon Gridley (1844 - 1899):
Charles Vernon
Gridley (24 November 1844 - 5 June 1898) was an officer in the United States Navy
during the American Civil War and the Spanish-American War.
Gridley is directly descended from Thomas Gridley (1612-1653), who emigrated
from England to the New England area in 1633. Gridley was born in Logansport,
Indiana on 24 November 1844.
Gridley was appointed to the United States Naval Academy in 1860. Reporting
for duty with his class in September 1863, Gridley joined the sloop-of-war
Oneida with the West Gulf Blockading Squadron and distinguished himself with
David Farragut at the Battle of Mobile Bay on 5 August 1864.
Gridley was promoted to lieutenant in 1867. From 1871 to 1875, Gridley was
stationed on the only United States Navy ship based on the Great Lakes at the
time, the USS Michigan, at Erie, Pennsylvania. While stationed in Erie, he
married the daughter of Judge John P. Vincent and had three children.
Gridley's wife was also a cousin of the late Civil War Hero, Brigadier
General Strong Vincent. Gridley was promoted to commander in 1882. He spent
the next 30 years at various stations around the world, including a tour as
instructor at the Naval Academy. Captain Gridley took command of USS Olympia,
Admiral George Dewey's famous flagship on 27 April 1898. During the Battle of
Manila Bay on 1 May 1898, Dewey gave his famous command, "You may fire
when you are ready, Gridley," immortalizing the captain.
After the destruction of the Spanish fleet and the capture of Manila, Gridley
was obliged to leave his command because of his health, and died en route to
the United States at Kobe, Japan.
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USS
Gridley (DLG 21 / CG 21):
The third GRIDLEY
(DLG-21/CG-21) was laid down 15 July 1960 by Puget Sound Bridge and Drydock
Co., of Seattle, Wash.; launched , 31 July 1961; sponsored by Mrs. Stewart D.
Rose, great-granddaughter of Captain Gridley; and commissioned 25 May 1963,
Captain P. A. Lilly in command.
After outfitting at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Wash., GRIDLEY
made a goodwill visit to British Columbia and then conducted acceptance
trials out of her homeport, Long Beach, Calif. The powerful new frigate
returned to Puget Sound Shipyard 8 November to 9 December 1963, after which
she joined the Pacific Fleet as flagship of Destroyer Squadron 19.
Following shakedown out of San Diego early in 1964, GRIDLEY departed Long Beach
8 April and steamed via Pearl Harbor to Australia for commemoration of the
Battle of the Coral Sea, arriving Adelaide, South Australia, 5 May. The new
guided missile frigate next headed for the Philippines, stopping at Subic Bay
29 through 31 May, before proceeding to Okinawa 2 June and Sasebo, Japan, on
the 8th.
Heading south once more, she returned to Subic Bay and visited Hong Kong. On
4 August, she got underway for the South China Sea escorting aircraft carrier
CONSTELLATION (CVA-64) to strengthen American naval forces off Vietnam after
Communist motor torpedo boats had attacked destroyers MADDOX (DD-731) and
TURNER JOY (DD-951) in the Gulf of Tonkin. But for a brief visit to Subic
Bay, she remained on station serving screening and picket duty, coordinating
antiaircraft warfare efforts, and relaying communications. Before she left
the fighting zone 6 September, the ship's competent and dedicated service won
her the Navy Unit commendation. She departed Subic Bay 7 November and reached
Long Beach on the 21st.
GRIDLEY operated along the West Coast until heading back to the Western
Pacific 10 July 1965. Stopping at Pearl Harbor and Yokosuka en route, she
steamed to the South China Sea to support aircraft carriers of the 7th Fleet
as the flattops hammered Communist targets in Vietnam. On four different
occasions in the next 4 months, she rescued pilots who ditched at sea. She
returned to Yokosuka 7 December but resumed station in the South China Sea on
the 22d to serve as "Tomcat," responsible for checking-in planes
returning to their carriers. Early in 1966 she headed for home and reached
Long Beach 1 February.
GRIDLEY operated along the California coast until sailing for the Orient 18
November. She left Subic Bay 2 January 1967 for plane guard duty in the China
Sea and the Gulf of Tonkin. After varied duties in the fighting zone, she
sailed for Australia en route to the West Coast and arrived Long Beach 8 June
to prepare for future action.
GRIDLEY was officially redesignated a guided missile cruiser (CG-21) in 1975,
and made a 7th WESTPAC deployment. During the seven and one half month
deployment, GRIDLEY provided air traffic control and on station support
during "Operation Frequent Wind", the evacuation of persons from
South Vietnam. GRIDLEY was also on station air traffic controller during the
MAYAGUEZ incident off the coast of Cambodia. After a short 10 months back in
her homeport, GRIDLEY returned to the Western Pacific in July of 1976.
After another shipyard period in 1978, GRIDLEY deployed to the western
Pacific in 1979. As a result of the Iranian hostage crisis, GRIDLEY remained
on station in the Indian Ocean and North Arabian Sea through mid-1980. Before
the year was over, GRIDLEY left again on a 7 month deployment, this time as
Anti-Air Warfare (AAW) Commander for the CORAL SEA (CV 43) battle group.
Upon returning to San Diego in March 1982, GRIDLEY was once again operating
in Southern California waters until October when she returned to Long Beach
Naval Shipyard for an extensive upgrade and an overhaul of all Engineering
Machinery. More upgrades were made to the ship's fire control and air search
radars and the Phalanx close-in weapon system was installed during 1982.
GRIDLEY returned to the operational fleet in October 1983.
GRIDLEY spent a year, October 1983 to October 1984, undergoing extensive
training and workup for her next deployment. The ship deployed for the 10th
time from October 1984 until May 1985. Following its return home, the ship
immediately began a series of workups which culminated in a multinational
exercise with several Pacific rim navies.
July 1987 marked GRIDLEY's 12th deployment, this time as part of the RANGER
(CV 61) battle group. The ship saw action in the Arabian Gulf during
retaliatory strikes against Iranian oil platforms. The ship began its 13th
deployment in December 1988, once again returning to the Arabian Gulf. As an
asset of Commander, Joint Task Force Middle East, GRIDLEY was responsible for
escorting reflagged Kuwaiti oil tankers through the Straits of Hormuz. During
a 3-month period, GRIDLEY safely escorted nearly 2.5 million tons of shipping
in the Arabian Gulf region.
The ship returned to San Diego in June 1989. In October of that year, the
ship's port visit to Naval Station, Treasure Island, CA, was interrupted by
the 7.0 earthquake which struck the San Francisco Bay area. GRIDLEY personnel
provided assistance to victims in San Francisco's severely damaged Marina
district. The ship would later be awarded the Humanitarian Service Medal for
its contributions to the relief effort. In November 1989, the ship
participated in law enforcement operations in support of the U.S. Coast
Guard.
From February 1990 until March 1991, GRIDLEY received the New Threat upgrade
at Southwest Marine Shipyard in San Diego. During the $55 million overhaul,
all engineering, berthing and food service areas were upgraded, and the
ship's combat systems were dramatically enhanced. Improvements to the air
search radars and Combat Direction System improved the ship's ability to
detect and engage multiple air threats with it's SM- I and SM-2
surface-to-air missiles.
Following an extensive operational evaluation and qualification phase,
GRIDLEY deployed for the 14th time in April 1992. Upon arrival in the Arabian
Gulf, the ship operated in support of USS INDEPENDENCE (CV 62). The ship
rescued the disabled merchant vessel ADEL 11 in the North Arabian Sea in June
1992. In August, GRIDLEY participated in a multinational exercise with
regional navies. When operation SOUTHERN WATCH, the enforcement of a
"no-fly" zone over southern Iraq, commenced later that same month,
GRIDLEY was the first ship on station off the coast of Kuwait. GRIDLEY
provided coastal radar coverage and AAW protection for ships in the northern
Arabian Gulf.
The ship returned to San Diego in October 1992. GRIDLEY was overhauled at the
National Steel and Shipbuilding company from January through April 1993.
During that time, the ship was back-fitted to accommodate the new SM-2 block
III missile. The modification gave the ship the capability to defeat the sea
skimming cruise missiles which have proliferated worldwide in the 1990's. In
July 1993, GRIDLEY fired several of the new missiles on the Pacific Missile
Test Center range, scoring 3 successful hits. That same month, the ship rendezvoused
with USS CONSTELLATION (CV 64) in Acapulco, Mexico, escorting her back to San
Diego after the carrier's 3 year Service Life Extension Program overhaul at
the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard.
After a final port visit to San Francisco in October 1993, GRIDLEY returned
to San Diego in order to prepare for decommissioning after more than 30 years
of service in the United States Navy. GRIDLEY was decommissioned, stricken
from the Navy Register and transferred to the Maritime Administration for
temporary lay-up on 21 January 1994. She was laid up at the Suisun Bay,
California reserve to await disposal.
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