Allied Warships

USS Nicholson (DD 442)

Destroyer of the Benson / Gleaves class

Navy	The US Navy
Type	Destroyer
Class	Benson / Gleaves
Pennant	DD 442
Built by	Boston Navy Yard (Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.)
Ordered	1 Jul 1939
Laid down	1 Nov 1939
Launched	31 May 1940
Commissioned	3 Jun 1941
End service	26 Feb 1946
History	Decommissioned 26 February 1946 Recommissioned 17 July 1950. Decommissioned 15 January 1951. Stricken 22 January 1951. Transferred to Italy 15 January 1951 being renamed Aviere. Aviere was converted to an experimental gun ship in 1970. Aviere was stricken and sunk as target in 1975.

Commands listed for USS Nicholson (DD 442)

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	Commander	From	To
1	John Stuart Keating, USN	3 Jun 1941	Jan 1943
2	T/Cdr. Lewis Merrill Markham, Jr., USN	Jan 1943	14 Oct 1943
3	T/Cdr. William Winfield Vanous, USN	14 Oct 1943	23 Sep 1944
4	T/Cdr. Warfield Clay Bennett, Jr., USN	23 Sep 1944	26 Feb 1946

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Notable events involving Nicholson include:

22 Feb 1942
USS Nicholson picks up 20 survivors from the Norwegian merchant Sama that was torpedoed and sunk in the North Atlantic in position 49°20'N, 38°15'W by German U-boat U-155.

3 Sep 1942
HMS H 32 (Lt. J.R. Drummond, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with HMCS Amherst (T/Lt. H.G. Denyer, RCNR), HMCS St. Croix (A/Lt.Cdr. A.H. Dobson, DSC, RCNR), USS Nicholson and USS Ludlow. (1)

4 Sep 1942
HMS H 43 (Lt. J.C.Y. Roxburgh, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with USS Nicholson, USS Ludlow and USS Cole. (2)

5 Sep 1942
HMS H 43 (Lt. J.C.Y. Roxburgh, DSC, RN) conducted A/S exercises off Lough Foyle with USS Nicholson and HMS Bredon (T/Lt. J.R. Fradgeley, RNVR). (2)

7 May 1949
The movie "On The Town" was shot on the Nicholson from 7 May to 11 May 1949. The ship appeared in the first part of the movie and at the last scenes. Movie made it\'s world premier at Radio City Music Hall during Xmas season 1949. The crew were invited guests. Movie starred Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Jules Munchin, Anne Miller, Betty Garrett and Vera Ellen. Gene Kelly spent time with crew talking & drinking bos'n locker coffee. (3)