Stuff You Should Know
USS Jesse Rutherford was a John C. Butler-class destroyer escort laid down on November 22, 1943 and launched on January 29, the following year. It was commissioned on May 31, 1944 under Lt. Cmdr. B. M. Henry’s command as DE-347 and served in the US Navy for 2 years until it was decommissioned on June 21, 1946. During its activities, the ship carried a complement of 215 people on board and had the main missions in Norfolk, Bermuda, New York, Naples, Hollandia, Panama Canal, Morotai, Manila, Leyte, Lingayen Gulf, Okinawa or Balikpapan. After the decommissioning, the ship was struck from the Navy List on January 1, 1968 and used as a target ship during training exercises the same year. For the services brought to the country during the World War II, USS Jesse Rutherford received one battle star.