USS Parker (DD-604)

Foxhall Alexander Parker, born in New York 5 August 1821 was appointed a midshipman 11 March 1837. During the Civil War he cooperated with the Army of the Potomac, protecting Alexandria, Va., after the Battle of Bull Run. In addition to being in active service off Charleston, S.C., he commanded a naval battery at the bombardment of Fort Sumter, and was also in command of the Potomac Flotilla. In 1872, as Commodore and Chief of Staff of the North Atlantic Fleet, he drew up a code of signals for steam tactics. He was author of Fleet Tactics Under Steam, The Naval Howitzer Afloat, and other valuable works. He became Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy in 1878 and was one of the founders of the United States Naval Institute. He died 10 June 1879 at Annapolis, Md.

The second Parker (DD-604) was laid down 9 June 1941 by the Bethlehem Steel Co., Staten Island, N.Y.; launched 12 May 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Edward Lloyd Winder; and commissioned 31 August 1942, Comdr. John W. Bays in command.

After her shakedown cruise along the East Coast and in Cuban waters, Parker served as a convoy escort to North Africa, participating in the attack on Mehedia and Port Lyautey 7 November 1942. Following her return to the Atlantic Coast, Parker escorted convoys to North African ports on five occasions. On the fourth, she supported the Sicilian invasion 5-13 July 1943. Convoy escort duty to the United Kingdom and the Mediterranean followed. On 6 November, when 30 enemy planes attacked her convoy, Parker shot one down.

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From the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, compiled by the Naval History and Heritage Command (Parker II (DD-604)). A work of the United States Government, in the public domain.