SEMMES AG 24
Ship Name and Designation History
This section lists the names and designations that the ship had during its lifetime. The list is in chronological order.
- Clemson Class Destroyer
- USS SEMMES Destroyer No. 189
Commissioned February 21 1920
- USS SEMMES DD-189
Designated (DD) July 17 1920
Decommissioned July 17 1922
- USCGD SEMMES CG-20
Loaned to USCG April 25 1932
Returned to U.S. Navy April 20 1934
- USS SEMMES DD-189
Recommissioned June 14 1934
- USS SEMMES AG-24
Reclassified Miscellaneous Auxiliary (AG) July 1 1935
Decommissioned June 2 1946
Struck from Naval Register July 3 1946
Sold November 25 1946 and broken up for scrap
Keel Laid July 10 1918 - Launched December 21 1918
This section lists active links to the pages displaying covers associated with the ship. There should be a separate set of pages for each incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). Covers should be presented in chronological order (or as best as can be determined).
Since a ship may have many covers, they may be split among many pages so it doesn't take forever for the pages to load. Each page link should be accompanied by a date range for covers on that page.
- Semmes Covers Page 1 (1934-46)
Postmarks
This section lists examples of the postmarks used by the ship. There should be a separate set of postmarks for each incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). Within each set, the postmarks should be listed in order of their classification type. If more than one postmark has the same classification, then they should be further sorted by date of earliest known usage.
A postmark should not be included unless accompanied by a close-up image and/or an
image of a cover showing that postmark. Date ranges MUST be based ONLY ON COVERS IN
THE MUSEUM and are expected to change as more covers are added.
>>> If you have a better example for any of the postmarks, please feel free to replace the
existing example.
|
Postmark Type |
Date From to Date To |
Thumbnail Link To Close-Up Image |
Thumbnail Link To Full Cover Image |
|---|
1st Commissioning June 14 1934 to June 5 1946
|
Locy Type |
1934-06-14 |
 |
 |
As DD-189
First Day in Commission
|
Locy Type |
1946-02-09 |
 |
 |
As AG-24
|
Locy Type |
1935-05-30 |
 |
 |
As DD-189
Memorial Day
|
Locy Type |
1935-12-25 |
 |
 |
As DD-189
Christmas, cachet by Tazewell G. Nicholson
|
Locy Type |
1936-10-12 |
 |
 |
As AG-24
Columbus Day, cachet by C. Wright Richell and Norman K. Mary
|
Locy Type |
1936-10-27 |
 |
 |
As AG-24
Navy Day
|
Locy Type |
1940-06-18 |
 |
 |
As AG-24
Cachet by Louie C. Bean
|
Locy Type |
1941-12-03 |
 |
 |
As AG-24
|
Locy Type |
1941-12-03 |
 |
|
As AG-24
Manuscript ship's name on the back of the Dec 3 1941 cover.
|
Locy Type |
1946-06-20 |
 |
 |
As AG-24
Last Day Postal Service
Other Information
NAMESAKE - Raphael Semmes (September 27 1809 - 1877)
Confederate naval officer, born in Maryland. He fought in many of the major engagements of the Mexican War (1846-48), including Veracruz, Cerro Gordo, and Mexico City. When the Civil War broke out, he enlisted in the Confederate army and took the lead in outfitting a ship to serve as a commerce raider against the Union; Semmes took eighteen prizes. He then took command of the CSS ALABAMA, with which he captured sixty-nine Union vessels; however, the ship sank in an ill-advised confrontation with a Union ship off the coast of Cherbourg, France, where it had sailed for repairs. For his efforts, Semmes received a hero's welcome back in the Confederacy and was commissioned a Rear Admiral. After the war he was threatened with federal charges of piracy but never tried.
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