BRISTOL DD 453

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.

Gleaves Class Destroyer
Keel Laid September 2 1940 - Launched July 25 1941


1. USS BRISTOL DD-453
   Commissioned October 22 1941
   SUNK October 13 1943 by German U-371 off Algiers
   52 of her crew were lost with the ship and remain on duty

 

Naval Covers

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.

1. Covers Page 1    (1941-42)

 

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 --- Killer Bar Text	Date From to Date To	Thumbnail Link To Close-Up Image	Thumbnail Link To Full Cover Image

 

USPO Machine Cancel Kearny NJ

1940-09-02

No Image

Keel Laying, cachet by Dr. S. E. Hutnick

 

USPO Machine Cancel Kearny NJ

1941-07-25

Launching. Cachet by Loring W. Stannard

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Locy Type FDC F USCS Postmark Catalog Illus. B-57

1941-10-22

George V. Sadworth's tribute to Richard Buchwald

 

Locy Type FDPS 3

1941-11-01 to 1942-09-27

First Day of Postal Service, cachet by Dr. S. E. Hutnick

 

Locy Type 3 (A-OTO) "GREGORY / SUNK"

1942-09-05

Cachet by George V. Sadworth. Postmark commemorates the sinking of USS Gregory APD-3

 

Locy Type 3 (A-OTO) "PORTER / SUNK"

1942-10-26

Cachet by Walter G. Crosby. Postmark commemorates the sinking of USS Porter DD-356

 

Locy Type 3z (BBT)

1942-03-02

Pencil notation indicates date

 

Locy Type Fz USCS Catalog Illus. B-57a

1941

Fragment of BRISTOL's T-3 postmark appears on this cover.

 

Locy Type Pz (OXO)

1942-11-11

Blue postmark dated 11-November-1942, Locy Type Pz(OXO) killer text "ATLANTA / DODGES / Bombers". Unfranked. Unaddressed. Violet rubber-stamps "ATLANTA DODGES Bombers" and "ATLANTA DODGES Dive Bmr's". Reverse blank. Light age toning as shown in image. Good condition, flap open, no tears or damage. Provisional postmark not listed in USCS Catalog, estimated rarity R-3. Created from Bristol postmark T-3(A-OTO), middle letter of "U.S.S." removed at top of dial, ship name removed from bottom of dial, "NAVY" added to dial, middle killer bar removed. Very likely the killer text was a separate rubber-stamp.
USS Atlanta CL-51
Courtesy of Bruce D. Liddell

 

Locy Type Pz (OXO)

1942-11-13

Red postmark dated 13-November-1942, Locy Type Pz(OXO) killer text "BENHAM / SUNK". Unfranked, cartoon bomb hitting monkey (Tojo?) with "FREE". Unaddressed. Blue thermographic (glossy raised print) Navy Seal cachet by George V. Sadworth. Reverse blank. Light age toning as shown in image. Good condition, flap open, no tears or damage. Provisional postmark not listed in USCS Catalog, estimated rarity R-3. Created from Bristol postmark T-3(A-OTO), middle letter of "U.S.S." removed at top of dial, ship name removed from bottom of dial, "NAVY" added to dial, middle killer bar removed. Very likely the killer text was a separate rubber-stamp.
USS Benham DD-397
Courtesy of Bruce D. Liddell

 

Other Information

BRISTOL earned 3 Battle Stars (WWII)

NAMESAKE - Mark Lambert Bristol USN (April 17 1868 - May 13 1939)
Bristol graduated from the Academy in 1887. During the Spanish-American War he served aboard USS TEXAS and participated in the battle of Santigao, Cuba. From 1901 to 1903 he served as aide to the Commander-in-Chief, North Atlantic Fleet. He commanded USS OKLAHOMA BB-37 during World War I and then served as United States High Commissioner in Turkey (1919-27). In 1927 Rear Admiral Bristol assumed command of the Asiatic Fleet. He died May 13 1939

 

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