GregCiesielski at 19:50, 22 February 2026

2026-02-22T19:50:25Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:50, 22 February 2026
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	[[Image:Gurke_DD783_Crest.jpg\|thumb\|center\|150px]]		[[Image:Gurke_DD783_Crest.jpg\|thumb\|center\|150px]]"Ready for the Sea"
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	[[Image:TOMBAZIS D-215_Crest.jpg\|thumb\|center\|150px]]		[[Image:TOMBAZIS D-215_Crest.jpg\|thumb\|center\|150px]]

GregCiesielski: updated the page and added 1 postmark/cover

2026-02-22T19:46:13Z

updated the page and added 1 postmark/cover

Show changes

JonBurdett: 1 mark added

2012-04-30T22:24:42Z

1 mark added

New page

<h3>Ship Name and Designation History</h3>
This section lists the names and designations that the ship had during
its lifetime.
The list is in chronological order.
<table width="90%">
<tr>
<td valign="top">
<ol>Gearing Class Destroyer<br/>
Keel Laid July 1 1944 - Launched February 15 1945<br/><br/>
<li>'''USS GURKE DD-783'''<br/>
Commissioned May 12 1945 - Decommissioned January 30 1976<br/><br/>
Struck from Naval Register January 30 1976<br/><br/>
<li>'''HNS TOMBAZIS D-215''' (Greek Naval Service)<br/>
Sold to Greece March 17 1977 and renamed<br/>
Decommissioned January 12 1997<br/><br/>
Stricken January 12 1997<br/>
Laid up in Souda Bay Crete January 1998
</ol></td>
<td align="center" width="220" valign="top">
[[Image:Gurke_DD783_Crest.jpg|thumb|center|125px]]
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p> </p>

<h3>Naval Covers</h3>
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.
<ol>
<li>[[USS GURKE DD-783_Covers_Page_1 | Covers Page 1]]    (1946-49)</li>
</ol>
<p> </p>

<h3>Postmarks</h3>
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.
<br/> <br/>
>>> If you have a better example for any of the postmarks, please feel free to replace the
existing example.



<br/> <br/><table width="95%" border="0" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0">
<tr><th align="center" valign="center" width="140">
Postmark Type<br/>---<br/>Killer Bar Text
</th><th align="center" valign="center" width="100">
Date From<br/>to<br/>Date To</th>
<th align="center" width="320">Thumbnail Link To<br/>Postmark Image</th>
<th align="center" width="120">Thumbnail Link To<br/>Cover Image</th>
</tr></table>




<br/> <br/><table width="95%" border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0">
<tr><td align="center" valign="center" width="140">
Locy Type<br/>2(n+) (USS)
</td><td align="center" valign="center" width="100">
1970-04-27
</td><td align="center" width="320">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19700427_1_Postmark.jpg|thumb|center|300px]]
</td><td align="center" width="120">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19700427_1_Front.jpg|thumb|center|100px]]
</td></tr></table>
Cachet by [[Cachet_Maker_Frederick_L_Karcher_ | Frederick L. Karcher]]. FRAUDULENT use of the "FREE" mail privilege.




<br/> <br/><table width="95%" border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0">
<tr><td align="center" valign="center" width="140">
Locy Type<br/>2t(nu)
</td><td align="center" valign="center" width="100">
1947-09-12
</td><td align="center" width="320">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19470912_1_Postmark.jpg|thumb|center|300px]]
</td><td align="center" width="120">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19470912_1_Front.jpg|thumb|center|100px]]
</td></tr></table>
Note:




<br/> <br/><table width="95%" border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0">
<tr><td align="center" valign="center" width="140">
Locy Type<br/>2t(nu)
</td><td align="center" valign="center" width="100">
1947-11-06
</td><td align="center" width="320">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19471106_1_Postmark.jpg|thumb|center|300px]]
</td><td align="center" width="120">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19471106_1_Front.jpg|thumb|center|100px]]
</td></tr></table>
Note:




<br/> <br/><table width="95%" border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0">
<tr><td align="center" valign="center" width="140">
Locy Type<br/>2t(n+u) (USS)
</td><td align="center" valign="center" width="100">
1975-05-19
</td><td align="center" width="320">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19750519_1_Postmark.jpg|thumb|center|300px]]
</td><td align="center" width="120">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19750519_1_Front.jpg|thumb|center|100px]]
</td></tr></table>
Note:




<br/> <br/><table width="95%" border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0">
<tr><td align="center" valign="center" width="140">
Locy Type<br/>2#<br/><br/>(Br. #15843)
</td><td align="center" valign="center" width="100">
1946-01-04
</td><td align="center" width="320">
[[Image:JonBurdett gurke dd783 19460104 pm.jpg|thumb|center|300px]]
</td><td align="center" width="120">
[[Image:JonBurdett gurke dd783 19460104.jpg|thumb|center|100px]]
</td></tr></table>
Note:




<br/> <br/><table width="95%" border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0">
<tr><td align="center" valign="center" width="140">
Locy Type<br/>9ef(nu)<br/><br/>USCS Postmark<br/>Catalog Illus. G-39
</td><td align="center" valign="center" width="100">
1947-11-06
</td><td align="center" width="320">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19471106_2_Postmark.jpg|thumb|center|200px]]
</td><td align="center" width="120">
[[Image:GregCiesielski_Gurke_DD783_19471106_1_Front.jpg|thumb|center|100px]]
</td></tr></table>
Note:

<p> </p>

<h3>Other Information</h3>
GURKE received 7 battle stars for her service in the Korean conflict.<br/><br/>
'''NAMESAKE''' - Private First Class Henry Gurke, USMC (November 6 1922 – November 9 1943).<br/>PFC Gurke, attached to Company M, 3rd Raider Battalion, 2nd Raider Regiment of the I Marine Amphibious Corps, was killed in action in 1943 in the Solomon Islands Campaign of World War II. For his heroic actions, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. PFC Gurke also received the Purple Heart.



<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
If you have images or information to add to this page, then either
[[Contact_Us | contact the Curator]] or edit this page yourself and add it.
See [[Editing_Ship_Pages | Editing Ship Pages]] for detailed information on
editing this page.
<p> </p>
<hr>
<font size="-2">Copyright {{CURRENTYEAR}} Naval Cover Museum</font>

GURKE DD 783 - Revision history

GregCiesielski at 19:50, 22 February 2026

GregCiesielski: updated the page and added 1 postmark/cover

JonBurdett: 1 mark added