HARMON DE 678

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.

Buckley Class Destroyer Escort Keel Laid 31 May 1943 - Launched 25 July 1943 USS HARMON DE-678 Commissioned 31 August 1943 - Decommissioned 25 March 1947 Struck from Naval Register 1 August 1965 Sold 30 January 1967 for scrap

 

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. USS Harmon DE-678 Covers Page 1    (1943-1946)

 

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	Postmark Date	Thumbnail Link To Postmark Image	Thumbnail Link To Cover Image

 

Locy Type 2(n)

1946-04-13

Note:

 

Locy Type 2z*

1944-03-05

Censored WWII use

 

Locy Type 9ef(nu)

1946-12-13

From the Bob Govern collection.

 

See Cover Page

USS HARMON earned the Combat Action Ribbon, the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (w/ 3 Battle stars) and the WWII Victory Medal during her Naval career.

NAMESAKE - Mess Attendant First Class Leonard Roy Harmon, USN (21 January 1917 - 12 November 1942)
Harmon enlisted in the US Navy as a Mess Attendant Third Class at Houston 10 June 1939. After training at Norfolk he reported to USS SAN FRANCISCO CA-38 for duty 28 October 1939, and was aboard her during the attack at Pearl Harbor 7 December 1941. Advanced to Mess Attendant First Class, Harmon was killed in action aboard USS SAN FRANCISCO during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal 12-13 November 1942. With disregard for his own safety Harmon rendered invaluable assistance to caring for the wounded and evacuating them to a dressing station. Harmon was hit while deliberately exposing himself to gunfire as he tried to protect a shipmate. He was posthumously awarded The Navy Cross.

The ships sponsor was Mrs. Naunita Harmon Carroll, the mother of Mess Attendant First Class Leonard Roy Harmon.

 

---

 

If you have images or information to add to this page, then either contact the Curator or edit this page yourself and add it. See Editing Ship Pages for detailed information on editing this page.

 

---

Copyright 2026 Naval Cover Museum