LESLIE L B KNOX DE 580

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.

Rudderow Class Destroyer Escort Keel Laid 7 November 1943 - Launched 8 January 1944 USS LESLIE L. B. KNOX DE-580 Commissioned 22 March 1944 - Decommissioned 15 June 1946 Struck from Naval Register 15 January 1972 Sold 13 June 1973 for scrap

Naval Covers

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1. USS Leslie L. B. Knox DE-580 Covers Page 1     (DATE RANGE)

 

Postmarks

This section lists examples of the postmarks used by the ship. There should be a separate set of postmarks for each name and/or commissioning period. 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.

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Postmark Type --- Killer Bar Text	Postmark Date	Thumbnail Link To Postmark Image	Thumbnail Link To Cover Image

 

Locy Type 2z

1945-04-22

Censored sailors mail. Courtesy of the Bob Govern collection.

 

Other Information

USS LESLIE L. B. KNOX earned the American Campaign Medal, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal w/ 3 Battle stars, the World War II Victory Medal, the Navy Occupation Medal and the Philippine Liberation Ribbon w/ 1 star during her Naval career.

NAMESAKE - Lieutenant (jg) Leslie Lockhart Bruce Knox, USN (17 November 1916 - 8 May 1942)
Knox enlisted in the US Navy as Seaman 2nd Class at New York City 28 April 1939 and was appointed as Aviation Cadet 20 September 1939. After flight training at Pensacola, Fla., he was commissioned Ensign 12 June 1940 and reported to Scouting Squadron 41 at Norfolk. On 15 March 1941 Knox was transferred to Fighting Squadron 42 and, except for temporary duty with Fighting Squadron 41, remained with that unit until his death in the Battle of the Coral Sea 8 May 1942. He was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant (jg) 25 June 1942 and was awarded the Navy Cross for “extraordinary heroism and conspicuous courage as pilot of an aircraft of a Fighting Squadron in action against enemy Japanese forces, in the Battle of the Coral Sea...On that evening, as one of the fighters launched to oppose enemy Japanese aircraft in the vicinity of his ship, Ensign Knox attacked a formation of seven enemy aircraft, shooting down one and assisting in dispersing the others. In this engagement, he displayed unusual skill and devotion to duty, carrying out his mission with determination and aggressiveness against great enemy odds and with complete disregard for his own personal safety.”

The ships sponsor was Mrs. Louise Kennedy Knox, widow of Lt.(jg) Knox.

 

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