U S S LAFFEY ASSOCIATION INC

Description

Although the Patriots Point Development Authority (PPDA) owns and maintains the USS Laffey (DD 724) museum ship, the USS Laffey Association supplements the PPDA's work by providing much needed manpower, supplies, and financial backing. We provide 15 to 30 workers, at least three times per year, to repair and paint steel, do electrical and plumbing work, as well as maintain and expand the museum displays. During these "workparties", we live and eat aboard the Laffey, in a portion of the ship set aside for only our use. We are entirely funded through private donations.

The USS Laffey (DD724) was commissioned by the U.S. Navy on 8 February 1944. On 6 June 1944, she provided fire support for the D-Day invasion of France. Of the 7,000+ ships involved in D-Day, only two U.S. warships still survive today- the USS Laffey and the USS Texas (BB-35, a battleship). On the 16th of April 1945, off the coast of Okinawa, the Laffey was hit by 8 Kamikaze planes and 8 bombs, yet did not sink. For this reason, this ship is known as "The Ship That Would Not Die". She was returned to a shipyard near Seattle where she was turned around within a few months and put back into service in the Pacific. She served in the Navy until 29 March, 1975. Now she is part of the State of South Carolina's museum complex called "Patriots Point", where she is berthed alongside the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, just outside of Charleston, and enjoyed by 800+ visitors per day.