Seaman 1st Class Don Robert Wade
USS Taylor 1951-1953
Korean War
Joined July 1949 at age 17
Honorable Discharge March 1953
President Truman extended a 3-year enlistment by 9 months because of the war.

The USS Taylor was stationed at Hunter’s Point, San Francisco, CA with her sister ship the USS Jenkins. The Jenkins was ready but the Taylor was not. We lived on board ship in nighttime but had to leave during the day so the workmen could do their jobs for 1–2 months.

The Taylor was redesigned as a DDE from a DD and as such was designed to do 40-45 knots. During the recommission all super structure was changed to magnesium for lighter weight. They removed 3 of the 5-inch turrets, which left us with one on the forward deck and one on the fantail. The one on the forward 01 deck was replaced with a 108 rocket, which made us a sub chaser. The two on 01 deck aft were replaced with 2- 308 anti-aircraft guns. We were renamed DDE Destroyer Escort.

We had a trial run from San Francisco to Pearl Harbor. The Taylor was redesigned to do 45 knots. On our speed run we got up to 47 knots and peeled the paint off the bow and the whole bottom of the ship. When we got to Pearl she had to go into dry-docks and be repainted.

*(The Taylor was moved to the San Francisco Naval Shipyard on May 9th 1950 and three days later, began her extensive conversion to an escort destroyer. While still completing conversion, she was officially redesignated DDE 468 on 2 Jan 1951). Internet Archives