The USS SAVAGE was a Destroyer Escort vessel, (Edsall Class) a type designed to replace Fleet Destroyers in protecting convoys against attacks by hostile aircraft and submarines. They were neither as heavy or as fast as destroyers, but were much more maneuverable and versatile. They were said to be able to "turn on a dime."
The SAVAGE was 306 feet in length, 36 feet and 7 inches in beam, and her standard displacement was 1600 tons.
She was powered by four Fairbanks Morse Model 38d81/8 geared diesel engines (2 per shaft) and had a top speed of over 20 knots, with a fuel capacity of 279 tons. Enough to take her from Seward, Alaska to Sidney, Australia and back again without refueling.
Her draft was twelve feet, three inches. Her designated compliment was 6 officers and 180 enlisted men.
Her armament consisted of 3 3"/50, 3x3 21" torpedo tubes, 1x2 40mm, 8 20mm, 1 hedgehog, 2 depth charge tracks, and 8 "K" gun projectors.
The SAVAGE was equipped with her own laundry, sick bay, and refrigeration facilities. She had evaporators for a continual supply of fresh water, and could generate enough electric power for lighting all of Seward, Alaska.
She was one of thirty Navy Destroyer Escorts which were manned by senior Coast Guard officers, and men of the United States Coast Guard during the Second World War. These ships were formed into five escort divisions consisting of six DE's each.
[Information taken from the archive of Gerald O. Day.]
