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What Happened to All Ships and Submarines Involved in the Attack on Pearl Harbor?

What Happened to All Ships and Submarines Involved in the Attack on Pearl Harbor?

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World War II began in September of 1939 and by war’s end in 1945, there were around 70 nations involved divided between the Allies and the Axis powers. The United States was not involved in the war for almost two years until the fateful day of December 7, 1941 when the Axis powers of Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. As President Roosevelt orated in his speech, it was “A Day Which Will Live in Infamy,” and it did. It also marked the moment the United States entered the war, declaring its involvement the following day.

On that date, the United States suffered an extraordinary loss at the hands of the Japanese. Over 2,400 people lost their lives that day, and although some of the ships stationed at Pearl Harbor were damaged or sunk in the surprise attack, many survived, not only becoming some of the most highly distinguished ships throughout the war, but they went on to win military recognition and had a storied naval legacy over the course of the war. (These are more of the biggest surprise attacks in military.)

To determine the outcome of all ships and submarines involved in the Pearl Harbor attack, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed reports by the Naval History and Heritage Command, an organization dedicated to the preservation of U.S. Naval history. These ships and submarines were ordered alphabetically (those not involved in direct combat roles were excluded) and include supplemental information from the Naval History and Heritage Command regarding the type of ship, its commission date, battle stars, and its fate.

Each one of the ships or submarines that was present at Pearl Harbor has at least one battle star, which are awards and recognition given to naval vessels for their active involvement and meritorious performance in a specific naval engagement, battle, or campaign. As these stars add up, vessels gain more prestige having survived and succeeded in multiple battles. The USS New Orleans and USS San Francisco have 17 battle stars each, the most on the list. 

The USS New Orleans, a heavy cruiser, was first introduced to the U.S. Navy service in 1934. It survived the attack on Pearl Harbor and went on to participate in some of the biggest battles of the Pacific Theater, including the Battle of Coral Sea, Battle of Midway, Battle of the Eastern Solomons, and the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Through these numerous battles, the USS New Orleans gained many accolades and is tied for the third most-awarded in World War II.

Here is the outcome of all ships involved in the attack on Pearl Harbor:

USS Allen (DD-66)

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 1
  • Commission date: Jan. 24, 1917
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap September 1946

USS Arizona (BB-39)

Source: Robert Enrique Muller, Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Robert Enrique Muller, Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 1
  • Commission date: Oct. 17, 1916
  • Outcome: Sunk at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941

USS Aylwin (DD-355)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 13
  • Commission date: March 1, 1935
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap December 1946

USS Bagley (DD-386)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 12
  • Commission date: June 12, 1937
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap September 1947

USS Blue (DD-387)

Source: work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, ublic Domain, via Wikimedia Commons Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 5
  • Commission date: Aug. 14, 1937
  • Outcome: Sunk in Battle of Guadalcanal August 1942

USS Cachalot (SS-170)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Submarine
  • Battle stars: 3
  • Commission date: Dec. 1, 1933
  • Outcome: Sold January 1947

USS California (BB-44)

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: Aug. 10, 1921
  • Outcome: Damaged at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941, sold for scrap July 1959

USS Case (DD-370)

Source: Source: US Navy photo, by way of: Navsource, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Source: US Navy photo, by way of: Navsource, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: Sept. 15, 1936
  • Outcome: Sold December 1947

USS Chew (DD-106)

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr/Public Domain
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 1
  • Commission date: Dec. 12, 1918
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap September 1946

USS Conyngham (DD-371)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 14
  • Commission date: Nov. 4, 1936
  • Outcome: Atomic bomb test target July 1946

USS Cummings (DD-365)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: Nov. 25, 1936
  • Outcome: Sold July 1947

USS Dale (DD-353)

Source: U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

USS Dale (DD-353) underway on 28 April 1938. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.

Source: U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 12
  • Commission date: June 17, 1935
  • Outcome: Sold December 1946

USS Detroit (CL-8)

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Light cruiser
  • Battle stars: 6
  • Commission date: July 31, 1923
  • Outcome: Sold February 1946

USS Dewey (DD-349)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 13
  • Commission date: Oct. 4, 1934
  • Outcome: Sold December 1946

USS Dolphin (SS-169)

Source: U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Submarine
  • Battle stars: 2
  • Commission date: June 1, 1932
  • Outcome: Sold August 1946

USS Downes (DD-375)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 4
  • Commission date: Jan. 15, 1937
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap November 1947

USS Farragut (DD-348)

Source: U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Photographic Center photo 80-CF-2153-7, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Photographic Center photo 80-CF-2153-7, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 14
  • Commission date: June 18, 1934
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap August 1947

USS Helena (CL-50)

Source: Unidentified USN photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Unidentified USN photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Light cruiser
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: Sept. 18, 1939
  • Outcome: Sunk at Kula Gulf July 5, 1943

USS Helm (DD-388)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 11
  • Commission date: Oct. 16, 1937
  • Outcome: Used as target in atomic tests, sold for scrap October 1947

USS Henley (DD-391)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 4
  • Commission date: Aug. 14, 1937
  • Outcome: Sunk by torpedo October 1943

USS Honolulu (CL-48)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Light cruiser
  • Battle stars: 8
  • Commission date: June 15, 1938
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap 1959

USS Hull (DD-350)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 10
  • Commission date: Jan. 11, 1935
  • Outcome: Sunk in Typhoon Cobra December 1944

USS Jarvis (DD-393)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 3
  • Commission date: Oct. 27, 1937
  • Outcome: Sunk by Japanese aircraft Guadalcanal August 1942

USS MacDonough (DD-351)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 13
  • Commission date: March 15, 1935
  • Outcome: Sold December 1946

USS Maryland (BB-46)

Source: U.S. Navy (photo 80-G-463249), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: U.S. Navy (photo 80-G-463249), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: July 21, 1921
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap July 1959

USS Monaghan (DD-354)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 12
  • Commission date: April 19, 1935
  • Outcome: Sunk in Typhoon Cobra December 1944

USS Mugford (DD-389)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: Aug. 16, 1937
  • Outcome: Used as target in atomic tests, scuttled at sea March 1948

USS Narwhal (SS-167)

Source: Bureau of Ships, U.S. Navy; The original uploader was Ahseaton at English Wikipedia. 2005-07-05 (original upload date), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Bureau of Ships, U.S. Navy; The original uploader was Ahseaton at English Wikipedia. 2005-07-05 (original upload date), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Submarine
  • Battle stars: 15
  • Commission date: May 15, 1930
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap 1945

USS Nevada (BB-36)

Source: Photo #: 80-G-282709, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Underway off the U.S. Atlantic coast, 17 September 1944. Photographed from a blimp of squadron ZP-12. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.

Source: Photo #: 80-G-282709, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: March 11, 1916
  • Outcome: Atomic bomb test target July 1946, later sunk as a target July 1948

USS New Orleans (CA-32)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Heavy cruiser
  • Battle stars: 17
  • Commission date: Feb. 15, 1934
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap September 1959

USS Oklahoma (BB-37)

Source: Unknown USN photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

USS Oklahoma (BB-37)

Source: Unknown USN photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 1
  • Commission date: May 2, 1916
  • Outcome: Sunk at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941

USS Patterson (DD-392)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 13
  • Commission date: Sept. 22, 1937
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap August 1947

USS Pennsylvania (BB-38)

Source: USN, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: USN, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 8
  • Commission date: June 12, 1916
  • Outcome: Atomic bomb test target July 1946

USS Phelps (DD-360)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 12
  • Commission date: Feb. 26, 1936
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap January 1947

USS Phoenix (CL-46)

Source: sdasmarchives / Flickr

Source: sdasmarchives / Flickr
  • Type: Light cruiser
  • Battle stars: 9
  • Commission date: Oct. 3, 1938
  • Outcome: Sold April 1951

USS Raleigh (CL-7)

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Light cruiser
  • Battle stars: 3
  • Commission date: Feb. 6, 1924
  • Outcome: Damaged at Massacre Bay June 1944, sold for scrap February 1946

USS Ralph Talbot (DD-390)

Source: work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 12
  • Commission date: Oct. 14, 1937
  • Outcome: Used as target in atomic tests, scuttled at sea March 1948

USS Reid (DD-369)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 7
  • Commission date: Nov. 2, 1936
  • Outcome: Sunk December 1944

USS San Francisco (CA-38)

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Naval History & Heritage Command, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Heavy cruiser
  • Battle stars: 17
  • Commission date: Feb. 10, 1934
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap September 1959

USS Schley (DD-103)

Source: Photo [1] from Navsource.org, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Photo [1] from Navsource.org, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 11
  • Commission date: Sept. 20, 1918
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap March 1946

USS Selfridge (DD-357)

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Public Domain/Flickr
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 4
  • Commission date: Nov. 25, 1936
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap December 1946

USS Shaw (DD-373)

Source: Taken by a USS Enterprise (CV-6) photographer. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Taken by a USS Enterprise (CV-6) photographer. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 11
  • Commission date: Sept. 18, 1936
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap July 1946

USS St. Louis (CL-49)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Light cruiser
  • Battle stars: 11
  • Commission date: May 19, 1939
  • Outcome: Sold January 1951

USS Tautog (SS-199)

Source: work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Submarine
  • Battle stars: 14
  • Commission date: July 3, 1940
  • Outcome: Sold November 1959

USS Tennessee (BB-43)

Source: Official US Navy photograph, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Official US Navy photograph, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 10
  • Commission date: June 3, 1920
  • Outcome: Sold for scrap July 1959

USS Tucker (DD-374)

Source: Work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: Work of a sailor or employee of the U.S. Navy, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 1
  • Commission date: July 23, 1936
  • Outcome: Struck minefield, sunk August 1942

USS Ward (DD-139)

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr

Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Public Domain/Flickr
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 9
  • Commission date: July 24, 1918
  • Outcome: Sunk at Ormoc Bay Dec. 7, 1944

USS West Virginia (BB-48)

Source: U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Source: U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Battleship
  • Battle stars: 5
  • Commission date: Dec. 1, 1923
  • Outcome: Damaged at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941, sold for scrap August 1959

USS Worden (DD-352)

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
  • Type: Destroyer
  • Battle stars: 4
  • Commission date: Jan. 15, 1935
  • Outcome: Sunk January 1943
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