Leahy Life Ring Shipped to Franklin County Historical Society
Leahy Life Ring Shipped to FCHS
by Lee Nelson
Jeff Farquhar of San Diego CA contacted the Franklin County Historical Society (FCHS)
museum on September 12 that he had a life ring from the USS Leahy, starboard side forward,
just aft of the break.
According to Farquhar, “I was a part of the decommissioning crew and took one home; the
Townmaster (Captain) required us to remove all the life rings prior to his taking the ship
away. I'm willing to send it to you if you split the cost of shipping with me." Eight to 10 life rings
were taken off the USS Leahy.
The email came to the museum email address and was forwarded to Steve Deike, member of
the Leahy Committee. Deike attended the next FCHS meeting to discuss. The FCHS board
voted to fund up to $50 for postage. The total cost to ship UPS was $65.33.
The life ring is approximately 24 inches in diameter, standard shipboard life rings. The life ring
arrived the second week of October and was installed by Leahy Committee members Steve
Deike and Mark Laipple on Tuesday, October 15.
William Daniel Leahy (May 6, 1875 – July 20, 1959) was an American naval officer. The most
senior United States military officer on active duty during World War II. Leahy served as the
Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief from July 20, 1942, to March 21, 1949, under
Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman. Prior, Leahy served as the United
States Ambassador to France from January 8, 1941, to May 1, 1942.
Leahy was born in Hampton on May 6, 1875, the first of seven children of Michael Anthony
Leahy, a lawyer and American Civil War veteran, who was elected to the Iowa Legislature in
1872, and his wife Rose Mary née Hamilton. Both parents were born in the United States, but
his grandparents were immigrants from Ireland. He had five brothers and a sister. His father
was re-elected in 1874, but moved to Wausau, Wisconsin, in 1882.
USS Leahy was the lead ship of a new class of destroyer leaders in the United States Navy.
Named for Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy, she was commissioned on August 4,1962 as DLG-
16, a guided missile frigate, and reclassified as CG-16, a guided missile cruiser, on June 30,
1975.
The USS Leahy served longer than any other ship of her class. After more than 31 years of
active service all over the globe, the "Sweet 16" was decommissioned on October 1, 1993. After
another 11 years in the reserve fleet, she was scrapped in Brownsville, Texas, in 2005.
A scale-model replica of the U.S.S. Leahy is on permanent loan from the Department of the
Navy and arrived in Hampton on October 13, 2013. The 1/48 scale model of the USS Leahy
was installed in the Franklin County Historical Society Museum.
Organizations and individuals from greater Franklin County raised over $15,000 to establish a
permanent memorial display honoring Hampton native Fleet Admiral Leahy, our nation’s first
five-star military leader and first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The permanent display
case was built, and the memorial was completed and open to the public at the 2014 Franklin
County Fair.
The Leahy memorial and other historic displays can be experienced at the Franklin County
Historical Museum. The museum does not have regular visiting hours, but volunteers are
usually at the museum on Tuesday afternoons from 1:30 to 3:00 pm. To request a tour of themuseum or volunteer for FCHS, text Jim Davies at 641-425-4707 or email
museumfchs@gmail.com.
Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy, who served as the senior officer of the United States
Armed Forces during World War II. Photo from Wikimedia Commons.
Life ring and ship’s bell near the bow of the 1/48 scale model of the USS Leahy on display in
the Franklin County Historical Museum. Photo by Jim Davies.