Popular Culture Review Vol. 12, No. 2, August 2001 | Page 60

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Popular Culture Review

Reuben James was recommissioned on March 9, 1932, and served in the
Atlantic and Caribbean during the Cuban revolution. In 1934, she transferred to
San Diego and participated in exercises designed to test the effectiveness of air
craft carriers. In January 1939 the ship returned to the Atlantic Fleet, and in Sep
tember joined the Neutrality Patrol.
In March 1941, the Reuben James joined escort forces whose mission
was to guard convoys traveling between the United States and a point west of
Ireland, where responsibility for safe passage to England would transfer to the
British fleet. Although she was based in Hvalfjordur, Iceland, she sailed from
Argentia, Newfoundland, on October 23, 1941, with four other destroyers, U.S.S
Tarbell (DD 142), U.S.S. Benson (DD 421), U.S.S. Hilary P Jones (DD 427) and
U.S.S. Niblack (DD 424), to guard the eastbound convoy HX-156, which had left
Nova Scotia, and was traveling at about nine knots
Opposing the convoy was a new submarine group, Stosstrupp (“shock
troops”), which included the type VII-C U-552, commanded by Erich Topp, who
had been out on patr