USS Yew (YN-32/AN-37) was an Aloe-class net laying ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was later transferred to the French Navy as Scorpion (A728) and ultimately sank in a maritime accident off Fiji in 1978.
Construction and Naming
The ship was named after the yew tree (Taxus spp.), an evergreen conifer valued for its durable, flexible wood historically used in archery bows and cabinetry. This followed the U.S. Navy convention of naming auxiliary vessels after plants and trees.
Yew (YN-37) was laid down on 22 May 1941 at Camden, New Jersey, by the John H. Mathis & Company. She was launched on 4 October 1941, sponsored by Miss Alice E. Morgan, daughter of Commander A. L. Morgan, USN (Ret.), and placed in service on 1 July 1942.
Specifications
- Class & type: Aloe-class net laying ship
- Displacement: 560 long tons (570 t) light; 850 long tons (860 t) full
- Length: 163 ft 2 in (49.73 m)
- Beam: 30 ft 6 in (9.30 m)
- Draft: 11 ft 8 in (3.56 m)
- Propulsion: Direct-drive diesel, single propeller
- Speed: 12.5 knots (23.2 km/h)
- Complement: 48 officers and enlisted
- Armament: 1 × single 3 in (76 mm) gun mount, 2 × 20 mm guns
Service History
Records for Yew's service are fragmentary. The ship was reclassified from YN-32 to AN-37 on 1 January 1944 and was commissioned on the same day. She served as a net tender, working harbor assignments in the Mediterranean, including at Arzew and Mers-El-Kebir in Algeria, alongside other net tenders such as USS Hackberry (AN-25) and USS Pepperwood (AN-36).
Yew was decommissioned at Oran, Algeria, on 30 November 1944 and simultaneously transferred to the French Navy under lend-lease.
French Service and Final Fate
In French service, she was renamed Scorpion (A728). She served the French Navy into the mid-1970s. She was nominally returned by the French on 21 March 1949 but was sold outright to the French on the same day. Her American name, Yew, was struck from the Naval Register on 28 April 1949.
Scorpion was later sold to Malaysian owners. While under tow from the former French ship Locuste (A-765) (ex-USS Locust AN-22), the towline led Scorpion onto a reef off Cikobia Island, Fiji, on 30 July 1978. Both ships struck the reef and sank.
References
- Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (public domain)
- NavSource Naval History – Photo gallery of USS Yew
