Namesake:
Sailing Master Samuel Chester Reid, USN
USS REID commemorates the name borne by three former destroyers in
honor of Sailing Master Samuel Chester Reid, U.S. Navy (1783-1861),
hero of the War of 1861 and designer of the United States flag in its
present form. He received the thanks of the New York State Legislature
for gallantry in command of the New York privateer brig GENERAL
ARMSTRONG which inflicted such casualties and damage to a powerful
British squadron at Fayal, Azores, that it delayed the arrival of the
British invasion fleet off New Orleans sufficiently to aid General
Andrew Jackson's defense preparations for victory.
His design for a national ensign to include thirteen stripes and a star
for each state was adopted by Congress on 4 April 1818. Congress
appointed him a Sailing Master in the U.S. Navy on 3 June 1843. As the
harbor master of New York, he made notable contributions in improving
the pilot-boat service and established a lightship off Sandy Hook.
|
Ship's Crest:
 Description
of Coat of Arms:
On the seal the red, white and blue refer to the national flag, and
thus to the suggestion made by Sailing Master Samuel Chester Reid which
was incorporated into the Act of 1818 governing the United States flag
design providing for the retention of the original thirteen stripes and
the addition of a new star for each new state. The cannon denotes
firepower and marksmanship. The swords and cannon allude to the gallant
action of Sailing Master Reid at Fayal, in the Azores, during the War
of 1812 at which time the vessel in his command inflicted severe damage
to a powerful British invasion fleet, delaying their arrival at New
Orleans, thus contributing to the American victory there. The swords
are adapted from the Officer and Enlisted Surface Warfare Badges and
are crossed satirewise to indicate strength and readiness.
The torches, symbolic of light, refer to the signal code system and the
lightship off Sandy Hook that Sailing Master Reid established while
Harbor Master of New York. The armed sea lion, a Philippine symbol, is
a personification of naval courage representing the previous USS REID
(DD 369) and her crew, who fought and died so bravely during the
liberation of the Philippine Islands. The enflamed torches also allude
to the kamikaze attacks in which she went down. The sea lion is red to
signify this wartime service.
|
