USS Orleck

Joseph Orleck was born on 22 January 1906 in Columbus, Ohio. He enlisted in the Navy on 23 June 1924. Rising through the enlisted ranks, he was warranted Boatswain on 14 December 1938, and appointed Ensign on 15 June 1942. He assumed command of on 28 May 1943 with the rank of Lieutenant. He went down with his ship after a Luftwaffe bomber attack in the Gulf of Salerno on 9 September 1943. A recipient of the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for rescue work during the Casablanca invasion, he was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for his firefighting and flood control efforts to prevent total loss of his ship during the Salerno assault. ==Construction and commissioning==

Orleck was laid down by the Consolidated Steel Corporation at Orange, Texas, on 28 November 1944, launched on 12 May 1945, sponsored by Mrs. Joseph Orleck, widow of Lieutenant Orleck, and commissioned on 15 September 1945. Her original cost was US$6,313,000. ==Service history==

United States Navy (1945–1982) On 14 November 1947, Orleck collided with the submarine while Bugara was making a submerged practice attack against her in the Pacific Ocean off Southern California. Orleck operated with the United States Seventh Fleet in support of United Nations forces during the Korean War, then it underwent an extensive FRAM I overhaul in 1962. On 7 June 1965, Orleck assisted in the recovery of the Gemini IV space capsule. In February 2020, the move to Jacksonville was confirmed. She would remain open in Lake Charles until 1 March 2020, before closing in preparation for an inspection by the US Coast Guard for towing to dry dock in Texas for repairs before making the tow to Jacksonville. The tow to Jacksonville was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. She broke loose from her mooring in the Calcasieu River during Hurricane Laura, drifting a mile down stream before drifting aground with some damage. In August 2021, the Jacksonville City Council unanimously approved the ship to be moored in downtown Jacksonville. In December 2021, she was towed from Lake Charles, Louisiana to Port Arthur, Texas to be drydocked. Over the next few weeks she was deemed to be in much better shape than expected and restoration work was done which extended the ship's life by 15 years. On 11 January 2022, ownership was officially transferred to the museum association in preparation for its tow and set-up in Jacksonville. With restoration work completed, she passed all inspections by the US Coast Guard, on 17 March 2022, she left Port Arthur, Texas under tow to Jacksonville. She arrived in Jacksonville on 26 March 2022 and officially opened on 5 October 2022. ==References==