USS ROSS DDG 71 - Galveston, TX
Posted by: 
jhuoni
N 29° 18.609 W 094° 47.532
15R E 325948 N 3243680
Pier 21 is located in the Historic Strand Seaport District. This small monument marking the commissioning of a guided-missle destroyer may be overshadowed by the many more "exciting" attractions here, but its significance is just as noteworthy.
Waymark Code: WMYTT2
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 07/24/2018
Views: 1
A small granite and bronze monument reads:
USS ROSS DDG 71
Fortune Favors Valor
Commissioned Here June 28th, 1997
Galveston, Texas
US Carriers Website
The Ross (DDG 71) is the U.S. Navy's 21st Arleigh Burke-class guided-missle destroyer and is named in honor of Captain Donald Kirby Ross, who received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroic actions aboard USS Nevada (BB 36) on December 7, 1941.
U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa / U.S. 6th Fleet
USS Ross History
USS Ross' keel was laid in April 1995 in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and she was christened one year later by Helen Lou Ross, widow of the ship's namesake. Ross' crew of plank owners moved aboard in April 1997 and sailed her to Galveston, Texas, where she was commissioned on June 28, 1997.
After completing Combat Systems Ship Qualification Trials and an Inter Deployment Training Cycle, Ross left on her maiden deployment March 26, 1999 as part of the Theodore Roosevelt Battle Group. Ross' first deployment included Tomahawk missile strikes in support of Operation Allied Force in Kosovo, the first-ever combat operation in NATO history. Ross was awarded the Battle Efficiency "E" for calendar year 1999 in recognition of her outstanding performance throughout her work-ups and during her deployment.