USS Walke (DD-34) - Pre-World War I

Pre-World War I

Upon commissioning, Walke was assigned to the 9th Division, Atlantic Torpedo Fleet. After fitting out at Boston, Massachusetts, she moved to the Torpedo Station at Newport, Rhode Island, where she loaded torpedoes for training with the Atlantic Torpedo Fleet. During the fall and winter, the destroyer conducted battle practice and torpedo-firing exercises with the destroyers and submarines of the torpedo fleet. In addition, she operated with the larger units of the Atlantic Fleet itself during training in more comprehensive combat drills. Those exercises covered the entire Atlantic coast from Cape Cod in the north to Cuba in the south.

Such operations occupied the destroyer until 1 November 1913, when she was placed in reserve at the New York Navy Yard. Though in reserve for the next 17 months, Walke never went out of commission; during her semi-retirement, the ship retained a commanding officer and at least a partial crew. Though not active with the Fleet, she did get underway periodically to keep her machinery in good working order while always remaining close to New York. During October and November 1914 Walke was employed in experimental deep sea diving trials which culminated in Navy diver Stephen J. Drelishak's dive to a then-record depth of 274 ft (84 m) in Long Island Sound.

In July 1915, the destroyer returned to fully active service, first to participate in the Independence Day celebration at Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and then to visit Washington, D.C., for the Grand Army of the Republic celebration in late September. By 5 October, she found herself off Newport, with the Fleet conducting maneuvers. On 1 November, Walke entered the Charleston Navy Yard for a major overhaul. Those repairs were completed at the end of February 1916; and, in March, the ship moved south to Key West to prepare for gunnery practice.

However, in May, revolutionary disorders broke out in the Dominican Republic; and Walke was dispatched to support the troops and marines landed there to restore order. From 6 May-19 June, she cruised along the coast of Hispaniola, leaving the area periodically for fuel or provisions at Ponce, Puerto Rico, or at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. After a brief visit to Haiti, the republic occupying the western end of Hispaniola, Walke returned to Key West on 19 June. On 21 July, she arrived at the Norfolk Navy Yard to begin an eight-month overhaul.