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| USN 78' Higgins Motor Torpedo Boat 56 Tons 78' x 20' 8" x 5' 3' 1 x 40mm cannon 2 x Twin .50 cal MG 1 x 37mm gun 1 x 20mm cannon 2 x Torpedo Tubes |
Ship History Built by Higgins Industries in New Orleans, LA. Laid down November 4, 1942 as 78' Higgins Motor Torpedo Boat. Launched January 8, 1943 as PT-247. Completed May 25, 1943 and placed into service in the U.S. Navy (USN). Wartime History Assigned to Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Twenty (PTRon 20) assigned to the South Pacific (SoPAC). Nicknamed "Gato Negro" Spanish for Black Cat. PT-247 operated from Stirling PT Boat Base (Treasury Base) and Green Island PT Boat Base (Nissan). Sinking History On May 5, 1944 departs Green Island PT Boat Base under the command of Ens. D. A. Boyd with Lt. Jonathan S. Raymond, Jr. aboard leading the section on a night patrol by three PT Boats including PT-245 under the command of Lt.(jg) C. A. Hastings and PT-250 under the command of Ens. F. H. Kaul on a patrol off Rantan Island and southeast Bougainville. As the boats passed between Rantan Island and Bougainville, they sighted three Japanese barges, close together, 600 yards east of Rantan. The boats turned southeast to make a run on them, passing within three-quarters of a mile north of Rantan Island. Then a fourth barge was seen advancing around the northwest tip of the island, and a fifth around the northeast tip. At the same time two or three other barges appeared to the north of them. By the time the boats were ready to attack, they trapped with barges on all sides of them plus guns on Rantan Island and Bougainville. As they were about to initiate their attack on the first three barges, before they could opened fire the Japanese barges engaged them with machine guns, 20mm and 37mm canons plus gunfire from Rantan Island and Bougainville. A large caliber shell fired from Bougainville hit PT-247 in the engine room, leaving it dead in the water and burning brightly with ammunition bursting in all directions before the PT Boat exploded and sank. Fates of the Crew Afterwards, PT-245 and PT-250 rescued the crew with the exception of Lt. Jonathan S. Raymond Jr. who was last seen in the crouching in the chartroom hatch while radioing another section of PT Boats to come to their aid and was last seen headed aft on the starboard side of PT-247. Responded to a call for assistance, PT-374 and PT-357 under the command of Lt(jg) W. J. Mullen arrived to searched for four and half hours for Lt. Raymond while a PBY dropped flares and bombs in the area. When Raymond was not found, he was officially listed as Missing In Action (MIA). Memorials Raymond was officially declared dead on January 18, 1946. He earned the Bronze Star with Gold Star and the Purple Heart, posthumously. He is memorialized at Manila American Cemetery on the tablets of the missing. References At Close Quarters pages pages 159-161 (Rantan Island May 5, 1944), 468 (PT-247) American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Jonathan S. Raymond Jr. FindAGrave - Lt Jonathan S Raymond Jr. (tablets of the missing) NavSource PT-247 Contribute
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