During World War II, the United States had a fleet of over 1,200 combat ships.

Each of them had a unique story and service record.

With so many ships there would be stories of heroism, stories of tragedy, and some stories of total incompetence.

One chip in particular was so bad it became the butt of jokes throughout the Navy because they almost killed the President of the United States.

Learn more about the USS William D. Porter, the United States. of the Unluckiest ship in World War II on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. This episode is sponsored by Audible.

My audioobook recommendation today is The Second World Wars,

How the First Global Conflict was Fought and One by Victor David Hanson.

The Second World Wars examines how combat unfolded in the air, at sea, and on land

to show how distinct conflicts among disparate combatants coalesced into one interconnected global war. Drawing on 3,000 years of military

history, Victor David Hanson argues that despite its novel industrial barbarity, neither

the war's origins nor its geography were unusual, nor was its ultimate

outcome surprising. The Axis powers were well prepared to win limited border

conflicts, but once they blundered into a global war, they had no hope of victory.

You can get a free one month trial to Audible

and two free audio books

by going to Audible Trial.com slash everything everywhere

or by clicking on the link in the show notes.

The USS William D. Porter got its start as a quite average ship.

It was a Fletcher class, which was one of 175 of that type that was built

between 1941 and 1945. The keel of the ship was laid down on May 7, 1942, and it launched on September 27,

1942 from Orange, Texas where it was built. That's an insane construction

schedule for ships today, but it was the norm back in World War II when the

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