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USS Sampson (DDG 102)

SAMPSON departing San Diego, Calif., on March 10, 2008. Photo by Thoralf Doehring

USS SAMPSON is the 52nd ship in the ARLEIGH BURKE - class of Aegis guided missile destroyers and the fourth ship in the Navy to bear the name.

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS SAMPSON. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

• Click here to view the list.

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• Click here to see which USS SAMPSON memorabilia are currently for sale on ebay.

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USS SAMPSON Cruise Books:

• WestPac Cruise Book 2014-15

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About the Ship's Name:

William Thomas Sampson, born on 9 February 1840 in Palmyra, N.Y., entered the United States Naval Academy on 24 September 1857. After graduating 1st in his class four years later, he served as an instructor at the Academy. In 1864, he became the executive officer of the monitor PATAPSCO of the South Atlantic Blockading Station and engaged in sweeping torpedoes off Charleston. He survived the loss of that ironclad on 15 January 1865, when she struck a torpedo, exploded, and sank with a loss of 75 lives.

Following duty in the steam frigate, COLORADO, on the European Station, another tour as instructor at the Naval Academy, and in the Bureau of Navigation of the Navy Department, he served in the screw sloop, CONGRESS. He then commanded ALERT, practice ship MAYFLOWER, and SWATARA while on duty at the Naval Academy.

During the next years, he was Assistant to the Superintendent of the Naval Observatory, then Officer-in-Charge of the Naval Torpedo Station, Newport, R.I. On 9 September 1886, he became Superintendent of the Naval Academy. He was promoted to Captain on 9 April 1889, reported to the Mare Island Navy Yard to fit out SAN FRANCISCO, and assumed command when that protected cruiser was commissioned on 15 November 1889. He was detached in June 1892 to serve as Inspector of Ordnance in the Washington Navy Yard and was appointed Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance on 28 January 1893. He assumed command of battleship IOWA, on 15 June 1897. On 17 February 1898, he was made President of the Board of Inquiry to investigate the destruction of battleship MAINE. On 26 March 1898, he assumed command of the North Atlantic Station, with the temporary rank of Rear Admiral.

The United States declared war against Spain on 21 April 1898; and, eight days later, Admiral Cervera's fleet sailed from the Cape Verde Islands for an uncertain destination. Admiral Sampson, in flagship NEW YORK, put to sea from Key West in search of the Spanish Fleet and established a close and efficient blockade on that fleet in the harbor of Santiago on 1 June 1898. On the morning of 3 July 1898, Cervera's fleet came out of the harbor and was completely destroyed in a running sea battle lasting five hours. The next day, Rear Admiral Sampson sent his famous message: “The Fleet under my command offers the nation as a Fourth of July present, the whole of Cervera's Fleet!”

He was appointed Cuban Commissioner on 20 August 1898 but resumed command of the North Atlantic Fleet in December. He became Commandant of the Boston Navy Yard in October 1899 and transferred to the Retired List on 9 February 1902. Rear Admiral Sampson died in Washington, D.C., on 6 May 1902 and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

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USS SAMPSON History:

USS SAMPSON was built at Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine; her keel was laid on March 20, 2005, she was launched on September 16, 2006, and she commissioned at Boston, Massachusetts, on November 3, 2007. After post-delivery trials in the Atlantic she transited the Panama Canal to establish her initial homeport at Naval Base San Diego, entering the basic and advanced phases of the Pacific Fleet workup cycle through 2008 to certify navigation, gunnery, and combat systems.

SAMPSON's first deployment began in late July 2009 with the NIMITZ (CVN 68) Carrier Strike Group for a Western Pacific and Middle East cruise that ran into March 2010. The itinerary spanned 7th Fleet and 5th Fleet waters, with carrier-escort and maritime-security tasking in the North Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman. During the Western Pacific phase she made a scheduled port visit to Port Klang, Malaysia, on February 1, 2010, before the strike group returned to the Pacific later that spring.

After a stateside reset through late 2010 and early 2011, SAMPSON deployed again with JOHN C. STENNIS (CVN 74) Carrier Strike Group. JOHN C. STENNIS departed the Pacific Northwest on July 25, 2011; the group entered 7th Fleet in August and 5th Fleet on September 15 for sustained maritime security operations as carrier air wings supported ongoing coalition missions tied to Afghanistan. The strike group again called at Port Klang during the westbound 7th Fleet phase. SAMPSON completed the deployment in early 2012 and resumed Pacific workups.

In 2012, SAMPSON operated across the Western Pacific with logistics stops that included Changi Naval Base, Singapore, and transits through the Hawaiian operating areas en route to and from 7th Fleet tasking. The following year she remained West Coast–based for maintenance, certifications, and local operations. In mid-2014 she joined RIMPAC 2014 off Hawaii, conducting live-fire events and air-defense training, then shifted west for a Singapore logistics stop in December ahead of regional patrols.

On December 30, 2014, SAMPSON was ordered to the Java Sea to assist Indonesia's search and recovery operation for AirAsia Flight QZ8501. Over January 1-2, 2015, her crew recovered remains and debris during continuous surface and aerial searches coordinated with Indonesian authorities and international partners. By June 2015 she had completed a 212-day Western Pacific period and returned to San Diego.

In 2016, the Navy realigned several destroyers to the Pacific Northwest. SAMPSON completed her homeport shift from San Diego to Naval Station Everett, Washington, by September and entered a new training and maintenance rhythm from Puget Sound. In November 2016, while on a Western Pacific deployment, a magnitude-7.8 earthquake struck near Kaikoura, New Zealand. From November 17-19, SAMPSON's embarked MH-60R detachment conducted evacuations and flew 14 relief sorties moving 11,000 pounds of supplies ashore, after which the ship entered Wellington on November 20 for a historic port visit - the first by a U.S. warship to New Zealand in more than three decades.

On October 3, 2017, SAMPSON departed Everett for a scheduled deployment with the THEODORE ROOSEVELT (CVN 71) Carrier Strike Group, operating across 7th and 5th Fleets in air-defense escort, maritime security, and theater-cooperation roles. She returned to Naval Station Everett on May 9, 2018, concluding seven months deployed. Through the remainder of 2018 she executed repairs, inspections, and local underway periods to reset for future tasking.

Across 2019, SAMPSON sustained Pacific Northwest training, certifications, and fleet exercises while maintaining material readiness - a period reflected in Navy safety recognition during the late - 2010s. In 2020, the ship executed ammunition on-load and local operations from Everett and Indian Island as part of pre-deployment preparations before the Navy's wider pandemic operating posture constrained large overseas tasking. In 2021, she continued 3rd Fleet training and maintenance as the surface force sequenced destroyers for Indo-Pacific commitments.

On December 30, 2021, SAMPSON departed Everett to the Indo-Pacific and, after the Hunga Tonga–Hunga Ha'apai eruption and tsunami in mid-January 2022, she shifted to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations around Tonga. Her MH-60R detachment conducted aerial reconnaissance and delivered supplies while the ship coordinated with regional partners. She then resumed independent operations in the South China Sea and assisted in the recovery and salvage of the F-35C that crashed on the flight deck of USS CARL VINSON (CVN 70) earlier that year. SAMPSON returned to Naval Station Everett on August 11, 2022, closing a seven-month deployment that spanned 3rd and 7th Fleets and included participation in RIMPAC 2022.

Throughout 2023, SAMPSON remained aligned to the Pacific Northwest surface force, executing sustainment training and periodic underway periods while the fleet cycled other units to forward missions. In the first half of 2024, she joined the SOUTHCOM-led "Southern Seas 2024" sequence with USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73), USS PORTER (DDG 78), and USNS JOHN LENTHALL (T-AO 189), conducting partner-navy engagements from Argentina and Brazil to Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Uruguay to strengthen interoperability and maritime domain awareness across the region.

By mid-2024 she was back with 3rd Fleet for West Coast training. On June 3, 2025, SAMPSON departed to support operations under U.S. Northern Command, relieving USS CHARLESTON (LCS 18) and embarking a Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment for maritime interdiction missions. Through June, she conducted small-boat evolutions, routine operations, and sustained patrols in the NORTHCOM area.

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Homeports of USS SAMPSON:

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USS SAMPSON Image Gallery:

The photos below were taken by me and show the SAMPSON departing Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on March 10, 2008.

The photo below was taken by Thomas Heinrich and shows the SAMPSON at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on March 21, 2009.

The photos below were taken by Shiu On Yee and show the SAMPSON anchored at Hong Kong. SAMPSON and other units of the NIMITZ (CVN 68) Strike Group visited Hong Kong from February 17-20, 2010, during their WestPac Cruise. On the second photo, the NIMITZ can be seen in the distance.

The photos below were taken by me and show the SAMPSON arriving at San Diego, Calif., on March 26, 2010, after completing an extended 8-month deployment to the 5th and 7th Fleet areas of operation.

The photos below were taken by me and show the SAMPSON at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on October 3, 2012. The last photo shows the SAMPSON leaving San Diego Bay for the Pacific early on the next morning.

The photos below were taken by Henry Schnutz and show the SAMPSON during a 3-month Selected Restricted Availability (SRA) at Huntington Ingalls Industries Continental Maritime of San Diego shipyard on August 27, 2013.

The photos below were taken by Lydia Perz and show the SAMPSON at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on May 3, 2014.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the SAMPSON undergoing a Selected Restricted Availability (SRA) at the Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) Continental Maritime of San Diego shipyard on October 2, 2015.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the SAMPSON departing Naval Base San Diego, Calif., for a two-day underway on April 18, 2016.

The photos below were taken by Michael Jenning and show the SAMPSON high and dry at Vigor Shipyards, Seattle, Wash., on August 2, 2018. The SAMPSON is undergoing a 9-month availability.

The photos below were taken by me and show USS SAMPSON departing Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on July 22, 2024. SAMPSON is heading home to Everett, Wash., again after escort duties for the USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73) in the eastern Pacific during the carrier's transit from Norfolk, Va., to San Diego.

The photo below was taken by me and shows USS SAMPSON during a short stop at the Bravo Pier at Naval Air Station North Island, Calif., on July 22, 2024. SAMPSON is heading home to Everett, Wash., again after escort duties for the USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (CVN 73) in the eastern Pacific during the carrier's transit from Norfolk, Va., to San Diego.

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