USS Tillman (DD-641), a , was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for United States Senator Ben Tillman. In commission from 1942 to 1947, she saw service in World War II, primarily in the Atlantic and Mediterranean. Service history Construction and commissioning Tillman was laid down on 1 May 1941 at the Charleston Navy Yard in Charleston, South Carolina; launched on 20 December 1941, sponsored by Mrs. Charles Sumner Moore; and commissioned on 4 June 1942. 1942 From June until September 1942, Tillman underwent sea trials and shakedown off the United States East Coast. In September and October, the new destroyer escorted convoys and participated in exercises on the Eastern Sea Frontier before getting underway on 23 October from the Chesapeake Bay with a convoy bound for Operation Torch. Shortly before midnight on 7 November, Tillman reached a point some off the coast of Africa and began screening the unloading transports of the Center Attack Group during the Naval Battle of Casablanca near Fedhala. While screening off the transport area, Tillman engaged Vichy French patrol vessel, W-43, which had attempted to slip six merchant ships into the transport area despite the destroyer's warnings. After coming under fire from Tillmans guns, the patrol vessel exploded and beached herself. Tillman later captured three French merchant ships. On 10 November, American troops advancing on Casablanca from the east came under fire from Vichy French destroyers. Tillman, the heavy cruiser , and the destroyer attacked the French ships, at the same time drawing fire from the French shore batteries, including that at El Hank. Maneuvering at speeds of up to , Tillman fired on the French ships, leaving one vessel steaming in circles, before she returned to her station off the transport area. On 12 November, Tillman departed the area escorting a convoy which weathered seas before arriving safely at New York on 1 December 1942. 1943 Tillman continued convoy duty in the wintry Atlantic and then participated in exercises off Casco Bay, Maine. Departing New York Harbor in the early hours of 8 February 1943, a dark night with unusually strong tides, Tillman sideswiped the paravane boom of an improperly illuminated merchant vessel anchored directly in the channel. After repairs at New York, Tillman operated on the Eastern Sea Frontier in February and March 1943, performing escort duties and participating in exercises. In the spring of 1943, Tillman