USS Farenholt (DD-491) was a Benson-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was the second ship named for Admiral Oscar Farenholt. Farenholt was launched 19 November 1941 by Bethlehem Steel Company, Staten Island, New York; sponsored by Miss N. L. Garland, great-grandniece of Admiral Farenholt; and commissioned 2 April 1942. Service history Farenholt sailed from San Diego, California, on 1 July 1942 for Tongatapu, Tonga Islands, where between 18 and 23 July, she joined in shore bombardment exercises. Sailing in the task force centered around , Farenholt took part in the invasion of Guadalcanal 7 August, the first American land offensive of the war. She screened Wasp as the aircraft carrier launched air strikes supporting the Marines in the initial days of this long and bitter struggle, and acted as flagship for Destroyer Squadron 12. After replenishing at Nouméa from 3 to 8 September, she returned to the Wasp group, covering the transportation of reinforcements from Espiritu Santo to Guadalcanal. When her force was attacked by two Japanese submarines 15 September, she rescued 143 survivors of torpedoed Wasp, including the task force commander and the commanding officer of the carrier. Farenholt returned to Espiritu Santo with the survivors next day, then sailed to Nouméa to screen occupation troops to Funafuti. Back at Espiritu Santo on 6 October 1942, she joined a force whose mission was to intercept and destroy Japanese shipping and to prevent the reinforcement of Guadalcanal by the nightly Tokyo Express runs into the island. On the night of 11/12 October, her force contacted the Japanese in the Battle of Cape Esperance, sinking a Japanese destroyer. Three American ships, one of which later sank, were damaged in the action. One of these was Farenholt, which received three hits, including two from American light cruisers, and suffered 3 killed and 43 wounded. Although her torpedo tubes were inoperative, she continued to fire on the Japanese ships until the close of the action, scoring hits on a cruiser and a destroyer. Flooding through shell holes on her waterline, Farenholt was saved when oil, water, and topside weights were shifted to list the ship 9° to starboard, bringing the holes out of the water; she made Espiritu Santo 13 October under her own power. Farenholt sailed to repair battle damage at Pearl Harbor, and returned to Espiritu Santo 3 March 1943. After a month of patrol