Ghormley, Director of War Plans, and William R. Furlong, Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance, as well as Charles Edison, the Acting Secretary of the Navy. On 12 July, assisted by and , Anderson got underway for Yorktown, Virginia. She loaded depth charges at the mine depot at Yorktown before moving to the Naval Operating Base (NOB) at Norfolk before getting underway on 14 July for Wilmington, North Carolina. Wilmington was the hometown of the man for whom the ship had been named, Admiral Anderson; and it accorded the ship a warm welcome. The local paper editorialized: "It is a pleasure to have you in port and to inspect the magnificent new destroyer named in honor of a distinguished son. The ship and its personnel are a credit to the record and memory of the man for whom your ship is named... Therefore, we bid you welcome, and if there is aught that can add to your entertainment while here, you have but to ask any resident and it is yours..." Anderson gave a tea for Mrs. Anderson, members of the late flag officer's family, and the city officials of Wilmington on the afternoon of 17 July. On the next day, assisted out into the stream by the tug Battler, the destroyer made a departure from Wilmington. Reaching NOB, Norfolk, on 19 July, Anderson shifted to the Norfolk Navy Yard that same day to take onboard ammunition. After embarking six enlisted Marines for transportation to the Marine Barracks at Guantanamo Bay, Anderson got underway on 21 July for Cuban waters and the initial part of her shakedown cruise. Arriving at Guantanamo on 24 July, the destroyer disembarked her passengers before operating locally over the next few days. Anderson then visited San Juan, Puerto Rico (from 1–5 August); Coco Solo, Panama Canal Zone (8–14 August); and Hamilton, Bermuda (19–21 August); St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador (25–28 August); before she reached Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on the morning of 31 August. Underway on 5 September, the destroyer called briefly at Quebec (5 to 6 September) before she headed for Newport. On 8 September, while en route, Anderson sighted a merchantman eight miles (13 km) distant, identifying her as Norwegian by the display of national colors on ship's side. Soon thereafter, a plane, identified as "British" (possibly Royal Canadian Air Force) by the wing markings, circled Anderson at low altitude, obviously scrutinizing the ship