The DD-537 was originally named Putnam, and in February 1943 she was renamed The Sullivans to honor the memory of the five Sullivan brothers who were lost when the light cruiser Juneau (CL-52) succumbed to Japanese torpedoes. It was launched in April 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Thomas F. Sullivan, the mother of the five Sullivan brothers, and commissioned in September 1943. The Sullivans deployed to the Pacific, arriving at Pearl Harbor in December 1943. For the next eighteen months, The Sullivans was actively engaged in operations ranging from plane guard for the fast carriers to shore bombardment to anti-Kamikaze picket duty off Okinawa. In January 1946 she was decommissioned at San Diego, and recommissioned in July 1951 for The Korean War. The Sullivans was decommissioned at Philadelphia in January 1965. The Sullivans received nine battle stars for World War II service and two for Korean service.
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