USS Tuscaloosa (CA-37)
December 1939
### December 1939

The liner departed Veracruz on 14 December 1939 but soon thereafter was escorted by seven destroyers, including the . Captain Willibald Dahne, the master of the *Columbus*, was careful to keep his ship within the  neutrality zone until she was abreast of the [Delaware](/wiki/Delaware "Delaware") capes. He then headed east. The *Tuscaloosa*, meanwhile, had been ordered out to participate. On 16 December, two days after *Columbus* departed Veracruz, *Tuscaloosa* stood out of Norfolk, bound for her patrol station. She soon relieved  and —two flushdeckers— at 0600 on 18 December. On 19 December, the liner spotted the British destroyer , who sent a warning shot and then a flash signal, "You are captured."Giese, O., 1994, Shooting the War, Annapolis: United States Naval Institute, 

For Captain Dahne, there remained only one alternative. After having carefully planned for that eventuality, he scuttled his ship. All but two of his crew of 578 succeeded in going over the side and manning the lifeboats. The *Hyperion* clearly had no room for all of the Germans. The *Tuscaloosa* radioed the *Hyperion*, "Our orders, either you take all or none. We are warning, stay away from the boats. If you ram or sink one, we will have to commence firing at you."

From his motor launch, Captain Dahne kept the lifeboats together while the *Tuscaloosa* embarked the 576 men, boys and women. He then followed them to safety on board the cruiser which provided hospitality for the shipwrecked mariners who were glad to be on board an American cruiser as rescued seamen and not in a British warship as prisoners\-of\-war. The bulk of the survivors were put up in the cruiser's [seaplane](/wiki/Seaplane "Seaplane") hangar that had been cleared out to facilitate its use as a large berthing area; and the women were berthed in sick bay.

*Tuscaloosa* took the survivors to New York—the only port equipped to handle such a large and sudden influx of aliens—and disembarked them at Ellis Island between 1610 and 1730 on 20 December for officials to process. Ultimately, most of *Columbus* officers and men returned, via the Pacific, to their native land. Meanwhile, *Tuscaloosa* departed New York on the 21st and arrived at Norfolk the following day.


How many destroyers escorted the liner?