Today is the 80th anniversary of the day the USS Laffey DD-724 was launched in Bath, Maine. On November 21, 1943, she was christened by Beatrice F. Laffey, the daughter of seaman Bartlett Laffey. Laffey was an immigrant from Ireland who enlisted in the Navy during the Civil War and earned the Medal of Honor for landing a howitzer and gun crew under heavy fire at Yazoo City, Mississippi. DD-724 was named for Laffey and for USS Laffey (DD-459), a destroyer sunk at the Battle of Savo Island near Guadalcanal (Nov. 13, 1942). The USS Laffey was commissioned a few months later in February 1944 and soon after began her service in World War II. There’s so much more to learn about "The Ship That Would Not Die" at Patriots Point. We’re open from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. #PatriotsPoint #MountPleasant #ExperienceMP #CharlestonSC #Charleston #CHSToday #ExploreCharleston #DiscoverSC #SouthCarolina #history