Walsh was Naval Armed Guard detachment commander aboard the merchant ship SS Patrick J. Hurley in the North Atlantic Ocean on the night of 12 September 1942 when the German submarine U-512 stealthily surfaced and closed on the Patrick J. Hurley.

In spite of the machine-gun fire directed at his battle station Walsh remained at his post, though weak from loss of blood.

She was reclassified as a Crosley-class high-speed transport and redesignated APD-111 during construction, and was launched on 27 April 1945, sponsored by Mrs. John J. Walsh.

On 4 October 1945, she moved north for training exercises in company with PT boats out of Melville, Rhode Island.

Later, she was moved to the Texas Group of the Atlantic Reserve Fleet, where she remained until stricken from the Navy List on 1 May 1966.