Misplaced Pages

USS Beaverhead

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Beaverhead (AK-161) at anchor, date and location unknown.
History
United States
NameBeaverhead
NamesakeBeaverhead County, Montana
Orderedas type (C1-M-AV1) hull, MC hull 2106
BuilderKaiser Shipbuilding Co., Richmond, California
Yard number63
Laid down15 June 1944
Launched2 September 1944
Sponsored byMrs. T. H. Purdom, Jr.
Acquired3 January 1945
Commissioned3 January 1945
Decommissioned8 March 1946
Stricken28 March 1946
Identification
FateSold, 28 March 1947, to Koninklijke Nederlandsche StoombootMattschappij N.V., Amsterdam
Netherlands
NameHera
OwnerKoninklijke Nederlandsche StoombootMattschappij N.V.
Acquired28 March 1947
FateSold 1963
Panama
Name
  • Omar Express (1963–1967)
  • Cementos Ponce (1967–1976)
  • Vanessa (1976–1982)
OwnerBahamas Lines, Panama
Acquired1963
Refit1967, to a self-unloading cement carrier
IdentificationIMO number: 5407590
FateScrapped at Veracruz, Mexico between 1982 and 1984
General characteristics
Class and typeAlamosa-class cargo ship
TypeC1-M-AV1
Tonnage5,032 long tons deadweight (DWT)
Displacement
  • 2,382 long tons (2,420 t) (standard)
  • 7,450 long tons (7,570 t) (full load)
Length388 ft 8 in (118.47 m)
Beam50 ft (15 m)
Draft21 ft 1 in (6.43 m)
Installed power
Propulsion1 × propeller
Speed11.5 kn (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity
  • 3,945 t (3,883 long tons) DWT
  • 9,830 cu ft (278 m) (refrigerated)
  • 227,730 cu ft (6,449 m) (non-refrigerated)
Complement
  • 15 Officers
  • 70 Enlisted
Armament

USS Beaverhead (AK-161) was an Alamosa-class cargo ship commissioned by the U.S. Navy for service in World War II. She was responsible for delivering troops, goods and equipment to locations in the war zone.

Service history

Beaverhead was laid down on 15 June 1944 at Richmond, California, by Kaiser Cargo, Inc., under a Maritime Commission contract, MC hull 2106; launched on 2 September 1944; sponsored by Mrs. T. H. Purdom, Jr.; and commissioned on 3 January 1945. Beaverhead was fitted out at the Naval Supply Depot at Oakland, California, and then underwent a brief conversion at the Naval Sea Frontier Base, Treasure Island, California. Beaverhead departed the San Francisco Bay area on 22 January bound for San Pedro, Los Angeles, and shakedown. At the conclusion of that training, she conducted a post shakedown availability at the San Pedro Harbor Boat Co. between 8 and 14 February.

On the 20th, the ship got underway from San Pedro bound for the Admiralty Islands. She arrived at Manus on 15 March but remained only until the 18th, moving via Hollandia in New Guinea to the Philippine Islands. She arrived in Leyte Gulf on 28 March. Over the next eight months, Beaverhead plied the waters of the Philippines, supplying various American bases. Although operating principally in that archipelago, the ship on occasion, voyaged to Borneo, Morotai, and Manus. Ultimately, Beaverhead sailed for home on 5 December. She transited the Panama Canal on 19 January 1946 and arrived in New York 11 days later. She moved to Norfolk, Virginia, during the second week in February and was decommissioned there on 8 March 1946. The ship was turned over to the Maritime Commission for disposal on 13 March 1946, and her name was struck from the Navy list on 28 March 1946. She was subsequently sold in February 1947.

Beaverhead was sold to the Dutch shipping firm of Koninklijke Nederlandsche Stoomboot Maatschappij, N.V., on 28 March 1947, for $693,862, and renamed Hera. In 1963 she was sold to Bahamas Line, Panama, and renamed Omar Express. She was converted in 1967, to a self-unloading cement carrier, at the Avondale Shipyard, in Avondale, Louisiana, and renamed Cementos Ponce. In 1976 she was renamed Vanessa. She was finally scrapped at Veracruz, Mexico, sometime between 1982 and 1984.

Military awards and honors

Beaverheads's crew was eligible for the following medals and campaign ribbons:

Notes

  1. ^ C1 Cargo Ships 2009.
  2. ^ Navsource 2014.
  3. ^ Mann 2015.
  4. ^ MARAD.
  5. Swiggum & Kohli 2006.

Bibliography

External links

  • Photo gallery of USS Beaverhead (AK-161) at NavSource Naval History
Portals:
Alamosa-class cargo ships
  • * = Canceled August 1945
  • ** = Canceled August 1945, but completed as Coastal Guide
  • † = Canceled August 1945, but completed as Coastal Crusader
MARCOM ships built by Kaiser Shipyards, Richmond Shipyards, Richmond, California during World War II
Crater-class cargo ships
Type EC2-S-C1 ships
Type EC2-S-C1 ships
Liberty Ships
Boulder Victory-class cargo ships
Type VC2-S-AP2 ships
Type VC2-S-AP2 ships
Victory Ships
Greenville Victory-class cargo ship
VC2-S-AP3 ship
Norwalk-class cargo ship
Type VC2-S-AP3 cargo ship
Type VC2-S-AP3 cargo ships
Haskell-class attack transports
Type VC2-S-AP5 ships
General G. O. Squier-class transport ships
Type C4-S-A1 ships
Marine Adder-class transport ship
Type C4-S-A3 ship
Type C4-S-A3 ships
Type C4-S-A4 ships
LST-1-class tank landing ships
Type S3-M-K2 ships
Achelous-class repair ships
Type S2-S2-AQ1 ships
Tacoma-class patrol frigates
Type S2-S2-AQ1 ships
Alamosa-class cargo ships
Type C1-M-AV1 ships
Miscellaneous Auxiliary
Type C1-M-AV1 ships
Type C1-M-AV1 ships
Type C1-M ships
Type C1-M-AV1
Type C1-M-AV7
Type C1-M-AV8
Type C1-MT-BU1
Categories: