USS Hydrus
History | |
---|---|
United States | |
Name | USS Hydrus |
Namesake | The constellation Hydrus |
Builder | Walsh-Kaiser Company, Providence, Rhode Island |
Launched | 28 October 1944 |
Commissioned | 9 December 1944 |
Decommissioned | 26 March 1946 |
Honours and awards | 1 battle star (WWII) |
Fate | Sold for scrapping, April 1964 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | attack cargo ship |
Type | S4–SE2–BE1 |
Displacement |
|
Length | 426 ft (130 m) |
Beam | 58 ft (18 m) |
Draft | 15 ft 6 in (4.72 m) |
Speed | 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) |
Complement | 303 officers and enlisted |
Armament |
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USS Hydrus (AKA-28) was an
History
Hydrus (AKA-28) was named after the southern constellation
1944
Hydrus departed Providence 22 December for Hampton Roads and her shakedown training, completing this phase of her operations early in January 1945. The attack transport got underway 7 January for the Pacific theater, sailing via the Canal Zone to Pearl Harbor, where she arrived 27 January.
1945
With the island campaign in the Pacific then entering its final phases, Hydrus sailed 1 February for
Hydrus got underway 5 May for the United States, and arrived San Francisco six days later. After loading fresh cargo she once again sailed for Pearl Harbor, arriving 26 May. The next two months saw Hydrus operate temporarily as an inter-island cargo carrier, transporting supplies of various types among the myriad islands in the Hawaiian chain. After brief repairs, she sailed with a cargo for Christmas Island and Canton Island, but returned to Honolulu 3 August.
Slated for return to the western
Her role in the Chinese occupation over, Hydrus was assigned duty with
Post-war
Designated for return to the Maritime Commission, the ship sailed 11 January for the East Coast and arrived at New York 2 February. There Hydrus was selected as a training ship for the New York State Maritime Academy, and steamed up the East River to Fort Schuyler 6 March 1946. She decommissioned there 26 March and became Empire State II.
After a 10-year career as a training ship for future maritime officers, the ship was placed in the Maritime Commission's National Defense Reserve Fleet in June 1956. She remained there until being sold in April 1964 to Union Minerals & Alloys Corp., of New York, and scrapped.
Awards
Hydrus received one
References
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.