USS Towner
_underway_at_sea,_7_December_1944_(BS_75247).jpg)
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USS Towner |
| Namesake | Towner County, North Dakota |
| Builder | North Carolina Shipbuilding Company, Wilmington, North Carolina |
| Laid down | 8 April 1944 |
| Launched | 13 June 1944 |
| Commissioned | 3 December 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 10 June 1946 |
| Renamed |
|
| Stricken | 19 June 1946 |
| Fate | Sold for civilian use, abandoned July 1967 as a constructive total loss & scuttled. |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | attack cargo ship |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 459 ft 2 in (139.95 m) |
| Beam | 63 ft (19 m) |
| Draft | 26 ft 4 in (8.03 m) |
| Speed | 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph) |
| Complement | 395 |
| Armament |
|
USS Towner (AKA-77) was a
History
Towner was named after
World War II, 1944–1945
Following shakedown training in the Chesapeake Bay area from 14 December to 23 December, the attack cargo ship loaded cargo at Bayonne, New Jersey, and, with Sheliak, got underway on 4 January 1945 for the Pacific. The two ships transited the Panama Canal on 10 January and headed for Hawaii the next day, arriving at Pearl Harbor on the 25th.
Towner stood out to sea again on 9 February bound for New Caledonia and arrived at Nouméa 10 days later. For the next two and one-half months, she made shuttle runs to Uarai Bay and participated in amphibious training exercises. In late April, Towner loaded elements of the 710th Tank Battalion and, with Transport Division 33, sortied on 3 May for the Philippines. She unloaded at Dulag on the 16th and reported to the 7th Fleet the following week. On 27 May, she sailed independently, via Hollandia, to Milne Bay to load a deck cargo of boats which she delivered to Manus. In early June, she loaded base hospital units at Lae for transportation to the Philippines and unloaded them at Manila on the 16th. From mid-June to mid-October, she shuttled troops and cargo from New Guinea to the Philippines.
Post-war activities, 1945
On 26 August, Towner joined the Transport Division of the 3rd Amphibious Force at
Decommissioning
Towner arrived at
Civilian service and fate
After being sold by the Navy, ex-USS Towner was renamed (in succession) SS Philippine Bear, SS Kaimana, and SS Guam Bear. She served as a cargo ship for various carriers until July 1967 when (as Guam Bear in the service of Pacific Far East Lines) she was involved in a collision outside
References
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
- Navsource.org
- Wrecksite.eu
External links
- Photo gallery of USS Towner at NavSource Naval History
- 51 Years of AKAs