- USS Arapaho (ATF-68)
USS "Arapaho" (AT-68/ATF-68) was a "Navajo"-class
fleet ocean tug which served theU.S. Navy duringWorld War II with her towing services. She was assigned initially to support theU.S. Atlantic Fleet , and was eventually assigned to support Allied forces in the war zones of thePacific Ocean , resulting in her crew returning home after the war with fourbattle stars to their credit.Launched in South Carolina
The second ship to be so named by the Navy, "Arapaho" (AT-68) was laid down on 8 November 1941 at
Charleston, South Carolina , by the Charleston Shipbuilding & Dry-dock Company; launched on 22 June 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Alice Posey Hatcher; and commissioned on 20 January 1943, Lt. E. H. Wootan in command.World War II service
East coast operations
The tug conducted her shakedown training in the vicinity of
Key West, Florida , and returned toNorfolk, Virginia , to prepare for atransatlantic voyage. On 19 March, she sailed forCasablanca ,Morocco . There, she took thetorpedo -damaged attack cargo ship "Almaack" (AKA-10) in tow for the voyage back to theUnited States . She and her charge arrived back inNorfolk, Virginia , on 20 May.In mid-June, the tug moved south to search the
Florida Strait for thesubmarine "R-12 (SS-89") which had sunk as a result of battery explosions. After fruitlessly seeking this ship from 18 to 23 June, "Arapaho" set sail on 25 June -- apparently fromKey West, Florida -- with a barge in tow on her way toPanama . She left the barge in thePanama Canal Zone and continued her voyage toSan Diego, California , where she arrived on 15 July.Pacific Ocean operations
For the next three months, the tug conducted towing and salvage operations, first along the
U.S. West Coast and then, from early in September, out ofPearl Harbor . On 16 October, "Arapaho" departedHawaii with two supply lighters in tow, bound for theEllice Islands . She reachedFunafuti on 30 October and began heavy towing operations between the Ellice andGilbert Islands . For a time, she served as anantisubmarine guard ship at recently capturedTarawa Atoll.On 4 December, "Arapaho" embarked 12 civilians who had been liberated from a Japanese
internment camp on Makin and set sail -- viaFunafuti -- forPearl Harbor . From Funafuti, the tug steamed in company with aircraft carrier "Independence" (CVL-22), severely damaged in theGilbert Islands operation by an aerial torpedo. The ships arrived at Pearl Harbor on 18 December. "Arapaho" underwent repairs until near the end of the first week in January 1944. On 6 January, she headed back to the Gilberts. Over the next five months, the tug was based successively atTarawa andMajuro , though she made numerous tows to other islands in the Gilbert, Marshall, and Ellice groups. By 13 June, she had moved her base of operations toEniwetok where she engaged in harbor duty and salvage work. On 3 July, "Arapaho" set a course for Pearl Harbor which she reached on the 9th to begin a month of repairs. She returned to Eniwetok on 26 August and, except for a round-trip voyage toGuam , operated there until the second week in October.Ulithi operations
At that time, she put to sea towing auxiliary repair dock "ARD-15" and covered lighter (self-propelled) "YF-786" to Ulithi,
Service Squadron (ServRon) 10's new advanced base, and, following her arrival at thatatoll , worked in and out of itslagoon engaged in harbor and salvage duties.Between 4 and 10 November, she assisted "Zuni" (ATF-95) in towing "Reno" (CL-96) into
Ulithi . Thelight cruiser had been torpedoed by a Japanesesubmarine off theSan Bernardino Strait on the 3d. In December, the tug towed "Houston" (CL-81) fromUlithi to Manus in theAdmiralty Islands . From there, she towed fuel barge "YO-186" toKossol Passage in thePalau Islands . After towing "LST-278" toGuam in January 1945, "Arapaho" returned to Ulithi on the 23d and began a major overhaul of her main propulsion plant. The ship completed repairs and returned to active duty on 18 March.Okinawa operations
She operated out of Ulithi until mid-June when she moved to Guam. From there, the tug headed for
Okinawa on 5 July with auxiliary repair dock "ARD-26" in tow. "Arapaho" and the auxiliary repair dock arrived inKerama Retto 10 days later. The tug remained atOkinawa until after the end of hostilities in mid-August. Late that month, she voyaged back to Guam to pick up "ARD-21" for tow to Okinawa. She returned to Kerama Retto with her charge on 7 September and resumed local towing duty.End-of-war decommissioning
That assignment continued until 9 November 1945 when she began the long journey back to the
United States . She stopped atPearl Harbor for a few days early in December and arrived inSan Pedro, California , on 27th. "Arapaho" remained at San Pedro assigned to the inactive fleet awaiting inactivation overhaul for a little more than a year. On 8 and 9 January 1947, she was towed toSan Diego, California , where she was decommissioned on 15 January 1947. She remained with thePacific Reserve Fleet until July 1961. On 1 July 1961, her name was struck from theNavy list .ubsequent maritime career
On 10 July 1961, she was transferred to the
Argentine Navy which commissioned her that same day as "Comandante General Zapiola". The tug remained active with the Argentine Navy until November 1971 when she ran aground and was declared a total loss.Honors and awards
"Arapaho" (ATF-68) earned four
battle stars duringWorld War II .See also
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U.S. Navy
*World War II References
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* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/39/39068.htm NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - USS Arapaho (ATF-68) – ex USS Arapaho (AT-68) (1943 - 1944)]
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