- USS Riverside (APA-102)
USS Riverside (APA-102) was a "Bayfield"-class
attack transport . Her dangerous task was to deliver troops to the battle front, and to recover and care for the wounded. She served her country in thePacific Ocean in the war against theEmpire of Japan .The second Navy ship to be named "Riverside", she was laid down on
11 November 1942 by theIngalls Shipbuilding Co.,Pascagoula, Mississippi , underMaritime Commission contract (M.C. hull 870); launched13 April 1944 ; sponsored by Mrs. Sidney Swan; acquired by the Navy on loan charter; designated APA-102; and commissioned on29 June 1944 . Then ordered toNew York for conversion to an attack transport at theAtlantic Basin Iron Works yard, she was decommissioned on8 July , converted, and recommissioned on18 December 1944 , Capt. Louis N. Miller in command.World War II Pacific Theatre operations
After shakedown in
Chesapeake Bay , "Riverside" proceeded toDavisville, Rhode Island ; loaded men and equipment of the 81st Construction Battalion; and departed for thePacific Ocean . Transiting thePanama Canal on30 January 1945 , she continued on toPearl Harbor , arriving on15 February . She then carried patients and passengers toCalifornia . In mid-April, she returned toHawaii ; conducted amphibious landing exercises through May; tested equipment and trained personnel in cargo handling in June; and in mid-June got underway on another Hawaii-California run. At the end of the month, she shifted fromSan Pedro, California , toPortland, Oregon , for availability, and in early July steamed west with reinforcements forOkinawa . Steaming viaGuam andUlithi , "Riverside",flagship of Transport Squadron 21, arrived at theHagushi anchorage on12 August and discharged her cargo and passengers. Two days later the war ended.End-of-war activity
She then shifted around to
Buckner Bay , whence she proceeded to thePhilippines to embarkU.S. Army occupation troops forKorea .Supporting Operation Magic Carpet
From Korea she returned to
Okinawa and toward the end of October joined the "Operation Magic Carpet " fleet to bring American troops back to theUnited States . At the end of January1946 , she completed her second trans-Pacific "Magic-Carpet" run. She then made a round trip to Hawaii and, in mid-February, she departedSan Francisco, California , for theU.S. East Coast and inactivation.Post-war decommissioning
"Riverside" arrived at
Norfolk, Virginia , on5 March . Decommissioned on27 April , she was redelivered to theMaritime Commission 'sWar Shipping Administration on the 28th. Her name was struck from theNavy list on8 May 1946 , and she was sold for commercial service in1947 and wrecked in1968 .References
See also
*
List of United States Navy ships
*World War II External links
* [http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/#Anchor-Editoria-14954 Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships]
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/10/03/03102.htm NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive - APA-102 Riverside]
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