- USS Munargo (AP-20)
USS "Munargo" (AP-20) was a commercial vessel-class
transport acquired by theU.S. Navy for service as a troop carrier duringWorld War II . She operated in theAtlantic Ocean , and, during the war, she was converted into aU.S. Army Hospital ship ."Munargo" (AP 20) was completed in December
1921 byNew York Shipbuilding Corp.,Camden, New Jersey ; acquired by the Navy from the Army6 June 1941 ; and commissioned4 June 1941 , Comdr. Harold F. Ely in command.World War II North Atlantic operations
Following conversion at
Brooklyn, New York , "Munargo" was attached to theNaval Transportation Service at Brooklyn in December1941 . On16 December she embarked troops and sailed toBermuda , arrivingSt. George’s Harbor 2 days later. She departed19 December forSan Juan, Puerto Rico , with troops and civilian passengers, and thence steamed toTrinidad to take aboard suspected German agents for transportation toNew York , arriving5 January 1942 . For the first 3-1⁄2 months of1942 , "Munargo" carried troops between New York andReykjavík ,Iceland . On17 April she embarked British troops on Iceland, then carried them toGourock ,Scotland . After another such voyage, she returned toBoston, Massachusetts ,27 June to disembark British officers, then spent 4 months In New York.South Atlantic and Pacific operations
"Munargo" left New York
30 December with troops, cargo, and U.S. currency for Trinidad andBrazil , from which she sailed through thePanama Canal toSan Francisco, California , arriving18 March 1943 . On17 May she reachedNoumea ,New Caledonia with troops, returning toCalifornia to reload, and once again arriving inNoumea 18 July . She sailed almost at once forSamoa ,Hawaii ,Guantánamo Bay , and theU.S. East Coast . She decommissioned at Brooklyn18 October 1943 , and was returned to the War Department.Conversion to hospital ship
The
U.S. Army converted her to ahospital ship and she renamed "Thistle". Operating fromCharleston, South Carolina , she made nine voyages of mercy to theMediterranean . Ordered to thePacific Ocean in September1945 , she called atLeyte and returned to the west coast in December, decommissioning as a hospital ship in March1946 .Post-war decommissioning
She was subsequently returned to the
Maritime Commission and remained under its custody for lay up in theNational Defense Reserve Fleet until1968 . Final disposition: she was scrapped in1957 .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/09/22/22020.htm NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - AP-20 Munargo - US Army Hospital Ship Thistle]
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