- USS Ontonagon (AOG-36)
USS "Ontonagon" (AOG-36) was a "Mettawee"-class
gasoline tanker acquired by theU.S. Navy for the dangerous task of transporting gasoline to warships in the fleet, and to remote Navy stations."Ontonagon", ex MC hull 1799, was laid down
10 May 1944 by theEast Coast Ship Yard Inc.,Bayonne, New Jersey ; launched30 June 1944 ; sponsored by Mrs. Riva Halpern; and commissioned21 September 1944 , Lt. Ralph S. Logan,USCGR , in command.World War II service
Following shakedown in
Chesapeake Bay , "Ontonagon" clearedNorfolk, Virginia , for theCaribbean , whence, after taking on a petroleum cargo, she continued on to thePacific Ocean .Pacific Ocean operations
Assigned to
ServRon 8 until the spring of 1945, she assisted in the first stages of transporting and distributing gasolines to the fleet and to forward bases from theU.S. West Coast . From ServRon 8 control, supply vessels moving west passed into the operational control of ServRon 10 for dispatch to forward units. "Ontonagon" joined that squadron2 April atUlithi . Scheduled to continue on toOkinawa , she refueled ships in that anchorage as her departure date was postponed.End-of-war activity
On
22 June she sailed forOkinawa . Arriving on the 29th, she remained in theRyukyus , fueling ships atKerama Retto ,Hagushi ,Naha andBuckner Bay through the end of the war and the end of the year. On15 January 1946 , she departedBuckner Bay for thePhilippines .Assigned to the Army as USAT Ontonagon
Arriving 6 days later, she operated in
Manila andSubic Bay s until decommissioned, atManila ,27 February , and transferred to theArmy Transport Service as "USAT Ontonagon".Assigned to the Navy as USNS Ontonagon (T-AOG-36)
Within a week of the outbreak of hostilities in
Korea , "Ontonagon" was reacquired by the Navy for use in MSTS. Placed in service as "USNS Ontonagon" (T-AOG-36) and manned by a civil service crew, she once again plied the waters of the Pacific to keep the oil life line to a combat area open. In January 1952 she began direct support to fleet units and bases in the combat zone, maintaining that support as a shuttle ship betweenJapan andKorea until June 1954.Stateside and decommissioning
Returned to the west coast in September, she was placed out of service and transferred to the
Maritime Administration , atOlympia, Washington ,14 December 1954 . Struck from theNavy List 22 June 1955 , she remained a unit of theNational Defense Reserve Fleet .Returned to service with MSTS
"Ontonagon" returned to
Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) and was placed in service once again on26 April 1956 . Assigned to the NorthPacific Ocean , she served with MSTS until inactivated for a third time atSan Francisco, California , and placed in “ready status” in theNational Defense Reserve Fleet atSuisun Bay, California ,25 September 1956 .Final decommissioning and scrapping
On
13 November 1957 , she was struck from theNavy List and transferred permanently to theMaritime Administration . She was scrapped in 1964.Military awards and honors
"Ontonagon" received one
battle star for service inWorld War II .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/09/20/2036.htm NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - AOG-36 Ontonagon]
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