USNS ''Cheyenne'' (T-AG-174) was a acquired by the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

in 1962, crewed by a civilian crew from the

Military Sea Transportation Service Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all US m ...

, and sent to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

to serve as a delivery ship of parts and supplies to other navy ships and stations in the Asian area. ''Cheyenne'' remained in the Philippines, issuing parts and other supplies, until the late 1960s. In 1966 she changed home port to Pusan Korea and was crewed by Korean merchant sailors. AT that time she was one of 4 cargo ships and 19 USNS LSTs operating out of the MSTS Office Pusan primarily providing support in the Viet Nam theater. Her master was a former ROK Navy captain, best known as "Speedy Pak". She was struck by the navy in 1973. (Korea information provided by the executive officer of the MSTS Office Pusan 1967–68.)

Built in Portland, Oregon

''Cheyenne'' was constructed as the

victory ship The Victory ship was a class of cargo ship produced in large numbers by North American shipyards during World War II to replace losses caused by German submarines. They were a more modern design compared to the earlier Liberty ship, were slight ...

SS ''Middlesex Victory'' under U.S. Maritime Commission contract (MCV-693) at

Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation was a World War II emergency shipyard located along the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States. The shipyard built nearly 600 Liberty and Victory ships between 1941 and 1945 under the Emergency Shipb ...

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

. She was launched on 26 June 1945 and renamed SS ''Wyoming'' in 1947. In 1963, she was placed in-service as USNS ''Cheyenne'' (T-AG-174), a ''Special Project Ship'', crewed by the

with a civilian crew.

World War II

For World War II the ''Middlesex Victory'' was operated by the Pacific-Atlantic Steamship Company under

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the rec ...

with the

Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 195 ...

and

War Shipping Administration The War Shipping Administration (WSA) was a World War II emergency war agency of the US government, tasked to purchase and operate the civilian shipping tonnage the United States needed for fighting the war. Both shipbuilding under the Maritime Co ...

. She took needed supplies to troops. In 1948 she was sold to the States Steamship Company of Tacoma and renamed SS ''Wyoming''.

Vietnam War operations

DANFS The ''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships'' (''DANFS'') is the official reference work for the basic facts about ships used by the United States Navy. When the writing project was developed the parameters for this series were designed to ...

has no information on the operation of this ship. However, a review of the history of and indicates her operations to be similar to theirs: acting as a point to point cargo carrier, delivering military supplies to

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

from stocking points in Japan and

Subic Bay Subic Bay is a bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, about northwest of Manila Bay. An extension of the South China Sea, its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility, U.S. Naval Base Subi ...

Post-war decommissioning

Along with ''Phoenix'' and ''Provo'', ''Cheyenne'' was struck from the

Navy List A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval author ...

on 15 June 1973 and disposed of by

MARAD Marad (Sumerian: Marda, modern Tell Wannat es-Sadum or Tell as-Sadoum, Iraq) was an ancient Near Eastern city. Marad was situated on the west bank of the then western branch of the Upper Euphrates River west of Nippur in modern-day Iraq and roug ...

sale, 1 May 1973 and scrapped in August.

References

NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - T-AG-174 Cheyenne
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cheyenne (T-AG-174) Victory ships Ships built in Portland, Oregon 1945 ships World War II merchant ships of the United States Phoenix-class auxiliary ships Vietnam War auxiliary ships of the United States