USS ''Burleigh'' (APA-95) was a that served with the
United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. She was sold into commercial service in 1947 and was scrapped in 1973.
History
''Burleigh'' (named after
Burleigh County, North Dakota
Burleigh County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 98,458, making it the second-most populous county in North Dakota. Its county seat is Bismarck, the state capital. The county was named fo ...
), was launched on 3 December 1943 by
Ingalls Shipbuilding,
Pascagoula, Mississippi, under a
Maritime Commission contract, and placed in reduced commission on 1 April 1944. She was taken to
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
, and placed out of commission on 13 April for conversion by
Bethlehem Steel, 56th Street Yard,
Brooklyn, New York. The ship was placed in full commission on 30 October 1944.
Pacific War
On 3 December 1944 ''Burleigh'' departed
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's ...
,
Virginia, and proceeded to the
Pacific, arriving at
Pearl Harbor on 23 December. She became
flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...
of Transport Squadron 18 at
San Francisco on 3 January 1945. During January and February, ''Burleigh'' transported passengers and supplies to Pearl Harbor,
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...
, and the
Russell Islands.
March 1945 was spent at
Ulithi,
Caroline Islands, in preparation for the assault on
Okinawa. ''Burleigh'' departed Ulithi, in company with Transport Squadron 18, on 27 March, and arrived off Okinawa on 1 April. She remained in the area disembarking
Marines and supplies until 10 April, when she got underway for Pearl Harbor. She arrived at Pearl Harbor on 27 April, after stopping at
Guam to embark casualties.
Returning to San Francisco on 4 June, ''Burleigh'' embarked troops and supplies and steamed to Guam via Pearl Harbor,
Eniwetok, and
Saipan
Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
. She returned to San Francisco on 2 August.
Operation Magic Carpet
With the cessation of hostilities, ''Burleigh'' was assigned to the
Operation Magic Carpet
Operation Magic Carpet was the post- World War II operation by the War Shipping Administration to repatriate over eight million American military personnel from the European, Pacific, and Asian theaters. Hundreds of Liberty ships, Victory s ...
fleet returning
veterans from the Pacific until March 1946.
Decommissioning and fate
On 15 March 1946 she departed the
West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to:
Geography Australia
* Western Australia
*Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia
* West Coast, Tasmania
**West Coast Range, mountain range in the region
Canada
* Britis ...
for
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...
, where she arrived in April. She was decommissioned on 11 June 1946 and returned to the Maritime Commission the following day.
On 26 June 1947, she was sold to the Matson Navigation Company and was renamed SS ''Hawaiian Pilot''.
On 14 July 1953 ''Hawaiian Pilot'' collided off San Francisco in fog with another C3 ship, the SS ''Jacob Luckenbach''; the ''Jacob Luckenbach'' sank but the entire crew was saved by the ''Hawaiian Pilot''. The damage to her bow was repaired.
She was again sold on 8 May 1961 to Oceanic Steamship Company, a Matson subsidiary, and was renamed SS ''Sonoma ''. On 21 January 1971, the ship was sold to Far East Line Inc. and finally on 17 March 1972 to Excelsior Marine Corporation and she was renamed SS ''Noma''. She was sold for scrap in 1973.
Awards
Burleigh received one
battle star for her World War II service.
References
*
APA-95 ''Burleigh'' Navsource Online
Hazegray.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burleigh (APA-95)
Bayfield-class attack transports
Ships built in Pascagoula, Mississippi
1943 ships
World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States
Burleigh County, North Dakota