USS ''Moose'' (IX-124), an ''Armadillo''-class tanker designated an

unclassified miscellaneous vessel The IX (unclassified–miscellaneous) hull classification symbol is used for ships of the United States Navy that do not fit into one of the standard categories. Similar lists of 'miscellaneous' ships can found at : and :. Ship status i ...

, was the second ship of the

United States 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 ...

to be named for the

moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...

, a large

ruminant Ruminants (suborder Ruminantia) are hoofed herbivorous grazing or browsing mammals that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally through microbial actions. The ...

animal of the

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

family, found in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the northern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. Originally named ''Mason L. Weems'', she was renamed ''Moose'' 27 October 1943. Her keel was laid down on 1 November 1943 by Delta Shipbuilding Company in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

(T. 2.ETI.S.C3). She was launched on 17 December 1943 sponsored by Mrs. Douglas E. Schultheiss, acquired by the Navy on a bareboat charter from the

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 C ...

on 27 January 1944, and commissioned on 28 January 1944. After shakedown, ''Moose'' departed Balboa, Panama Canal Zone, on 15 March 1944 for the South Pacific. Upon arrival New Caledonia in November, she reported to Commander, Southern Pacific, for duty as a mobile floating oil storage ship. From May to August 1945 ''Moose'' served as a fuel supply ship supporting the effort to end the war against Japan, calling at

Ulithi Ulithi ( yap, Wulthiy, , or ) is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about east of Yap. Overview Ulithi consists of 40 islets totaling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the larges ...

, the

Palau Islands Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...

Leyte Gulf Leyte Gulf is a gulf in the Eastern Visayan region in the Philippines. The bay is part of the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, and is bounded by two islands; Samar in the north and Leyte in the west. On the south of the bay is Mindanao ...

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

Kerama Retto The are a subtropical island group southwest of Okinawa Island in Japan. Geography Four islands are inhabited: Tokashiki Island, Zamami Island, Aka Island, and Geruma Island. The islands are administered as Tokashiki Village and Zamami Vill ...

, discharging her one-millionth barrel of fuel at

Buckner Bay is a bay on the southern coast of Okinawa Island on the Pacific Ocean in Japan. The bay covers and ranges between to deep. The bay is surrounded by the municipalities of Uruma, Kitanakagusuku, Nakagusuku, Nishihara, Yonabaru, Nanjō, a ...

, on 21 August. With the end of the war in the Pacific, ''Moose'' reported to the Atlantic Fleet at Norfolk, Virginia, on 4 February 1946. She decommissioned there 19 April 1946, was returned to the

on 27 April 1946, and stricken from the

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...

on 8 May 1946. She entered the National Reserve Defense Fleet as ''Mason L. Weems''. In 1948 she was sold to Tramp Shipping & Oil Transportation Corporation for service as ''Yankee Pioneer''. Resold to Weyerhaeuser Steamship Company in 1951, the ship was renamed ''Y. L. McCormick''.

References

External links

Photo gallery
at navsource.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Moose Armadillo-class tankers Unclassified miscellaneous vessels of the United States Navy Ships built in New Orleans 1943 ships