USS ''Virgo'' (AKA-20) was an ''Andromeda'' class

attack cargo ship Attack may refer to: Warfare and combat * Offensive (military) * Charge (warfare) * Attack (fencing) * Strike (attack) * Attack (computing) * Attack aircraft Books and publishing * ''The Attack'' (novel), a book * '' Attack No. 1'', comic an ...

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 ...

, named after the

constellation A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The origins of the e ...

Virgo Virgo may refer to: *Virgo (astrology), the sixth astrological sign of the zodiac *Virgo (constellation), a constellation *Virgo Cluster, a cluster of galaxies in the constellation Virgo *Virgo Stellar Stream, remains of a dwarf galaxy *Virgo Supe ...

. She was later converted to an

ammunition ship An ammunition ship is an auxiliary ship specially configured to carry ammunition, usually for naval ships and aircraft. An ammunition ship's cargo handling systems, designed with extreme safety in mind, include ammunition hoists with airlocks bet ...

and redesignated as (AE-30). She served as a commissioned ship for 22 years and 4 months. ''Virgo'' (AKA-20) was laid down on 9 March 1943 at

Kearny, New Jersey Kearny ( ) is a town in the western part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States and a suburb of Newark. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 40,684,Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company The Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company was a United States shipyard, active from 1917 to 1948. It was founded during World War I to build ships for the United States Shipping Board. During World War II, it built ships as part of the U.S. Gov ...

, under a

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 ...

contract (MC hull 204); launched on 4 June 1943; sponsored by Miss Sharman Douglas; delivered to the Navy on 15 July 1943; and commissioned at the

New York Navy Yard The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a ...

on 16 July 1943.

Service history

World War II

1943

''Virgo'' conducted her shakedown training in the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the ...

and off the

Virginia Capes The Virginia Capes are the two capes, Cape Charles to the north and Cape Henry to the south, that define the entrance to Chesapeake Bay on the eastern coast of North America. In 1610, a supply ship learned of the famine at Jamestown when it l ...

in July and August and then departed

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

on 24 August, bound for the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. She transited the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...

on 31 August and arrived in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, California, on 9 September. On the 15th, she continued her voyage west. The attack cargo ship entered

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...

on 21 September and began cargo operations – unloading some and taking on more. ''Virgo'' stood out of Pearl Harbor on 24 September and set a course for

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. She arrived in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

on 6 October and began a series of landing craft exercises. The ship remained at Wellington until 1 November at which time she got underway for the

New Hebrides New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium (french: link=no, Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides, "Condominium of the New Hebrides") and named after the Hebrides Scottish archipelago, was the colonial name for the island group ...

Islands. She arrived in Hayannah Harbor at the island of

Efate Efate (french: Éfaté) is an island in the Pacific Ocean which is part of the Shefa Province in Vanuatu. It is also known as Île Vate. Geography It is the most populous (approx. 66,000) island in Vanuatu. Efate's land area of makes it Vanua ...

to conduct training and make preparations for the forthcoming

Gilberts The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...

and

Marshalls Marshalls is an American chain of off-price department stores owned by TJX Companies. Marshalls has over 1,000 American stores, including larger stores named Marshalls Mega Store, covering 42 states and Puerto Rico, and 61 stores in Canada. Mar ...

invasions. ''Virgo'' departed the New Hebrides on 13 November in company with a convoy bound for the Gilbert Islands. She arrived off

Tarawa Atoll Tarawa is an atoll and the capital of the Republic of Kiribati,Kiribati
''

Betio Betio is the largest township of Kiribati's capital city, South Tarawa, and the country's main port. The settlement is located on a separate islet at the extreme southwest of the atoll. Betio Post Office opened on 5 April 1957 and closed in 1964. ...

Island, ''Virgo'' was straddled by four shells from a Japanese shore battery. However, air strikes and counter battery fire quickly silenced the offender, and ''Virgo'' resumed landing operations. She remained offshore while the

Marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

carried out their bloody struggle to wrest control of the atoll from a well-fortified enemy. During that struggle and while the other islands of the atoll were cleared, ''Virgo'' remained in the vicinity of Tarawa. On 28 November, she cleared the Gilberts on her way to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. The attack cargo ship arrived in Pearl Harbor on 7 December. During the following six weeks, she practiced amphibious operations in the Hawaiian Islands in preparation for " Operation Flintlock", the assault and occupation of atolls in the Marshall Islands.

1944

On 22 January 1944, ''Virgo'' departed

Oahu Oahu () (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering place#Island of Oʻahu as The Gathering Place, Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over t ...

in company with Task Force (TF) 52, bound for the Marshalls. She arrived off

Kwajalein Kwajalein Atoll (; Marshallese: ) is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island, which its majority English-speaking residents (about 1,000 mostly U.S. civilia ...

Atoll early on the morning of 31 January and began launching boats and discharging troops. No untoward events occurred during her five-day stay at Kwajalein, and she departed the atoll on 4 February. The attack cargo ship arrived at

Funafuti Funafuti is the capital of the island nation of Tuvalu. It has a population of 6,320 people (2017 census), and so it has more people than the rest of Tuvalu combined, with approximately 60% of the population. It consists of a narrow sweep of la ...

in the

Ellice Islands Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-northea ...

on 8 February and remained there until the 19th when she got underway for

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 ...

. The ship anchored in

Port Purvis A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

Florida Island The Nggela Islands, also known as the Florida Islands, are a small island group in the Central Province of Solomon Islands, a sovereign state (since 1978) in the southwest Pacific Ocean. The chain is composed of four larger islands and about ...

in the Solomons on 24 February and began a series of amphibious training exercises in the southern Solomons. That employment lasted until 27 March, on which day she got underway for Bougainville in the northern Solomons with elements of the Army's 25th

Regimental Combat Team A regimental combat team (RCT) is a provisional major infantry unit which has seen use by branches of the United States Armed Forces. It is formed by augmenting a regular infantry regiment with smaller combat, combat support and combat service ...

(RCT). She discharged those troops and their attending equipment at Bougainville on 28 March and departed that same day for

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

. ''Virgo'' entered

Milne Bay Milne Bay is a large bay in Milne Bay Province, south-eastern Papua New Guinea. More than long and over wide, Milne Bay is a sheltered deep-water harbor accessible via Ward Hunt Strait. It is surrounded by the heavily wooded Stirling Range to t ...

, New Guinea, on 31 March and remained there until 4 April when she headed for

Cape Sudest Cape Sudest is a cape in Papua New Guinea, next to Oro Bay. There was an important U.S military base there in World War II. It was situated in Oro Province Oro Province, formerly (and officially still) Northern Province, is a coastal province of P ...

. The ship stopped at Cape Sudest from 5 to 14 April and then headed for the Beli Beli Islands. She reached that destination on the 15th and began loading elements of the Army's 24th RCT. Underway again on the 16th, ''Virgo'' set a course for

Tanahmerah Bay Tanahmerah Bay, or Tanah Merah Bay, ( id, Teluk Tanahmerah, "red soil bay") is a bay on the north coast of New Guinea, in Jayapura Regency, Papua, Indonesia, about 50 km northwest of the provincial capital of Jayapura. During World War II ...

, New Guinea, where she arrived on 23 April. She unloaded the troops and their equipment and departed Tanahmerah Bay on the 24th. She stopped at Cape Sudest on the 27th and arrived at

Saidor Saidor is a village located in Saidor ward of Rai Coast Rural LLG, Madang Province, on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. It is also the administrative centre of the Rai Coast District of Madang Province in Papua New Guinea. The village was the ...

on the 29th. There, she loaded men and equipment of the Army's 32nd Infantry Division. On 1 May, the ship put to sea once again, bound for

Aitape Aitape is a small town of about 18,000 people on the north coast of Papua New Guinea in the Sandaun Province. It is a coastal settlement that is almost equidistant from the provincial capitals of Wewak and Vanimo, and marks the midpoint of the ...

, New Guinea, where she arrived on the 3rd and unloaded troops and equipment. Departing Aitape that same day, ''Virgo'' set a course via Cape Sudest for Guadalcanal where she arrived on 10 May. At Guadalcanal, the attack cargo ship loaded troops of the 1st Marine Provisional Brigade and began amphibious training exercises which lasted until 31 May. On 4 June, she departed Guadalcanal with troops embarked for the invasion of the

Mariana Islands The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...

. She stopped at Kwajalein from 9 to 11 June and then put to sea once again on the 12th. ''Virgo's'' troops were not committed to 15 June landings on

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 ...

. Instead, they made up a part of the floating reserve and were scheduled to land on

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

later in the month. However, Saipan proved to be a tougher nut to crack than expected; and, as a consequence, the Guam assault was delayed. After steaming around to the east of Saipan for several days – during which the

5th Fleet The Fifth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It has been responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean since 1995 after a 48-year hiatus. It shares a commander and headq ...

carriers destroyed the remnants of Japanese naval air power in the

Battle of the Philippine Sea The Battle of the Philippine Sea (June 19–20, 1944) was a major naval battle of World War II that eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invas ...

— she then put in at

Eniwetok Enewetak Atoll (; also spelled Eniwetok Atoll or sometimes Eniewetok; mh, Ānewetak, , or , ; known to the Japanese as Brown Atoll or Brown Island; ja, ブラウン環礁) is a large coral atoll of 40 islands in the Pacific Ocean and with it ...

Atoll on 30 June to await reinforcements for the delayed invasion of Guam. The ship rode at anchor in Eniwetok until 17 July when she returned to sea and set a course back to the Marianas. On the 21st, she arrived off Guam, and her troops landed near

Orote Peninsula The Orote Peninsula is a four kilometer-long peninsula jutting from the west coast of the United States territory of Guam. A major geologic feature of the island, it forms the southern coast of Apra Harbor and the northern coast of Agat Bay. Its t ...

. The attack cargo ship remained off

Agat Bay Agat Bay is a bay on the west coast of Guam. Its northern boundary is the Orote Peninsula, occupied entirely by Naval Base Guam, which itself lies within the village of Sånta Rita-Sumai, Guam, Sånta Rita-Sumai. The bay stretches south along the c ...

until 27 July at which time she took leave of the Marianas on her way – via Eniwetok – to

Espiritu Santo Espiritu Santo (, ; ) is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of and a population of around 40,000 according to the 2009 census. Geography The island belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region o ...

in the New Hebrides. The ship arrived at Espiritu Santo on 6 August and, for the next month, conducted amphibious training there and at Guadalcanal. On 8 September, ''Virgo'' left Guadalcanal and shaped a course for 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 ...

. She arrived off

Peleliu Peleliu (or Beliliou) is an island in the island nation of Palau. Peleliu, along with two small islands to its northeast, forms one of the sixteen states of Palau. The island is notable as the location of the Battle of Peleliu in World War II. H ...

Island early on the morning of 15 September, and her embarked troops stormed ashore at about 0830. She remained in the Palaus for almost a month supporting the troops in their difficult battle to subdue the Peleliu garrison. On 3 October, she departed the Palau Islands to return to Guadalcanal via the

Russell Islands :''See also Russell Island (disambiguation).'' The Russell Islands are two small islands (Pavuvu and Mbanika), as well as several islets, of volcanic origin, in the Central Province of Solomon Islands. They are located approximately northwest of ...

. She arrived at her destination on 12 October. The following day, the ship received orders to return to the United States and got underway almost immediately. After a non-stop voyage, ''Virgo'' arrived in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, California, on 29 October and, soon thereafter, began a two-month overhaul at the

Hunters Point Navy Yard The Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city. Originally, Hunters Point was a commercial shipyard established i ...

1945–1946

The attack cargo ship stood out of San Francisco on 4 January 1945 to return to the western Pacific. She stopped at Pearl Harbor from 10 to 28 January before continuing her voyage west. Along the way, ''Virgo'' also made a visit to Eniwetok before arriving in

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 largest i ...

on 13 February where she reported for duty with Service Squadron (ServRon) 10. Her tour of duty with ServRon 10 brought a change in mission for the ship. No longer did she serve as an assault cargo carrier engaged in amphibious operations. From that point forward, the attack cargo ship served as a straight cargo carrier. In that role, she supported the

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

operation in February by replenishing warships at sea. In April and May, ''Virgo'' performed similar services in support of the Okinawa campaign. In May, she began a return voyage to the United States, departing

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 ...

on 15 May. En route, she made stops at Ulithi and at Pearl Harbor before arriving in San Francisco on 20 June. After a month in overhaul at Moore's Shipyard, ''Virgo'' headed back to the western Pacific on 3 August. However, she did not resume warlike activities because hostilities ceased on 15 August, four days before she arrived in the lagoon at Ulithi. The next day, she returned to sea with Task Group (TG) 30.8 to provision the ships of the 3rd Fleet in Japanese waters. Finishing that mission early in September, ''Virgo'' arrived in

Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous a ...

on the 9th, a week after the formal surrender. She served as station store ship at

Yokosuka is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city ...

for the

occupation forces Japan was occupied and administered by the victorious Allies of World War II from the 1945 surrender of the Empire of Japan at the end of the war until the Treaty of San Francisco took effect in 1952. The occupation, led by the United States wi ...

until 10 April 1946 at which time she headed back to the United States. The ship arrived in San Francisco on 14 May and began overhaul at the

San Francisco Naval Shipyard The Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city. Originally, Hunters Point was a commercial shipyard established i ...

. She completed repairs in August and, on the 21st, began a series of voyages from 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 ...

to American bases in the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

. She carried provisions and stores to bases in 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 ...

, in the Marianas, in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, and in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. She also made side trips to Okinawa, the

Admiralty Islands The Admiralty Islands are an archipelago group of 18 islands in the Bismarck Archipelago, to the north of New Guinea in the South Pacific Ocean. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, after the largest island. These rainforest-co ...

, and

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

. That routine lasted until the latter half of 1949. In October 1949, she began an overhaul at the

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, officially Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres (0.7 km2) on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington in uninterrupted u ...

which lasted until the beginning of 1950.

Korea

1950

Between 7 February and 31 March 1950, the attack cargo ship made a round-trip voyage from

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

to Guam and back to San Diego. On 25 April, she departed San Diego for a voyage to the

east coast of the United States The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Eastern United States meets the North Atlantic Ocean. The eastern seaboard contains the coa ...

. During that voyage, she transited the Panama Canal and visited both Bayonne, New Jersey, and Norfolk, Virginia. She returned to the west coast via the Panama Canal once more and arrived back in San Diego on 17 July. While ''Virgo'' visited the east coast, conflict broke out in the Far East once again. On 25 June, troops of communist

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

invaded the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...

(ROK) to the south. The United States, and later the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

, responded with support for South Korea against the aggressors. Thus, ''Virgo'' soon found herself supporting combat forces once more. On 19 August, she departed

Port Chicago, California Port Chicago was a town on the southern banks of Suisun Bay, in Contra Costa County, California. It was located east-northeast of Martinez, at an elevation of 13 feet (4 m). It is best known as the site of a devastating explosion at its Naval M ...

, with Navy passengers embarked and with a load of ammunition, bound ultimately for Korea. She stopped at

Sasebo is a core city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is also the second largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture, after its capital, Nagasaki. On 1 June 2019, the city had an estimated population of 247,739 and a population density of 581 persons p ...

, Japan, from 6 to 15 September and then headed for

Inchon Incheon (; ; or Inch'ŏn; literally "kind river"), formerly Jemulpo or Chemulp'o (제물포) until the period after 1910, officially the Incheon Metropolitan City (인천광역시, 仁川廣域市), is a city located in northwestern South Kore ...

, Korea. She arrived at Inchon on the 16th, the day following the amphibious landing carried out there. She remained in the Korean war zone, first at Inchon and later at Jinsen Ko, for about three weeks. During that time, the attack cargo ship provisioned minesweepers, a Canadian destroyer, an American destroyer and supplied ammunition to the troops ashore. She departed Korea on 7 October and returned to Japan where she visited Sasebo and Yokosuka before heading back to the United States on 1 November. After a stop at Pearl Harbor, the ship arrived in San Francisco on 19 November and began repairs at the Pacific Repair Co.

1951

On 19 January 1951, ''Virgo'' departed San Francisco for her second tour of duty in the Korean combat zone. She arrived in Sasebo on 6 February to disembark passengers and unload ammunition. From Sasebo, the ship moved to Yokosuka at mid-month; and, from there, she headed for Korea. The attack cargo ship entered port at

Pusan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...

on 15 March but soon returned to sea to transfer ammunition to and to . Following that, she returned to Sasebo for several days on the 19th. At the end of the month, she resumed ammunition resupply duty along the Korean coast, visiting

Songjin Kimch'aek (), formerly Sŏngjin (Chosŏn'gŭl: 성진, Hancha: 城津), is a city in North Hamgyong Province, North Korea. It was an open port in 1899. It has a population of 207,699. Etymology The city received its current name in 1951 during ...

Wonsan Wŏnsan (), previously known as Wŏnsanjin (), Port Lazarev, and Genzan (), is a port city and naval base located in Kangwŏn Province, North Korea, along the eastern side of the Korean Peninsula, on the Sea of Japan and the provincial capital. ...

, Suyeong, and

Pohang Pohang () is a city in the province of North Gyeongsang, South Korea, and a main seaport in the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region. The built-up area of Pohang is located on the alluvium of the mouth of the Hyeongsan River. The city is divided into two wa ...

as well as replenishing ships at sea between port calls. She returned to Sasebo on 7 May and remained there until the 29th when she got underway to return to the United States. On 13 June, the attack cargo ship entered port at

Long Beach Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

California, and began overhaul at the

Long Beach Naval Shipyard The Long Beach Naval Shipyard (Long Beach NSY or LBNSY), which closed in 1997, was located on Terminal Island between the city of Long Beach and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles, approximately 23 miles south of the Los Angeles International ...

. She completed repairs in August and, after refresher training out of San Diego, loaded passengers and ammunition at

in late September. On 5 October, she put to sea to return to the

. The ship arrived in Sasebo on 22 October, disembarked her passengers, and unloaded some ammunition before getting underway for the war zone once more.

1952

During her tour of duty, her mission consisted entirely of replenishments at sea in support of

naval forces operating off the Korean coast. That assignment lasted until 12 August 1952 at which time she departed Yokosuka for home. She stopped at Pearl Harbor along the way and arrived in San Francisco on the 25th. ''Virgo'' then began an availability at the Triple "A" Machine Shop in San Francisco. ''Virgo'' completed repairs in October and departed San Francisco on 1 November to resume duty in the Orient. She arrived in Sasebo on 19 November and remained there almost two months.

1953

On 3 January 1953, the ship stood out of Sasebo, bound for Korean waters. For the next five months, she resumed the familiar schedule of replenishments at sea punctuated by ammunition deliveries at Korean ports and return trips to Sasebo for the purpose of restocking her own supplies. She completed her last mission early in June and, on the 13th, headed back to the United States. She reentered San Francisco on 28 June and entered the

Mare Island Naval Shipyard The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates th ...

for a three-month overhaul. While she underwent repairs, hostilities in Korea effectively ceased with the signing of an armistice on 19 July 1953. Thus, when she emerged from the shipyard late in September and prepared to resume voyages to the Far East, her missions lost their combat character.

Pacific, 1953–1961

Over the next five years, she continued to make voyages between the west coast and American bases in the Far East. Most frequently, she called at such ports as Sasebo and Yokosuka in Japan,

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung City (Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsi ...

on the island of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

, and

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

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 ...

in the Philippines. Less frequently, she stopped at the Japanese ports of

Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan M ...

and

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

, at Okinawa, Guam, and

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

. At the end of that five years, on 3 April 1958, ''Virgo'' was decommissioned and berthed with the Columbia River Group,

Pacific Reserve Fleet The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and ...

, located at

Astoria, Oregon Astoria is a port city and the seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the northwest corne ...

On 1 July 1961, her name was stricken from the Navy list; and she was transferred to the custody of the Maritime Administration. She was berthed with the

National Defense Reserve Fleet The National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF) consists of ships of the United States of America, mostly merchant vessels, that have been "mothballed" but can be activated within 20 to 120 days to provide shipping during national military emergencies ...

located also at Astoria.

Vietnam

1965–1968

In September 1965, the Navy reactivated the ''Virgo'' and her name was reinstated on the Navy list. On 1 November 1965, she was reclassified as an

and redesignated AE-30. After almost a year of repairs and rehabilitation, ''Virgo'' (AE-30) was recommissioned at

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, Washington, on 19 August 1966. She spent the remainder of 1966 engaged in shakedown training and independent ship's exercises along the west coast. In January 1967, she loaded ammunition at

Concord Naval Weapons Station Concord Naval Weapons Station was a military base established in 1942 north of the city of Concord, California at the shore of the Sacramento River where it widens into Suisun Bay. The station functioned as a World War II armament storage depot ...

, California, in preparation for her first deployment to the western Pacific in support of the American effort in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. She departed Concord on 12 January and arrived in Subic Bay on 6 February. There, she unloaded a part of her cargo before departing the Philippines on the 12th for replenishment missions in the

Gulf of Tonkin The Gulf of Tonkin is a gulf at the northwestern portion of the South China Sea, located off the coasts of Tonkin (northern Vietnam) and South China. It has a total surface area of . It is defined in the west and northwest by the northern ...

. During the following six months, the ship made an equal number of replenishment voyages from Subic Bay to the warships operating in the Gulf of Tonkin to keep them supplied with ammunition. She punctuated those assignments with liberty calls at Subic Bay and at Hong Kong. ''Virgo'' headed back to the United States on 22 August. Almost a month later, on 21 September, she moored at the Concord Naval Weapons Station, California. She spent the remainder of the year engaged in normal operations out of her base at Concord. During the first six weeks of 1968, ''Virgo'' loaded ammunition in preparation for and participation in the 1st Fleet exercise, Operation "Bead Stringer." In mid-February, she loaded ammunition for her second deployment to the western Pacific during the Vietnam War. On 26 February, she began her voyage west. The ship changed operational control to the

7th Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of th ...

on 7 March and arrived in Subic Bay 12 days later. Once again, her assignment fell into a pattern of replenishment voyages to the ships operating in the Gulf of Tonkin. In six months' time, she made eight line swings from Subic Bay to the Gulf bringing in new stocks of ammunition to refill the depleted magazines of American warships along the Vietnamese coast. She finished her last such mission early in October and returned to Subic Bay on the 10th. From there, she moved to Sasebo, Japan, for a four-day liberty call before getting underway for the United States on 23 October. The ammunition ship arrived back in Concord on 11 November, offloaded ammunition, and entered the Mare Island Naval Shipyard to begin post-deployment standdown. On 19 December, she moved to the Triple "A" shipyard to begin a six-week restricted availability.

1969–1973

Her repair period continued until the end of January 1969. On the 31st, she loaded ammunition at Concord in preparation for operations at sea with units of the 1st Fleet. Those missions – primarily to train new crew members – lasted until the beginning of April. After final loadout at Concord, she got underway for the Far East on 19 April. She arrived in Subic Bay on 14 May and, after two weeks of voyage repairs, began the familiar series of voyages between Subic Bay and Vietnamese waters to resupply 7th Fleet ships with ammunition. However, the increasing use of the

fast combat support ship The fast combat support ship (US Navy hull classification symbol: AOE) is the United States Navy's largest combat logistics ship, designed as an oiler, ammunition and supply ship. All fast combat support ships currently in service are operated ...

(AOE), which combined the features of both ammunition ship and oiler, relegated her to a reduced role. During most of her eight line swings, ''Virgo'' either served as a backup for the AOE's or concentrated on replenishing the cruisers and destroyers operating close to the coast. The ship completed her eighth and final line period on 12 November and returned to Subic Bay on the 14th. On the 19th, ''Virgo'' got underway for Sasebo where she remained from the 23rd to the 26th. On the latter day, she departed Sasebo and shaped a course for home. The ship arrived back in Concord on 13 December and began post-deployment leave and upkeep. Stand down continued into January 1970. On 21 January, she began a restricted availability at the Bethlehem Steel shipyard located in San Francisco. Repairs complete on 16 February, ''Virgo'' moved back to Concord to load ammunition in preparation for operations at sea along the west coast. Refresher and type training occupied her time until 7 May at which time she departed San Francisco for the last western Pacific deployment of her Navy career. ''Virgo'' arrived in Subic Bay on 29 May and embarked upon the first of six line periods supplying ammunition to warships off Vietnam. She completed her final line swing early in November and, after a stop at Sasebo, she got underway for home on 27 November. She arrived back at Concord on 12 December and began preparations for decommissioning. ''Virgo'' was decommissioned at

Vallejo, California Vallejo ( ; ) is a city in Solano County, California and the second largest city in the North Bay region of the Bay Area. Located on the shores of San Pablo Bay, the city had a population of 126,090 at the 2020 census. Vallejo is home to the ...

, on 18 February 1971, and her name was once again stricken from the Navy List. Subsequently, transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal, she was sold on 19 November 1973 to Taipei Hsieh, of Taiwan, for scrapping.

Awards

''Virgo'' earned seven battle stars during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, nine battle stars for

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

service, and 10 battle stars for service during the

Specifications as of 1945

In 1945, the commanding officer wrote the following description of the USS ''Virgo'' to the Secretary of the Navy:

The U.S.S. VIRGO (AKA-20) was built by the Federal Shipbuilding Company, at Kearney, New Jersey, in the winter and spring 1943. It was originally designed for use in the U.S. Maritime Service, but was taken over by the Navy for use as an amphibious cargo attack ship. She is a medium-sized cargo vessel having certain bulkheads and much equipment of a military nature added. The general characteristics of the U.S.S. VIRGO are as follows: :: The ship is divided into five holds, each hold serviced by two booms, one thirty ton boom and one ten ton boom, with the exception of #1 hold which has two ten ton booms. The total useful cargo capacity after conversion being about 350,000 cu. ft. The ship has a full speed of 17 knots (95 RPM) and a cruising speed of 15.5 knots (87 RPM). Fuel consumption at full speed is 575 gallons per hour and at standard speed, 420 gallons per hour. Her fuel capacity is 436,000 gallons fuel oil, 28,754 gallons diesel fuel and 3,000 gallons lube oil. The fresh water capacity of the ship total's 158,920 gallons with 6,857 gallons for boiler food. Her cruising range at cruising speed of 15.5 knots is 10,367 miles. The ship is single screwed, steam turbine (double reduction) driven, made by DeLaval and is rated at 6000 HP. There are two boilers made by the Combustion Engineering Corp. with working pressure of 450 pounds, 750° superheat. The electricity for the ship's use is furnished by two General Electric 300 KW, 120-240 V-DC generators and one Ideal Electric 300 KW, l20-240 V-DC generator. For emergency use there is one diesel driven 60 KW, 120-240 V-DC generator. The steering engine is electric hydraulic made by Hydo Windlass. The refrigerating system is composed of five, four ton York compressors and is freon type. The evaporator is of the low pressure double effect type with a 12,000 gallon capacity.US Government National Archives - USS Virgo Ship History
/ref>US Government National Archives - USS Virgo Ship History

Popular culture

Thomas Heggen Thomas Heggen (December 23, 1918 – May 19, 1949) was an American author best known for his 1946 novel '' Mister Roberts'' and its adaptations to stage and screen. Heggen became an Oklahoman in 1935, when in the depths of the Depression h ...
served on board the ''Virgo'' and wrote the novel '' Mister Roberts''. Heggen based his novel on his experiences aboard the and the in the South Pacific during World War II, and began the book as a collection of short stories. It was subsequently adapted as a Tony Award-winning
play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * Pla ...
, an Academy Award-winning
feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
, a
television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
, and a
television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
. One of the novel's plot devices was a palm tree that is covertly thrown overboard by one of the crew, infuriating the captain. Another was the ship's constant voyaging between out of the way ports with no opportunity for the crew to hit a liberty port, which reflected ''Virgo's'' service through much of World War II.

References

External links
* * . {{DEFAULTSORT:Virgo (AKA-20) Andromeda-class attack cargo ships Ships built in Kearny, New Jersey 1943 ships World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Cold War amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Korean War amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Vietnam War amphibious warfare vessels of the United States