USS ''Bexar'' (APA-237/LPA-237) was a in service with 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 ...

from 1945 to 1970. She was scrapped in 1982.

History

''Bexar'' was named after Bexar County, Texas. She was launched 25 July 1945 by Oregon Shipbuilding of

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

, 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, acquired by the Navy 9 October, and commissioned the same day. Upon completion of shakedown training, ''Bexar'' joined 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 ships ...

fleet. She returned troops from the Pacific until February 1946. After a brief tour of duty around

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 eighth most populous city in the United State ...

during the early part of 1946, she was ordered to

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 R ...

to prepare for Operation Cross-roads.

Atomic bomb test

In June ''Bexar'' proceeded to

Bikini Atoll Bikini Atoll ( or ; Marshallese: , , meaning "coconut place"), sometimes known as Eschscholtz Atoll between the 1800s and 1946 is a coral reef in the Marshall Islands consisting of 23 islands surrounding a central lagoon. After the Seco ...

to participate in

Operation Crossroads Operation Crossroads was a pair of nuclear weapon tests conducted by the United States at Bikini Atoll in mid-1946. They were the first nuclear weapon tests since Trinity in July 1945, and the first detonations of nuclear devices since the ...

, the large-scale operation designed to test the effectiveness of

atomic bombs A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

on warships. Over 200 warships participated in the operation, 75 of them as targets. ''Bexar'' served as an equipment supply center. In August she returned to the West Coast and underwent radioactivity tests.

Peacetime missions

In January 1947 she joined the Amphibious Force, Atlantic Fleet, based at Norfolk, Virginia. ''Bexar'' operated along the Eastern seaboard and in the Caribbean until July 1950, making a Mediterranean cruise (January–February 1948) with

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 ...

embarked. Between March 1948 and July 1950 she participated in several amphibious exercises and Naval Reserve cruises along the East Coast. In September 1949 she proceeded to the Hawaiian Islands for a large scale amphibious exercise. Returning to Norfolk in December, she resumed her role in the Amphibious Force, Atlantic Fleet. On 31 July 1950 ''Bexar'' departed Norfolk for the Mediterranean. In August she was ordered to embark Marines and proceed via the Suez Canal to Japan.

Korean War

Upon arrival, she proceeded to

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 ...

where she took part in the

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 ...

(15 September) and

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. ...

(25 October) landings and the evacuation of

Chinnampo Nampo (North Korean official spelling: Nampho; ), also spelled Namp'o, is the second largest city by population and an important seaport in North Korea, which lies on the northern shore of the Taedong River, 15 km east of the river's mouth ...

and Inchon. Departing 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 ...

on 6 January 1951 she proceeded to San Diego, arriving later in the month. Between August 1951 and December 1953 ''Bexar'' made two more Far Eastern tours in support of Korean operations (August 1951 - May 1952 and July–December 1953). During the latter she served as flagship for Operation Big Switch, the movement of prisoners from Koje Do to Inchon, Korea.

Return to peacetime duties

''Bexar'' made another tour of the Far East (23 October 1954 - 22 April 1955) during which she participated in the Tachen Islands evacuation.

Vietnam War

US Amphibious Ready Group TG 76-5 underway 1965

''Bexar'' also saw extensive service in the Vietnam War, from 1965 to 1969. In 1965, she helped land the first US ground troops at Chu Lai. On 1 January 1969, ''Bexar'' along with the other surviving attack transports from World War II were redesignated amphibious transports, ''Bexar'' receiving the designation LPA-237.

Decommission

''Bexar'' was decommissioned on 7 August 1970 and struck 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 1 September 1976. She was returned to the

Maritime Administration Maritime administrations, or flag state administrations, are the executive arms/state bodies of each government responsible for carrying out the shipping responsibilities of the state, and are tasked to administer national shipping and boating issue ...

on 1 July 1972, and laid up in 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 ...

at Suisun Bay, California. On 16 June 1982, she was sold for scrapping to C. W. Enterprises & Investment Inc., and scrapped in either

South 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 eas ...

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 ...

Decorations

''Bexar'' received three

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

s for Korean War service and five campaign stars for Vietnam War service.

References

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APA/LPA-237 ''Bexar''
Navsource Online {{DEFAULTSORT:Bexar (APA-237) Haskell-class attack transports Bexar County, Texas World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Ships built in Portland, Oregon 1945 ships