USS ''Bottineau'' (APA-235) was a in service with the
United States Navy from 1944 to 1947 and from 1951 to 1955. She was scrapped in 1983.
History
''Bottineau'' was named after
Bottineau County, North Dakota. She was launched on 22 November 1944 by
Kaiser Shipbuilding
The Kaiser Shipyards were seven major shipbuilding yards located on the United States west coast during World War II. Kaiser ranked 20th among U.S. corporations in the value of wartime production contracts. The shipyards were owned by the Kaise ...
of
Vancouver, Washington, under a
Maritime Commission contract; transferred to the Navy 30 December, and commissioned the same day.
World War II
Reporting to the
Pacific Fleet, ''Bottineau'' carried a cargo of ammunition to
Pearl Harbor during March 1945. Departing Pearl Harbor 9 April she carried replacement troops to
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 ...
,
Marianas Islands, and evacuated casualties from
Okinawa before returning to the
United States on 10 June 1945. She then carried replacement
troops to the
Philippines and returned to Pearl Harbor to prepare for the invasion of
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 ...
.
Following the Japanese surrender she landed elements of the 98th Division at
Wakayama,
Honshū
, historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separa ...
, Japan, 1 October 1945. ''Bottineau'' departed 6 October for
Guam and returned to the United States with Pacific veterans, arriving at
Seattle, Washington, 26 January 1946.
Operation Crossroads
Between February and May 1946 ''Bottineau'' operated between
San Francisco and
San Diego. Departing
San Pedro, California, 25 May 1946, she arrived at
Bikini Atoll 6 June for
Operation Crossroads, designed to test the effectiveness of
atomic bombs on warships. Over 200 warships participated in the operation, 75 of them as targets.
''Bottineau''s role in the tests was to act as a transport for the target vessel boarding teams. Following the tests she returned to San Francisco, arriving 21 August. She was placed out of commission in reserve there 8 March 1947.
Cold War
Recommissioned 24 March 1951, ''Bottineau'' served with Amphibious Forces, Pacific Fleet, until August when she steamed to
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 ...
, arriving 4 September. ''Bottineau'' served with the
Atlantic Fleet, taking part in amphibious training exercises and other routine peacetime duties, until going out of commission at Philadelphia 31 August 1955.
Fate
She was struck from the
Naval Vessel Register on 1 July 1961 and returned to the
Maritime Administration, who transferred her to the
National Defense Reserve Fleet,
James River
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...
,
Fort Eustis, Virginia. On 1 January 1969, while still in the Reserve Fleet, she was redesignated an amphibious transport, LPA-235. She was sold for scrapping to Sociedad Anonima Desbar S.A. Spain on 1 August 1983.
Awards
For her World War II service ''Bottineau'' received one
battle star.
References
APA/LPA-235 ''Bottineau'' Navsource Online
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bottineau (APA-235)
Haskell-class attack transports
World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States
Bottineau County, North Dakota
Ships built in Vancouver, Washington
1944 ships