USS ''Incessant'' (AM-248) was an ''Admirable''-class minesweeper built for the U.S. Navy during World War II. She was built to clear minefields in offshore waters, and served the Navy in the North Atlantic Ocean and then in the Pacific Ocean. She returned home at war's end with two battle stars to her credit. ''Incessant'' was laid down 3 July 1943 by Savannah Machine & Foundry Ga., Savannah, Georgia; launched 22 October 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Ralston Mingledorff; and commissioned 25 March 1944.

World War II North Atlantic operations

After

shakedown Shakedown may refer to: * Shakedown (continuum mechanics), a type of plastic deformation * Shakedown (testing) or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft before being declared operational * Extortion, ...

out of Casco Bay, Maine, ''Incessant'' departed

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 ...

, 24 May 1944 for escort and training duty in the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

and the Gulf of Mexico. Returning to Norfolk 8 July she sailed in convoy 23 July and after stopping at Mers-el-Kebir arrived off the coast of

Southern France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French language, French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi ...

. As the Allies pushed northward from the beachheads, the powerful guns of the fleet protected the flanks and knocked out the German coastal batteries on the Italian

Riviera ''Riviera'' () is an Italian word which means "coastline", ultimately derived from Latin , through Ligurian . It came to be applied as a proper name to the coast of Liguria, in the form ''Riviera ligure'', then shortened in English. The two areas ...

while minesweepers cleared the channel off the French coast. ''Incessant'' and her sister ships performed dangerous sweeping in the harbors of southern France in spite of human torpedoes and enemy shore fire from the Italian side. ''Incessant'' helped clear the channel into Mentone 9–10 September and then continued her minesweeping mg and patrol duties at other Mediterranean points -

Bizerte Bizerte or Bizerta ( ar, بنزرت, translit=Binzart , it, Biserta, french: link=no, Bizérte) the classical Hippo, is a city of Bizerte Governorate in Tunisia. It is the northernmost city in Africa, located 65 km (40mil) north of the cap ...

, the coast of Sardinia, and

Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...

, Sicily. In January 1945 she was assigned new duties, and after transiting the historic Dardanelles, arrived Sevastopol 26 January. There ''Incessant'' met her Russian pilot and interpreter and began important air-sea rescue work in the Black Sea. She departed for

15 February and resumed Mediterranean operations until sailing from Mers-el-Kebir 17 April for the United States.

Transfer to the Pacific Fleet

With the European war won, ''Incessant'' arrived Norfolk 5 May and after a period of training sailed 5 July for the western Pacific via the Panama Canal and San Diego, California, arriving Pearl Harbor 21 August, after the war's end, minesweepers were still needed, however, and ''Incessant'' proceeded to Eniwetok,

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 ...

, and Okinawa, in the weeks that followed. She arrived Sasebo for sweeping operations incident to the occupation 25 October and in November 1945 operated in the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...

Decommissioning

In March 1946 she was at Shanghai earmarked for transfer to China, but was eventually returned to Seattle, Washington, and decommissioned 6 November 1946. ''Incessant'' was subsequently returned to the Maritime Commission and sold to R. A. Rutherford 30 November 1948. She was converted to river service in 1949 at Paducah Marine Ways, Paducah, Kentucky and renamed MV Commercial Ohioan. She was in service until 1955, but her current fate is unknown.

Awards

''Incessant'' received two battle stars for World War II service.

References

External links

NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive - ''Incessant'' (AM-248)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Incessant (AM-248) Admirable-class minesweepers Ships built in Savannah, Georgia 1943 ships World War II minesweepers of the United States