USS ''Jamestown'' (PG-55) was a patrol gunboat and after 13 January 1943 a ''Jamestown''-class

motor torpedo boat tender Motor torpedo boat tender is a type of ship used by the U.S. Navy during World War II and Vietnam War. The motor torpedo boat tender's task was to act as a tender in remote areas for patrol boats (PT-boats) and to provide the necessary fuel and p ...

acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II. Her task in her final classification was to provide a "home base" for torpedo boats in remote parts of the ocean during the war, and to provide them with necessary services, such as fuel, food, and repairs.

Construction

''Jamestown'' was built as ''Savarona'' in 1928, by

Pusey & Jones The Pusey and Jones Corporation was a major shipbuilder and industrial-equipment manufacturer. Based in Wilmington, Delaware, it operated from 1848 to 1959. Shipbuilding was its primary focus from 1853 until the end of World War II, when the comp ...

Corp., Wilmington, Delaware, for Mrs. Thomas S. Cadwallader of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While Mrs. Cadwallader operated her, ''Savarona'' was said to be the largest and most luxurious yacht in the world. Colonel William Boyce Thompson purchased the palatial vessel in 1929, and renamed her ''Alder'' prior to his daughter donating the vessel to the U.S. Navy.

Yacht acquired by the Navy

''Alder'' was donated to the U.S. Navy at

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

on 6 December 1940; converted into a gunboat in the Fletcher Division Shipyard of Bethlehem Shipbuilding Co., Hoboken, New Jersey; renamed ''Jamestown'' and designated ''PG-55''; and commissioned at

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 ...

26 May 1941.

World War II operations

''Jamestown's'' first summer in the Navy was devoted to training

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. She sailed to

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, 1 June to embark her first detachment of 100 third-class men and 3 instructors for a 2-week training cruise 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 ...

Conversion to motor torpedo boat tender

At the end of the summer, after completing a number of similar cruises, ''Jamestown'' steamed to

to be fitted out as a motor-torpedo-boat tender. When final conversion was completed, she sailed to

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, to assist in establishing the Motor Torpedo Boat Training Center and to serve as training ship and tender for the boats of Squadron 4 while she readied herself for combat.

Transfer to the Pacific Theatre

In June 1942, she returned to New York to receive new equipment before departing for the South Pacific Ocean. Eager for action, the tender stood out of New York Harbor 1 August. While she steamed toward the New Hebrides Islands via the Panama Canal and Pearl Harbor, the Navy daringly launched its first offensive thrust against

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 ...

by landing the

1st Marine Division The 1st Marine Division (1st MARDIV) is a Marine division of the United States Marine Corps headquartered at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the ground combat element of the I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). It is the ...

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 ...

and Tulagi.

Supplying Guadalcanal and Tulagi with fuel

The Navy's resources available for

Operation Watchtower The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the ...

were meager at the outset of the fighting on 7 August but had dangerously weakened by combat losses in ensuing weeks of desperate fighting against heavy odds. In September, when ''Jamestown'' arrived in Espiritu Santo, the

U.S. Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary warfare, exped ...

on Guadalcanal were suffering from a critical shortage of supplies. While awaiting the arrival of the PT boats of Squadron 3, the tender busied herself escorting resupply convoys between the New Hebrides and Tulagi towing a barge carrying of gasoline and 500 quarter-ton bombs.

Constant threat of Japanese gunfire

''Jamestown'' was at Noumea,

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, 19 September when boats of the 1st Division of Squadron 3 arrived. Cargo ship ''Bellatrix'' assisted her in towing them to Espiritu Santo, where ''Jamestown'' entrusted them to two fast minesweepers for the final passage to Tulagi and resumed her efforts to keep vital supplies flowing through the enemy infested waters to the Marines on Guadalcanal. Finally she reported to Tulagi 22 October and there, in the center of the bitter struggle subject to constant air attack, began servicing the PT boats of Squadron 3. For the next 4 months these fearless little ships patrolled " Iron Bottom Sound" nightly, frequently challenging Japanese destroyers, cruisers, and even

battleships A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

of "the

Tokyo Express The Tokyo Express was the name given by Allied forces to the use of Imperial Japanese Navy ships at night to deliver personnel, supplies, and equipment to Japanese forces operating in and around New Guinea and the Solomon Islands during the P ...

". During the day ''Jamestown'' worked feverishly to ready the worn and battered boats for the next patrol. Besides ministering to the PT boats, the tender assisted with preliminary repairs to battle-damaged American cruisers and sent parties ashore to construct pipelines to water holes.

Included in Presidential Unit Citation

''Jamestown'' and the PT boats of Squadron 3 were explicitly included in the Presidential Unit Citation awarded the

for taking and holding strongly defended Japanese positions on Tulagi, Gavutu, Tanambogo,

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 ...

, and

Redesignated AGP-3

The tender was redesignated AGP-3 on 13 January 1943, and commenced operating under Commander Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron, U.S. Pacific Fleet. She departed Tulagi 18 February 1943 on one of countless trips made during the following year from that port to the New Hebrides or Rendova for supplies for the PT boats or acting as escort between island groups. After 12 months of this valuable service, ''Jamestown'' departed Tulagi 9 February 1944 for a well-earned and badly needed overhaul at San Pedro, California.

Stateside repairs and return to South Pacific

Back in tip-top shape she sailed from San Pedro 17 July and arrived Espiritu Santo 5 August. By this time the Solomons and the

Bismarck Archipelago The Bismarck Archipelago (, ) is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. Its area is about 50,000 square km. History The first inhabitants o ...

were secure; and the PT boats were needed in the Southwest Pacific, where General MacArthur was fighting for New Guinea. ''Jamestown'' found herself shuttling supplies, equipment, and supporting troops from the Solomons to bases in New Guinea. Her former role as a tender was now filled by larger ships designed specifically for the task. ''Jamestown'' proudly proved her worth as a utility ship maintaining communications between PT boat bases. For example, she departed Treasury Island 6 September 1944 to rendezvous at Bougainville with a troop transport which she escorted to

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 ...

, Dutch New Guinea, returning to Treasury Island a week later ready for a similar voyage escorting merchantmen to Finschhafen, Dutch New Guinea.

Supporting invasion of the Philippines

Ordered to the Philippines 5 February 1945, ''Jamestown'' arrived Leyte 12 February to mess and berth men of Motor Torpedo Squadron 24 until 18 March. Convoy duty between Samar and

Woendi Mios Woendi island is an island in the Schouten Islands of Papua province, eastern Indonesia. It lies in Cenderawasih Bay (or Geelvink Bay) off the northwestern coast of the island nation of Papua New Guinea. Description The island is in ...

, Schouten Islands was followed by voyages to Borneo and various ports in the Philippines occupying the tender until after Japan surrendered.

Post-war decommissioning

''Jamestown'' departed Samar for the United States 20 October 1945 and arrived San Francisco, California, 24 November. She decommissioned there 6 March 1946 ending her busy and useful service and was transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal 4 September 1946. She was sold to Balfour Gutrie and Co., Ltd., 16 December 1946.

References

External links

NavSource Online: - Gunboat Photo Archive - Jamestown (AGP 3) - ex-PG-55
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jamestown Individual yachts Patrol vessels of the United States Navy Gunboats of the United States Navy Motor torpedo boat tenders of the United States Navy Ships built by Pusey and Jones 1928 ships World War II naval ships of the United States