USS Pickaway (APA-222)
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USS ''Pickaway'' (APA/LPA-222) was a that saw service with the US Navy in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. She was of the VC2-S-AP5 Victory ship design type and named after Pickaway County, Ohio.


Construction

''Pickaway'' was laid down 1 September 1944, under Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCV hull 570, by
Permanente Metals Corporation Permanente Metals Corporation (PMC) is best known for having managed the Richmond Shipyards in Richmond, California, owned by one of industrialist Henry J. Kaiser's many corporations, and also engaged in related corporate activities. These four ...
, Yard No. 2,
Richmond, California Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was municipal corporation, incorporated on August 7, 1905, and has a Richmond, California City Council, city council.
; launched on 5 November 1944; sponsored by Mrs. William D. Schoning; converted into an APA; acquired by the Navy and commissioned on 12 December 1944.


Service history


World War II

After
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and
amphibious Amphibious means able to use either land or water. In particular it may refer to: Animals * Amphibian, a vertebrate animal of the class Amphibia (many of which live on land and breed in water) * Amphibious caterpillar * Amphibious fish, a fish ...
exercises at Coronado Beach, California, ''Pickaway'' embarked some 1,500 US Army troops at Seattle, Washington, departed on 9 February, arrived Pearl Harbor on 16 February, disembarked the troops and headed for
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. ...
to evacuate
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forces who were finishing off the remaining Japanese forces on the island. ''Pickaway'' reached Iwo Jima on 14 March, received on board the
24th Marine Regiment The 24th Marine Regiment (24th Marines) was one of three infantry regiments in the 4th Marine Division of the United States Marine Corps. Its last headquarters before being deactivated on 9 September 2013 was in Kansas City, Missouri. Mission ...
, sailed on 20 March, and returned to Pearl Harbor on 5 April. ''Pickaway'' participated in amphibious exercises until sailing for Guam on 4 May, with military passengers. Arriving Guam on 17 May, she embarked soldiers, sailors, and Marines; departed
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on 22 May; and arrived San Francisco on 7 June. On 2 July she took on board Navy and US Coast Guard passengers and departed San Francisco for Noumea,
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. Following disembarking of personnel in Noumea on 8 July, ''Pickaway'' steamed to Espiritu Santo, the Russell Islands, and
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 ...
to pick up passengers and sailed on 23 July, for San Francisco where she arrived on 6 August. While preparing for another transpacific voyage, the ship learned of the end of hostilities. During the remainder of 1945, ''Pickaway'' shuttled back and forth across the Pacific embarking passengers at bases in the western Pacific and returning them to the United States. Remaining in the Amphibious Force, Pacific Fleet, ''Pickaway'' visited both
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
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in 1947 and participated in Operation Sandstone, the second atomic test in the Pacific, early in 1948.


Korean War

In the summer of 1950, a month after the North Korean forces marched against South Korea, ''Pickaway'' began shuttling US Army troops from Japan to Pusan to stem the tide of battle. On 15 September 1950, she saw her first real amphibious invasion at Inchon, when the United Nations (UN) forces flanked the North Koreans. During the Korean War, ''Pickaway'' was deployed to the Korean area four times. She landed troops on most of the major Korean
beachhead A beachhead is a temporary line created when a military unit reaches a landing beach by sea and begins to defend the area as other reinforcements arrive. Once a large enough unit is assembled, the invading force can begin advancing inland. The ...
s. In March 1955, ''Pickaway'' left Korea for the last time, carrying troops of the same brigade she transported to Korea on her first trip. During 1957 and 1958, ''Pickaway'' made regular deployments to WestPac. During ''Pickaway''s 1958 WestPac tour, she took part in "Exercise Blue Star", which was the largest amphibious exercise conducted by Pacific Fleet forces since World War II.


Vietnam

After returning from the Far East in August 1963, ''Pickaway'' entered the Willamette Iron and Steel Works
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at Richmond, California, for Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM). In January 1964, the ship began extensive underway and amphibious training, and in March, departed San Diego for Hawaii, and large scale amphibious " Operation Westwind". On 18 June, she got underway from San Diego for a six-month cruise to the western Pacific. Soon after arriving in Yokosuka, she was ordered to proceed at once to Buckner Bay, Okinawa, to embark a Marine Battalion for transport to Vietnam to help build up American forces after the
Gulf of Tonkin Incident The Gulf of Tonkin incident ( vi, Sự kiện Vịnh Bắc Bộ) was an international confrontation that led to the United States engaging more directly in the Vietnam War. It involved both a proven confrontation on August 2, 1964, carried out b ...
. In March 1965, she participated in the US Pacific Fleet Exercise "Silver Lance". On 24 May 1965, she again bolstered the Allied military effort in Vietnam. On 7 July 1965, together with other elements of
Amphibious Squadron PHIBRON is a United States Navy abbreviation for Amphibious Squadron. It is a tactical and administrative organization composed of amphibious assault shipping to transport troops and their equipment for an amphibious assault operation. Before the a ...
3, ''Pickaway'' landed the 2nd Battalion of the
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over the beaches of
Da Nang Nang or DanangSee also Danang Dragons ( ; vi, Đà Nẵng, ) is a class-1 municipality and the fifth-largest city in Vietnam by municipal population. It lies on the coast of the East Sea of Vietnam at the mouth of the Hàn River, and is one ...
, South Vietnam. During 1966 she participated in Operations "Jackstay", "Osage", "Deckhouse I", "Nathan Hale", "Deck House II", and "Hastings". After overhaul and training out of San Diego, ''Pickaway'' departed San Diego on 31 May, for the western Pacific and after offloading cargo at Da Nang, proceeded to Manila for participation in the SEATO training exercise "Sea Dog." On 19 October ''Pickaway'' replenished at sea in the
Tonkin Gulf 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 c ...
. ''Pickaway'' spent 1968 operating out of San Diego, California.


Decommissioning

She was decommissioned 30 January 1970, with delivery to the Maritime Administration (MARAD) 26 August 1970. ''Pickaway'' was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay Group,
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. She was struck from the
Navy 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 December 1976.


Fate

On 15 February 1980, A. L. Burbank & Co., received ''Pickaway'' along with , , and to trade with Moore McCormack Lines, Inc., for SS ''Mormaccape'' and SS ''Mormactrade''. She was then sold to Carol Shipping & Trading Corporation,
Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...
, who sold her to Kang Hua Enterprise,
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 ...
, Taiwan, to be scrapped. She was withdrawn from the fleet 26 March 1980.


Awards

''Pickaway'' received one battle star for World War II service and six battle stars for Korean War service.


Notes

;Citations


Bibliography

Online resources * * * *


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pickaway (APA-222) Haskell-class attack transports Pickaway County, Ohio World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Ships built in Richmond, California 1944 ships Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet