USS Chilton (APA-38)
Encyclopedia
USS Chilton (APA-38) was a Bayfield-class
attack transport
. Her dangerous task was to deliver troops to the battle front, and to recover and care for the wounded. She served her country in the Pacific Ocean
in the war against the Empire of Japan
and returned home post-war with one battle star to her credit.
Chilton (APA-38) was launched 29 December 1942 by the Western Pipe and Steel Company
, San Francisco, California
, under a Maritime Commission contract, as SS Sea Needle; sponsored by Mrs. W. A. Riley, Jr.; acquired by the Navy 29 May 1943; converted at New York Navy Yard; and commissioned 7 December 1943, Commander A. C. Geisenhoff, USNR, in command.
, as a training ship for pre-commissioning crews of attack transports from 31 January 1943 to 15 October 1944. She sailed from Boston, Massachusetts, 20 November for San Diego, California
, before arriving at Pearl Harbor
23 January 1945. Here she embarked troops, and sailed by way of Eniwetok and Ulithi
, to Leyte
, arriving 21 February. After rehearsal landings, Chilton put out of Leyte
16 March to land troops at Kerama Retto
26 March in a key preliminary to the assault on Okinawa. She remained off Okinawa as flagship
for Transport Squadron 17 supporting the establishment and reinforcement of beachheads until 30 April, departing then for San Francisco and overhaul.
17 July 1945 to load troops and cargo for Okinawa, where she lay until 31 August. From then until 8 December, when she arrived at Seattle, Washington
, Chilton had duty in the redeployment of United States
and Chinese troops, calling at Jinsen, Tientsin, Hong Kong
, Chinwangtao, Tsingtao, and Nagoya. She cleared Seattle 21 December for the first of two "Operation Magic Carpet" voyages to the Philippines
and Okinawa to carry home servicemen, returning from the second of these to San Francisco 10 May 1946.
, returned to San Francisco 1 August, and sailed for transport duty in China
and Japan
from 7 September to 22 January 1947. She visited the Bikini area as a floating laboratory that summer, then returned to San Diego for local operations.
, 15 November 1948 to withdraw U.S. Marines from China, returning to San Diego 31 May. Local operations and exercises in the Hawaiian Islands
occupied her until 25 November 1949 when she sailed from San Diego for her new home port, Norfolk, Virginia
, arriving 10 December. While based at Norfolk in 1951, she appeared at dock in the opening scenes of the film You're in the Navy Now
.
Local operations, overhaul, and service as a training ship in Cuba
n waters preceded her first tour of duty in the Mediterranean, 11 June-20 December 1951. On 21 August 1952, she sailed from Norfolk to participate in NATO Operation Mainbrace
, proceeding to the Mediterranean for duty until 6 February 1953. Chilton continued to alternate local and Caribbean
operations with tours of duty in the Mediterranean from 1954 through 1963.
The Chilton continued to do Mediterranean training operations throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s.
. On 15 July 1974 she was sold by MARAD
to Ships Incorporated of Camden, New Jersey
, for scrapping
service.
Bayfield class attack transport
The Bayfield class attack transport was a class of US Navy attack transports that were built during World War II.With the entry of the United States into the war, it was quickly realized that amphibious combat operations on hostile shores would be required, and that specialized ships would be...
attack transport
Attack transport
Attack Transport is a United States Navy ship classification.-History:In the early 1940s, as the United States Navy expanded in response to the threat of involvement in World War II, a number of civilian passenger ships and some freighters were acquired, converted to transports and given hull...
. Her dangerous task was to deliver troops to the battle front, and to recover and care for the wounded. She served her country in the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
in the war against the Empire of Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
and returned home post-war with one battle star to her credit.
Chilton (APA-38) was launched 29 December 1942 by the Western Pipe and Steel Company
Western Pipe and Steel Company
The Western Pipe and Steel Company was an American manufacturing company that is best remembered today for its construction of ships for the Maritime Commission in World War II. It also built ships for the U.S...
, San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, under a Maritime Commission contract, as SS Sea Needle; sponsored by Mrs. W. A. Riley, Jr.; acquired by the Navy 29 May 1943; converted at New York Navy Yard; and commissioned 7 December 1943, Commander A. C. Geisenhoff, USNR, in command.
World War II Pacific Theatre operations
Chilton served at Newport, Rhode IslandNewport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, as a training ship for pre-commissioning crews of attack transports from 31 January 1943 to 15 October 1944. She sailed from Boston, Massachusetts, 20 November for San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, before arriving at Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
23 January 1945. Here she embarked troops, and sailed by way of Eniwetok and Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
, to Leyte
Leyte
Leyte is a province of the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Tacloban City and occupies the northern three-quarters of the Leyte Island. Leyte is located west of Samar Island, north of Southern Leyte and south of Biliran...
, arriving 21 February. After rehearsal landings, Chilton put out of Leyte
Leyte
Leyte is a province of the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Tacloban City and occupies the northern three-quarters of the Leyte Island. Leyte is located west of Samar Island, north of Southern Leyte and south of Biliran...
16 March to land troops at Kerama Retto
Kerama Retto
The are a group of 22 islands located southwest of Okinawa Island in Japan. Four of the islands are inhabited:,., and. The islands are within Shimajiri District. The Kerama-shotō coral reef is a Ramsar Site....
26 March in a key preliminary to the assault on Okinawa. She remained off Okinawa as flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
for Transport Squadron 17 supporting the establishment and reinforcement of beachheads until 30 April, departing then for San Francisco and overhaul.
Supporting the Okinawa invasion
Chilton returned to UlithiUlithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
17 July 1945 to load troops and cargo for Okinawa, where she lay until 31 August. From then until 8 December, when she arrived at Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Chilton had duty in the redeployment of United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Chinese troops, calling at Jinsen, Tientsin, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Chinwangtao, Tsingtao, and Nagoya. She cleared Seattle 21 December for the first of two "Operation Magic Carpet" voyages to the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and Okinawa to carry home servicemen, returning from the second of these to San Francisco 10 May 1946.
Supporting Bikini nuclear testing
She cleared San Francisco 2 June to participate in the atomic bomb tests at Bikini AtollBikini Atoll
Bikini Atoll is an atoll, listed as a World Heritage Site, in the Micronesian Islands of the Pacific Ocean, part of Republic of the Marshall Islands....
, returned to San Francisco 1 August, and sailed for transport duty in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
from 7 September to 22 January 1947. She visited the Bikini area as a floating laboratory that summer, then returned to San Diego for local operations.
Final operations
Chilton cleared San Diego, CaliforniaSan Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, 15 November 1948 to withdraw U.S. Marines from China, returning to San Diego 31 May. Local operations and exercises in the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
occupied her until 25 November 1949 when she sailed from San Diego for her new home port, Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, arriving 10 December. While based at Norfolk in 1951, she appeared at dock in the opening scenes of the film You're in the Navy Now
You're in the Navy Now
You're in the Navy Now is a Hollywood film released in 1951 by Twentieth Century Fox about the United States Navy in the first months of World War II. Its initial release was titled USS Teakettle...
.
Local operations, overhaul, and service as a training ship in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n waters preceded her first tour of duty in the Mediterranean, 11 June-20 December 1951. On 21 August 1952, she sailed from Norfolk to participate in NATO Operation Mainbrace
Operation Mainbrace
Exercise Mainbrace was the first large-scale naval exercise undertaken by the newly established Allied Command Atlantic , one of the two principal military commands of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization . It was part of a series of NATO exerciseS jointly commanded by Supreme Allied Commander...
, proceeding to the Mediterranean for duty until 6 February 1953. Chilton continued to alternate local and Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
operations with tours of duty in the Mediterranean from 1954 through 1963.
The Chilton continued to do Mediterranean training operations throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Final decommissioning
Chilton was reclassified as an Amphibious transport (LPA-38), 1 January 1969 before being decommissioned on 1 July 1972. On 1 July 1972 she was struck from the Naval Register, and transferred to the Maritime Administration for lay up in the National Defense Reserve FleetNational Defense Reserve Fleet
The National Defense Reserve Fleet consists of "mothballed" ships, mostly merchant vessels, that can be activated within 20 to 120 days to provide shipping for the United States of America during national emergencies, either military or non-military, such as commercial shipping crises.The NDRF is...
. On 15 July 1974 she was sold by MARAD
Marad
Marad was an ancient Sumerian city. Marad was situated on the west bank of the then western branch of the Upper Euphrates River west of Nippur in modern day Iraq and roughly 50 km southeast of Kish, on the Arahtu River.The city's ziggurat E-igi-kalama was dedicated to Ninurta the god of...
to Ships Incorporated of Camden, New Jersey
Camden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...
, for scrapping
Military honors and awards
Chilton received one battle star for World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
service.