USS Inca (IX-229)
Encyclopedia
USS Inca, a 3,381-ton (light displacement) "Liberty" ship
, was launched in March 1943 at Los Angeles, California
, and entered merchant service later the same month as S.S. William B. Allison, MCE hull 724. Two years later she would be taken into US Navy as stores ship and renamed USS Inca (IX-229). For much of her service as Inca she was also named USS Gamage (IX-227) because of bureaucratic confusion.
(WSA) official, the Chief of Naval Operations
(CNO) authorized Commander Service Division (ComServDiv) 104 to accept the ship "as is" at Okinawa and place her in service for non-self propelled floating dry storage. ComServDiv 104 accepted her at Okinawa on 30 July and on 6 August the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) approved the name Inca and designator IX-229 for her. She was converted to a storage ship by USS Vestal (AR-4)
and USS Zaniah (AG-70), and was in Buckner Bay, Okinawa, when typhoons struck on 16 September and 9 October 1945. During the September typhoon she was hit by a merchant ship and suffered topside damage that was considered repairable, and she continued to issue supplies to ships in the bay. During the October typhoon she broke adrift and was one of several ships that USS Nestor (ARB-6)
reported nearly hit her as Nestor was inexorably being driven ashore. Inca went aground during the storm and remained aground afterward, but plans to survey her in late October were canceled and she appears to have remained in service as a storage ship into December.
(CINCPAC) asked CNO what disposition was desired for Inca. CNO's response of 15 January, "above incorrect," was probably the first clear indication received in the Pacific that the name and designation they had been using for this ship for the past five months were wrong. Back in early July 1945 the Navy had planned to take over another damaged Liberty ship, Henry L. Abbott, for self-propelled floating storage of lubricants and drummed petroleum products at Ulithi
, and on 14 July SECNAV approved the name Gamage and designation IX-227 for the ex-Henry L. Abbott. On 21 July, however, CNO wrote to the War Shipping Administration and asked that his request of 13 July for the Henry L. Abbott be canceled, because her poor hull condition made her unsuitable for use as dry cargo floating storage. CNO had already advised CINCPAC a day earlier of the cancellation of Henry L. Abbott. The Navy later decided to shift the name Gamage and the designation IX-227 to the ex-William B. Allison and cancel the name and number given that ship on 6 August. This directive has not come to light in the archives, and the cryptic question sent to CINCPAC by CNO on 17 August, "Request information re acceptances William B. Allison for Gamage (IX-227) in lieu of Henry L. Abbott" appears to have gone unappreciated when CINCPAC on 24 August and again on 4 September reported the 30 July acceptance. The ex-William B. Allison was consistently called Inca in all reporting from the Pacific Theater through mid-January 1946, and a photograph of her ashore at Buckner Bay appears to show the hull number IX-229 painted on her bow.
Liberty ship
Liberty ships were cargo ships built in the United States during World War II. Though British in conception, they were adapted by the U.S. as they were cheap and quick to build, and came to symbolize U.S. wartime industrial output. Based on vessels ordered by Britain to replace ships torpedoed by...
, was launched in March 1943 at Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, and entered merchant service later the same month as S.S. William B. Allison, MCE hull 724. Two years later she would be taken into US Navy as stores ship and renamed USS Inca (IX-229). For much of her service as Inca she was also named USS Gamage (IX-227) because of bureaucratic confusion.
Service history
On 25 May 1945 she was damaged by an aircraft torpedo off Nakagusuku Wan, Okinawa, and although towed into port she was considered a constructive total loss, not suitable for repair. On 25 July 1945, based on a recommendation from the local War Shipping AdministrationWar Shipping Administration
The War Shipping Administration was a World War II emergency war agency of the US Government, tasked to purchase and operate the civilian shipping tonnage the US needed for fighting the war....
(WSA) official, the Chief of Naval Operations
Chief of Naval Operations
The Chief of Naval Operations is a statutory office held by a four-star admiral in the United States Navy, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Navy. The office is a military adviser and deputy to the Secretary of the Navy...
(CNO) authorized Commander Service Division (ComServDiv) 104 to accept the ship "as is" at Okinawa and place her in service for non-self propelled floating dry storage. ComServDiv 104 accepted her at Okinawa on 30 July and on 6 August the Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) approved the name Inca and designator IX-229 for her. She was converted to a storage ship by USS Vestal (AR-4)
USS Vestal (AR-4)
USS Vestal was a repair ship in service with the United States Navy from 1913 to 1946. Before her conversion to a repair ship, she had served as collier since 1909. The Vestal served in both World Wars...
and USS Zaniah (AG-70), and was in Buckner Bay, Okinawa, when typhoons struck on 16 September and 9 October 1945. During the September typhoon she was hit by a merchant ship and suffered topside damage that was considered repairable, and she continued to issue supplies to ships in the bay. During the October typhoon she broke adrift and was one of several ships that USS Nestor (ARB-6)
USS Nestor (ARB-6)
USS Nestor was one of twelve Aristaeus-class battle damage repair ships built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named for Nestor , she was the only U.S...
reported nearly hit her as Nestor was inexorably being driven ashore. Inca went aground during the storm and remained aground afterward, but plans to survey her in late October were canceled and she appears to have remained in service as a storage ship into December.
Name Confusion
Inca was placed in the category "grounded ships, salvage not warranted" on 2 January 1946, and on 12 January 1946 ComServDiv 104 reported that the ship was no longer required, that an informal inspection indicated needed repairs were too extensive, and asked that she be returned to WSA. In turn, the Commander in Chief, PacificUnited States Pacific Command
The United States Pacific Command is a Unified Combatant Command of the United States armed forces responsible for the Pacific Ocean area. It is led by the Commander, Pacific Command , who is the supreme military authority for the various branches of the Armed Forces of the United States serving...
(CINCPAC) asked CNO what disposition was desired for Inca. CNO's response of 15 January, "above incorrect," was probably the first clear indication received in the Pacific that the name and designation they had been using for this ship for the past five months were wrong. Back in early July 1945 the Navy had planned to take over another damaged Liberty ship, Henry L. Abbott, for self-propelled floating storage of lubricants and drummed petroleum products at 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...
, and on 14 July SECNAV approved the name Gamage and designation IX-227 for the ex-Henry L. Abbott. On 21 July, however, CNO wrote to the War Shipping Administration and asked that his request of 13 July for the Henry L. Abbott be canceled, because her poor hull condition made her unsuitable for use as dry cargo floating storage. CNO had already advised CINCPAC a day earlier of the cancellation of Henry L. Abbott. The Navy later decided to shift the name Gamage and the designation IX-227 to the ex-William B. Allison and cancel the name and number given that ship on 6 August. This directive has not come to light in the archives, and the cryptic question sent to CINCPAC by CNO on 17 August, "Request information re acceptances William B. Allison for Gamage (IX-227) in lieu of Henry L. Abbott" appears to have gone unappreciated when CINCPAC on 24 August and again on 4 September reported the 30 July acceptance. The ex-William B. Allison was consistently called Inca in all reporting from the Pacific Theater through mid-January 1946, and a photograph of her ashore at Buckner Bay appears to show the hull number IX-229 painted on her bow.