USS Tomahawk (AO-88) was an acquired by the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 for use during World War II

World 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...

. She had the dangerous but necessary task of providing fuel to vessels in combat and non-combat areas primarily 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...

. For her valiant efforts, she received six battle stars during the war.

The first Tomahawk, to be so named by the Navy, was laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1267) on 1 June 1943 by Marinship

Marinship

Marinship Corporation was a shipbuilding company of the United States during World War II, created to build the shipping required for the war effort...

 Corporation of Sausalito, California

Sausalito, California

Sausalito is a San Francisco Bay Area city, in Marin County, California, United States. Sausalito is south-southeast of San Rafael, at an elevation of 13 feet . The population was 7,061 as of the 2010 census. The community is situated near the northern end of the Golden Gate Bridge, and prior to...

, launched on 10 October 1943, sponsored by Mrs. W. L, Kidneigh, and commissioned at Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

, on 16 April 1944, Comdr. Benjamin Watkins Cloud in command.

World War II Pacific Theatre operations

Early in July 1944. Tomahawk completed her shakedown

Shakedown (testing)

A shakedown is a period of testing or a trial journey undergone by a ship, aircraft or other craft and its crew before being declared operational. Statistically, a proportion of the components will fail after a relatively short period of use, and those that survive this period can be expected to...

 off the U.S. West Coast

West Coast of the United States

West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...

 and steamed via 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...

 for the Marshalls

Marshall Islands

The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...

. The oiler arrived at Eniwetok on the 24th, reported for duty with Service Squadron 10, and was soon underway for fueling operations in the Marianas

Mariana Islands

The Mariana Islands are an arc-shaped archipelago made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the north-western Pacific Ocean between the 12th and 21st parallels north and along the 145th meridian east...

. During August, she contributed logistic support for the final stages of the fight for the Marianas.

On 26 August, Tomahawk departed Eniwetok for Manus

Manus Island

Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest island of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth largest island in Papua New Guinea with an area of 2,100 km², measuring around 100 km × 30 km. According to the 2000 census, Manus Island had a...

 with a logistics task unit for the 3rd Fleet. Steaming from Seeadler Harbor

Seeadler Harbor

Seeadler Harbor, also known as Port Seeadler, is located on Manus Island, Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea and played an important role in World War II...

 on the 31st, she relieved oilers and which had collided. Through September and October, Tomahawk continued fueling duties for the 3rd Fleet, operating out of Seeadler Harbor. On 18 October, she rendezvoused with the damaged cruisers  and as they returned from a successful Fast Carrier Task Force

Fast Carrier Task Force

The Fast Carrier Task Force was the main striking force of the United States Navy in the Pacific Ocean theatre of World War II.The Fast Carrier Task Force was known under two designations. The Navy made use of two sets of upper command structures for planning the upcoming operations...

 strike on Formosa

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

. After refueling the battle-scarred ships and their escort, Tomahawk continued on to her assigned area where she provided support for units active in the battle for Leyte Gulf

Leyte Gulf

Leyte Gulf is a body of water immediately east of the island of Leyte in the Philippines, adjoining the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, at . The Gulf is bounded on the north by the island of Samar, which is separated from Leyte on the west by the narrow San Juanico Strait, and on the south by...

.

Under attack by midget submarine

On 20 November 1944, Tomahawk was anchored 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...

 when a Japanese

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...

 midget submarine

Midget submarine

A midget submarine is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to 6 or 8, with little or no on-board living accommodation...

 penetrated the lagoon

Lagoon

A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...

. The undersea raider sent fleet oiler down in flames before being rammed and sunk by destroyer just a mile and one-half from Tomahawk.

As the year ended, Tomahawk continued fueling missions and, in January, ranged as far as Leyte Gulf in support of the 5th Fleet. In the early months of 1945, Tomahawk continued to operate out of Ulithi providing direct logistic support to the fleet in and near the combat zone. During the first two weeks of February, she fueled units of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance

Raymond A. Spruance

Raymond Ames Spruance was a United States Navy admiral in World War II.Spruance commanded US naval forces during two of the most significant naval battles in the Pacific theater, the Battle of Midway and the Battle of the Philippine Sea...

's 5th Fleet preparatory to operations off Nanpo Shoto

Nanpo Shoto

The is a collective term for the groups of islands that are located to the south of the Japanese archipelago. They extend from the Izu Peninsula west of Tokyo Bay southward for about 750 miles , to within 300 miles of the Mariana Islands...

 and, later in the month, supported Task Force

Task force

A task force is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology...

 58 which was striking targets in the Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

 area. In March, Tomahawk fueled units in preparation for strikes on Nansei Shoto 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...

.

Fighting off air attacks

While 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....

 early in April, Tomahawk fought off enemy air raiders and later suffered some minor damage to her plating and degaussing cable while fueling . Returning to Ulithi in April, Tomahawk continued underway replenishment operations in support of the Fast Carrier Task Force before steaming from Ulithi in May, bound for overhaul at Portland, Oregon.

End-of-war activity

Repairs completed, she got underway again on 20 July 1945 and proceeded via San Francisco, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, to Pearl Harbor. The successes of American naval forces in the Pacific made it possible for her to make the entire voyage to the Carolines

Caroline Islands

The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...

 without an escort. She arrived at Ulithi just in time for the unconditional surrender of Japan. She subsequently performed fueling tasks and exercises with units of Admiral William F. Halsey's 3rd Fleet, operating out of Tokyo and Ulithi before departing Tokyo late in October. Tomahawk steamed via San Francisco and the Panama Canal

Panama Canal

The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...

 for the U.S. East Coast

East Coast of the United States

The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...

 and arrived at 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....

, on 11 December 1945.

Service under MSTS

Tomahawk was decommissioned on 5 January 1946 and was struck from the Navy List

Naval Vessel Register

The Naval Vessel Register 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 the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...

 on 21 January 1946. Following re-conversion at Norfolk, she was turned over to the Military Sea Transportation Service, to serve as USNS Tomahawk (T-AO-88). Through the remaining 1940s and throughout the 1950s, she served in decommissioned status, carrying fuel for the American fleet around the world. In September 1961, the tanker was transferred to the Maritime Administration, assigned to the National Defense Reserve Fleet

National 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...

, and berthed in Suisun Bay, California. In 1966, she was converted to a container ship

Container ship

Container ships are cargo ships that carry all of their load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. They form a common means of commercial intermodal freight transport.-History:...

, renamed Maine, and sold to the Hudson Waterways Corporation.

It is now in the Naches River reserve fleet in Beaumont, Texas

Beaumont, Texas

Beaumont is a city in and county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 118,296 at the 2010 census. With Port Arthur and Orange, it forms the Golden Triangle, a major industrial area on the...

.

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