USS Zuni (AT/ATF-95), a Cherokee-class fleet tugboat, formerly called Navajo class, was a ship of the United States Navy named for the Zuni, the popular name given to a tribe of Pueblo Indians indigenous to the area around the Zuni River in central New Mexico near the Arizona state line.
USS Armadillo (IX-111), the lead ship of her class of tanker was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for the armadillo, an insect-eating mammal which has an armorlike shell encasing its back and head.
USS Cinnabar (IX-163), a Trefoil-class concrete barge designated an unclassified miscellaneous vessel, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for cinnabar. Her keel was laid down in 1944. She was acquired on a loan-charter basis from the War Shipping Administration and placed in service at San Francisco, California, on 26 September 1944.
USS Trefoil (IX-149), the lead ship of her class of concrete-hulled cargo barge, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be given that name. Her keel was laid down in 1944 under a Maritime Commission contract by the Barrett, Hilp & Belair Shipyard in San Francisco, California. She was acquired by the Navy on 5 March 1944 as Midnight, designated unclassified miscellaneous vessel IX-149, and placed in service on 9 March 1944 with Lieutenant Neal King, USNR, in charge.
USS Silica (IX-151), a Trefoil-class concrete barge designated an unclassified miscellaneous vessel, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for silica. Her keel was laid down as SS Bauxite on 5 December 1943 by Barrett & Hilp, Belair Shipyard, San Francisco, California. She was launched on 31 December 1943 sponsored by Mrs. William O'Neill, and acquired by the Navy and commissioned on 8 June 1944 with Lieutenant Ormond A. Seavey, USNR, in command.
USS City of Dalhart (IX-156) was built for the United States Shipping Board (USSB), delivered to the USSB in November 1920 and, after exchanging original steam engines with diesels, operated by the board's agents in Pacific trade until bareboat charter to the Navy in February 1944 by the War Shipping Administration (WSA) for the duration of the war. Commissioned 2 June 1944 and designated unclassified miscellaneous vessel IX-156 the ship served the remainder of the war in the western Pacific.
USS Kankakee (AO-39) was a Kennebec-class fleet oiler of the United States Navy. The ship was built as SS Colina by Bethlehem Steel Co., Sparrows Point, Maryland, launched on 24 January 1942, sponsored by Mrs. D. A. Little, acquired for the Navy on 31 March through the Maritime Commission from her owner, Socony-Vacuum Oil Company, New York City, and commissioned as Kankakee at Norfolk, Virginia, on 4 May.
USS Bosque (APA-135) was a Haskell-class attack transport built and used by the US Navy in World War II. She was a Victory ship design, VC2-S-AP5. She was named after Bosque County, Texas, United States.
A Service Squadron (ServRon) was a U.S. Navy squadron that supported fleet combat units. Service Squadrons were used by the United States Navy from their inception in 1943 to as late as the early 1980s. At the time of their inception during the Second World War they allowed the US Navy to operate across the vast reaches of the Pacific Ocean for extended periods of time. Service Squadrons created temporary forward bases to allow the naval squadrons to spend less time in transit and more time in the area of combat. Ulithi, a small volcanic atoll in the central Pacific, is an example of a site converted for use as a forward base of supply. Service Squadrons essentially created a major naval base near the area of operation. With the naval base at Ulithi to refit, repair and resupply, many ships were able to deploy and operate in the western Pacific for a year or more without returning to a major port facility. Among the vessels operating in service squadrons were tankers, oilers, refrigerator ships, ammunition ships, supply ships, floating docks and repair ships. They provided diesel, ordnance, aviation fuel, food stuffs and all other supplies. Equally important at places like Ulithi were the portable piers and floating dry docks which allowed many ships damaged by enemy action or Pacific storms to undergo repair without having to travel the thousands of miles back to a major US naval base. Ulithi was as far forward from the US naval base at San Francisco as the San Francisco base was from London, England. To have a fully functional major port in the middle of the Pacific was a significant aid to U.S. Navy operations.
USS Tekesta (AT-93) was Navajo-class fleet tug built during World War II for the United States Navy. Shortly after being built, it was crewed by trained Navy personnel and sent into the Pacific Ocean to provide tug service to damaged ships in battle areas. For successfully performing this dangerous work, she was awarded four battle stars by the war's end.
USS Vega (AK-17), was a Sirius-class cargo ship of the United States Navy, originally the Lebanon — a single-screw, steel-hulled Type 1022 freighter, built under a United States Shipping Board contract at Hog Island, Pennsylvania, by the American International Shipbuilding Co. Laid down on 8 July 1918, the ship was launched on 18 July 1919. Acquired by the Navy on 2 December 1921, she was renamed Vega and given the classification of AK-17. She fitted out for Navy service, and was commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard on 21 December 1921, Lt. William H. Newman, USNRF, in command.
USS Arctic (AF-7) was an Arctic-class stores ship acquired by the United States Navy shortly after World War I, which saw extensive service in World War II. She served in the Pacific Ocean, delivering food and household items to ships and bases.
USS Autauga (AK-160) was an Alamosa-class cargo ship commissioned by the US Navy for service in World War II. She was responsible for delivering troops, goods and equipment to locations in the war zone.
USS Koka (ATA-185) was a US Navy tugboat. Koka is from the phonetic spelling of Coca, formerly an Indian village in southern Arizona. Originally designated as ATR-112, she was redesignated as ATA-185 on 15 May 1944; launched 11 September 1944, by Levingston Shipbuilding Co., Orange, Texas; and commissioned on 16 November, Lt. (j.g.) Woodrow Sullivan in command.
USS Basilan (AG-68/ARG-12) was a Basilan-class miscellaneous auxiliary acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II. The ship was designed as a combined barracks-stores-water distillation ship, but was later converted to an electronics repair ship. She spent her Navy career in the Pacific Ocean theatre of operations.
ATA-190, originally projected as ATR-117, was laid down on 29 September 1944 by the Levingston Shipbuilding Co., Orange, Texas; launched on 26 October 1944; and commissioned on 1 January 1945, Lt. (jg.) Elmo D. Twiehaus in command.
The second USS Undaunted was laid down as rescue tug ATR-126 on 27 November 1943 at Port Arthur, Texas, by the Gulfport Boiler and Welding Works; reclassified auxiliary ocean tug ATA-199 on 15 May 1944; launched on 22 August 1944; and commissioned on 20 October 1944, Lt. Guy S. Flanagan, Jr., USNR, in command.
USS Avoyel (ATF-150) was an Navajo-class fleet tug built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.
The second USS Marmora (IX-189) was a United States Navy tanker in commission from 1944 to 1946. She saw service as a mobile floating storage ship during and in the immediate aftermath of World War II.
USS Moctobi (ATF-105) was an Abnaki-class of fleet ocean tug. She served in World War II, Vietnam, and Korea, the last two of which she received battle stars. She was scrapped in 2012.
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