USS Circe (AKA-25)

Last updated
USS Circe (AKA-25) at anchor, circa in 1945.jpg
History
US flag 48 stars.svgUnited States
NameUSS Circe
NamesakeThe asteroid Circe
Builder Walsh-Kaiser Company, Providence, Rhode Island
Launched4 August 1944
Commissioned10 November 1944
Decommissioned20 May 1946
Honours and
awards
1 battle star (WWII)
FateTransferred to the War Shipping Administration for disposal, 26 June 1946
General characteristics
Class and type Artemis-class attack cargo ship
TypeS4–SE2–BE1
Displacement
  • 4,087 long tons (4,153 t) light
  • 7,000 long tons (7,112 t) full
Length426 ft (130 m)
Beam58 ft (18 m)
Draft16 ft (4.9 m)
Speed16.9 knots (31.3 km/h; 19.4 mph)
Complement302 officers and enlisted
Armament

USS Circe (AKA-25) was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship named after the asteroid 34 Circe, which in turn was named after Circe, a goddess or sorceress in Greek mythology. USS Circe served as a commissioned ship for 18 months.

Contents

Circe (AKA-25) was launched 4 August 1944 by Walsh-Kaiser Co., Inc., Providence, R.I., under a Maritime Commission contract; sponsored by Mrs. R. E. Dougherty; acquired by the Navy 10 November 1944; and commissioned the same day.

Service history

1945

Circe reached Pearl Harbor from the East Coast 3 January 1945. Twenty days later she put to sea with Marine reinforcements and explosives for Guadalcanal, and through February, ferried troops in the Guadalcanal area. After practice landings in Savo Sound, she reported at Ulithi 21 March to stage for the assault of Okinawa.

Between 1 April 1945 and 6 April, Circe was part of the vast armada off Okinawa, closing the coast in daylight to offload men and equipment, and retiring seaward at night. She called at Saipan and Pearl Harbor on her passage to San Francisco, where from 19 May to 27 May she loaded cargo for a voyage to Pearl Harbor. Sailing again from San Francisco 24 June, she carried pilots and ground crews to Eniwetok, Kwajalein, Saipan, and Tinian, returning with men thus relieved to Pearl Harbor 13 August.

Clearing Pearl Harbor 25 September 1945, Circe supported the occupation on cargo duty which took her to ports in Japan and Korea, returning with homeward bound servicemen to San Francisco 20 December 1945.

Decommissioning

There she was decommissioned 20 May 1946, and transferred to the War Shipping Administration for disposal 26 June 1946.

Circe received one battle star for World War II service.

Related Research Articles

USS <i>Fomalhaut</i> Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Fomalhaut (AK-22/AKA-5/AE-20) was a Fomalhaut class attack cargo ship named after Fomalhaut, a star in the southern constellation Piscis Austrinus. She served as a commissioned ship for 4 years and 3 months.

USS <i>Lenoir</i> (AKA-74) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Lenoir (AKA-74) was a Tolland-class attack cargo ship named after Lenoir County, North Carolina and the distant City of Lenoir, North Carolina, which are both named for the patriot William Lenoir. Like all AKAs, Lenoir was designed to carry military cargo and landing craft, and to use the latter to land weapons, supplies, and Marines on enemy shores during amphibious operations. She served as a commissioned ship for 17 months.

USS <i>Shoshone</i> (AKA-65) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Shoshone (AKA-65) was a Tolland-class attack cargo ship of the United States Navy, named after a river in Wyoming. She was designed to carry military cargo and landing craft, and to use the latter to land weapons, supplies, and Marines on enemy shores during amphibious operations. USS Shoshone served as a commissioned ship for 21 months.

USS <i>Theenim</i> (AKA-63) Andromeda-class attack cargo ship

USS Theenim (AKA-63) was an Andromeda class attack cargo ship of the United States Navy in service from 1944 to 1946. She was sold into commercial service in 1948 and was scrapped in 1970.

USS <i>Diphda</i> (AKA-59) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Diphda (AKA-59) was an Andromeda-class attack cargo ship named after a star in the constellation Cetus. She served as a commissioned ship for 11 years and 10 months.

USS <i>Ostara</i> (AKA-33) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Ostara (AKA-33) was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship named after the asteroid 343 Ostara, which in turn was named after the Teutonic goddess of spring, described by Jacob Grimm in his Deutsche Mythologie as equivalent to the Anglo-Saxon Eostre. USS Ostara served as a commissioned ship for 13 months.

USS <i>Lacerta</i> (AKA-29) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Lacerta (AKA-29) was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1966.

USS <i>Hydrus</i> (AKA-28) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Hydrus (AKA-28) was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. From 1946 to 1946, she served as the a training ship as Empire State. She was scrapped in 1964.

USS <i>Devosa</i> (AKA-27) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Devosa (AKA-27) was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1966.

USS <i>Aurelia</i> Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Aurelia (AKA-23) was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1972.

USS <i>Athene</i> Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Athene (AKA-22) was an Artemis-class attack cargo ship in service with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946.

USS <i>Aquarius</i> (AKA-16) WWII US attack cargo ship

USS Aquarius (AKA-16) was an Andromeda-class attack cargo ship in the service of the United States Navy. She was named after the constellation Aquarius. She was one of a handful of World War II AKAs manned by officers and crew from the United States Coast Guard. She served as a commissioned ship for 2 years and 9 months.

USS <i>Haskell</i> (APA-117)

USS Haskell (APA-117) was the lead ship of her class of attack transports, built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was of the VC2-S-AP5 Victory ship design type. Haskell was named for the Haskell Counties of Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.

USS <i>Electra</i> (AKA-4) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Electra (AKA-4) was an Arcturus-class attack cargo ship named after Electra, a star in the Pleiades star cluster in the constellation Taurus. She served as a commissioned ship for seven years.

USS <i>Darke</i> (APA-159)

USS Darke (APA-159) was a Haskell-class attack transport in service with the United States Navy in from 1944 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1974.

USS <i>Chandeleur</i> (AV-10) Tender of the United States Navy

USS Chandeleur (AV-10), a seaplane tender, was launched on 29 November 1941 by Western Pipe and Steel Company, San Francisco, California, under a Maritime Commission contract; transferred to the U.S. Navy 19 November 1942; and commissioned the same day.

USS <i>Mintaka</i> (AK-94) Cargo ship of the United States Navy

USS Mintaka (AK-94) was a Crater-class cargo ship commissioned by the US Navy for service in World War II. She was named after Mintaka, a star in the Orion constellation. Mintaka was crewed by United States Coast Guard personnel and was responsible for delivering troops, goods and equipment to locations in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater.

USS <i>Karnes</i> (APA-175)

USS Karnes (APA-175) was a Haskell-class attack transport acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II for the task of transporting troops to and from combat areas.

USS McCracken (APA-198) was a Haskell-class attack transport acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II for the task of transporting troops to and from combat areas.

USS <i>Comet</i> (AP-166)

The third USS Comet (AP-166) was a United States Navy La Salle-class transport in commission from 1944 to 1946. She saw service in the Pacific Theater of Operations during the latter stages of World War II and the immediate postwar period.

References