.gif)
USS Freestone (APA-167)
Encyclopedia
USS Freestone (APA-167) 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.
; sponsored by Mrs. Arthur R. Ponto; and commissioned 9 November 1944, Captain C. L. Carpenter in command.
14 January 1945 with passengers and cargo from the U.S. West Coast, and 6 days later sailed to land troops from Pearl Harbor on Saipan
. Moving on to Ulithi
, Freestone loaded U.S. Marines and their equipment and sailed to Leyte
for intensive training in preparation for the Okinawa landings. She sortied from Leyte Gulf
27 March, remained in the outer transport area during the assault on 1 April, then moved close inshore to land her men in one of the later waves of landing craft
. Next day she splashed a lone enemy aircraft, and on 7 April she was underway with casualties for Guam
.
, Freestone arrived 11 May 1945 to embark soldiers and sailors for transportation to Manila
, arriving 12 June. She voyaged to New Guinea
to bring more soldiers to Manila, then sailed for the U.S. west coast with homeward bound servicemen. On two cruises to the western Pacific Ocean
between 4 August and 23 December, she redeployed men and equipment in the Philippines
and to Japan
from various bases, returning from both cruises with servicemen eligible for discharge.
, where she was decommissioned 17 April 1946, and transferred to the War Shipping Administration
2 days later.
service.
Haskell class attack transport
Haskell-class attack transports were amphibious assault ships of the United States Navy created in 1944. They were designed to transport 1,500 troops and their combat equipment, and land them on hostile shores with the ships' integral landing craft....
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...
acquired by the U.S. Navy 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...
for the task of transporting troops to and from combat areas.
World War II service
Freestone (APA-167) was launched 9 October 1944 by Oregon Shipbuilding Corp., Portland, OregonPortland, 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...
; sponsored by Mrs. Arthur R. Ponto; and commissioned 9 November 1944, Captain C. L. Carpenter in command.
Landing troops on Saipan and on Okinawa
Freestone arrived at Pearl HarborPearl 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...
14 January 1945 with passengers and cargo from the U.S. West Coast, and 6 days later sailed to land troops from Pearl Harbor on Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
. Moving on to 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...
, Freestone loaded U.S. Marines and their equipment and sailed 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...
for intensive training in preparation for the Okinawa landings. She sortied from 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...
27 March, remained in the outer transport area during the assault on 1 April, then moved close inshore to land her men in one of the later waves of landing craft
Landing craft
Landing craft are boats and seagoing vessels used to convey a landing force from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. Most renowned are those used to storm the beaches of Normandy, the Mediterranean, and many Pacific islands during WWII...
. Next day she splashed a lone enemy aircraft, and on 7 April she was underway with casualties for Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
.
End-of-war operations
Continuing to San Francisco, CaliforniaSan 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...
, Freestone arrived 11 May 1945 to embark soldiers and sailors for transportation to Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, arriving 12 June. She voyaged to New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
to bring more soldiers to Manila, then sailed for the U.S. west coast with homeward bound servicemen. On two cruises to the western 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...
between 4 August and 23 December, she redeployed men and equipment in 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 to 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...
from various bases, returning from both cruises with servicemen eligible for discharge.
Post-war decommissioning
On 14 February 1946, she sailed from San Francisco for Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk, 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....
, where she was decommissioned 17 April 1946, and transferred to the War Shipping Administration
War 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....
2 days later.
Military awards and honors
Freestone 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.