USS Tipton (AK-215)
History | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Name | Tipton |
Namesake | |
Ordered | as type (C1-M-AV1) hull, MC hull 2169[1] |
Builder | Leathem D. Smith Shipbuilding Company, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin |
Yard number | 335[1] |
Laid down | 28 December 1944 |
Launched | 13 March 1945 |
Sponsored by | Mrs. W. F. Maister |
Acquired | 7 September 1945 |
Commissioned | 9 October 1945 |
Decommissioned | 4 March 1946 |
Stricken | 20 March 1946 |
Identification |
|
Fate | transferred to the US Coast Guard on 4 March 1946 |
![]() ![]() | |
Name | Unalga |
Namesake | Unalga Island |
Commissioned | 4 March 1946 |
Decommissioned | 1 June 1950 |
Identification | Hull symbol: WAK-185 |
Fate | sold for scrapping, 6 January 1971 |
General characteristics [2] | |
Class and type | cargo ship |
Type | C1-M-AV1 |
Tonnage | 5,032 long tons deadweight (DWT)[1] |
Displacement |
|
Length | 388 ft 8 in (118.47 m) |
Beam | 50 ft (15 m) |
Draft | 21 ft 1 in (6.43 m) |
Installed power |
|
Propulsion | 1 × propeller |
Speed | 11.5 kn (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph) |
Capacity |
|
Complement |
|
Armament |
|
USS Tipton (AK-215) was an cargo ship that was constructed for the US Navy during the closing period of World War II. She was commissioned; however, the war ended and she was declared "excess to needs." She was then transferred to the US Coast Guard in 1946.
Construction[]
Tipton was laid down under US Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2169, on 28 December 1944, at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, by the Leathem D. Smith Shipbuilding Company; launched on 13 March 1945; sponsored by Mrs. W. F. Maister; transferred to the Navy Department on 7 September 1945; and commissioned on 9 October 1945, Lieutenant Commander H. E. Gray, USCGR, in command.[3]
Service history[]
Upon commissioning, the cargo ship was transferred to the custody of the US Coast Guard for maintenance and operation and was manned by a Coast Guard crew.[3]
Inactivation[]
Tipton was decommissioned and permanently transferred to the Coast Guard on 4 March 1946. She was struck from the Navy list on 20 March 1946.[3]
US Coast Guard service[]
Tipton was renamed Unalga by the Coast guard. She was one of two MARCOM C1-M-AV1 freighters acquired by the Coast Guard after World War II, along with her sister Kukui,[1][USCG 1] which provided service in the construction of the many LORAN stations planned for operation around the globe.[4]
She was converted for use as a construction supply freighter at the Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay, Maryland. After her conversion was complete she was ordered to the Pacific Northwest.[4]
She was stationed at Seattle, Washington and used primarily for the construction of the Alaskan LORAN stations. On 28 November 1948 she rendered assistance to the M/V Kasilof. She was decommissioned on 19 January 1950 and turned back over to MARCOM.[4]
Merchant service[]
On 1 June 1950, she entered the Reserve Fleet in Olympia, Washington. purchased her on 6 January 1971 for $32,200 to be scrapped. However, she was renamed Sea-Alaska and converted to a Fish Factory ship owned by Trident Seafoods Inc. She was scrapped in 2007.[5]
Notes[]
- ^ The USCG site says three ships were obtained but only two can be found in references.
- Citations
- ^ a b c d C1 Cargo Ships 2009.
- ^ a b c DANFS Tipton.
- ^ a b c USCG.
- ^ Bay Shipbuilding. ""Bay Shipbuilding Registry"". shipbuildinghistory.com. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
Bibliography[]
Online resources
- "Tipton". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- "C1 Cargo Ships". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 28 August 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- "USS Tipton (AK-215)". Navsource.org. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- "Unalga". United States Department of Transportation. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- "Unalga, 1946" (PDF). US Coast Guard. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
External links[]
- Photo gallery of USS Tipton (AK-215) at NavSource Naval History
- Alamosa-class cargo ships
- Ships built in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
- 1945 ships
- World War II auxiliary ships of the United States
- Ships of the United States Coast Guard
- United States Navy Indiana-related ships
- Tipton County, Indiana
- United States Navy Tennessee-related ships
- Tipton County, Tennessee