USS Broadwater

USS Broadwater (APA-139) was a Haskell-class attack transport in service with the United States Navy from 1945 to 1946. She was scrapped in 1974.

Broadwater and Bellerophon (ARL-31) in San Francisco Bay, October 1945.
History
United States
Name	USS Broadwater
Namesake	Broadwater County, Montana
Builder	California Shipbuilding Corporation, Wilmington, Los Angeles
Laid down	1 September 1944
Launched	5 November 1944
Commissioned	2 January 1945
Decommissioned	28 February 1946
Stricken	20 March 1946
Fate	Sold for scrapping, 13 June 1974
General characteristics
Class and type	Haskell-class attack transport
Displacement	6,873 long tons (6,983 t) light 14,837 long tons (15,075 t) full
Length	455 ft (139 m)
Beam	62 ft (19 m)
Draft	24 ft (7.3 m)
Propulsion	1 × Joshua Hendy geared turbine 2 × Babcock & Wilcox header-type boilers 1 propeller
Speed	18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Boats & landing craft carried	12 × LCVPs 2 × LCMs 3 × LCPLs
Capacity	150,000 cubic feet, 2,900 tons
Troops	86 officers, 1,475 enlisted men
Complement	56 officers, 480 enlisted men
Armament	1 × 5"/38 caliber guns 4 × twin 40 mm guns 10 × single 20 mm guns

History

Broadwater was laid down on 1 September 1944 at Wilmington, Los Angeles, by the California Shipbuilding Corporation under a Maritime Commission contract (MCV hull 55). She was launched on 5 November 1944, sponsored by Mrs. A. E. Florer, and delivered to the Navy on 31 December 1944. She was commissioned at Terminal Island, California on 2 January 1945. Named for Broadwater County, Montana, she was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name.

Pacific War

After fitting out and underway tests, Broadwater began shakedown training out of San Pedro, Los Angeles on 12 January. On the 26th, she commenced amphibious training in the San Diego area. At the conclusion of that assignment on 12 February, the attack transport arrived at the Craig Shipbuilding in Long Beach, California for a post-shakedown availability. On 23 February she put to sea and, the following day, arrived in San Francisco. There, she loaded cargo until 2 March at which time the ship shaped a course for Hawaii. By the 8th, she was in Hawaiian waters conducting further amphibious training.

On 28 March she embarked elements of several construction battalions and, on the 29th, got underway from Pearl Harbor. On 6 and 7 April, Broadwater stopped at Eniwetok then continued west. She spent 13 to 15 April at Kossol Roads in the Palau Islands. On 17 April the attack transport anchored in Guiuan harbor at Samar in the Philippine Islands. She remained in the Samar-Leyte area for almost two weeks before getting underway for the Marianas on 30 April. The ship arrived at Apra Harbor, Guam on 4 May but put to sea again on the 7th. She arrived back in San Francisco on 22 May. After loading cargo and embarking passengers, Broadwater departed San Francisco on 29 May. She made stops at Eniwetok and Ulithi before arriving at Manila in the Philippines on 22 June. There, she unloaded cargo and disembarked troops. On 28 June, the ship stood out of Manila Bay bound for New Guinea. She arrived at Hollandia on the northern coast of New Guinea on 3 July and began taking on cargo and passengers. Departing Hollandia on 6 July, the attack cargo ship arrived back in Manila Bay on 10 July. After unloading cargo and disembarking passengers, Broadwater moved to Subic Bay on the 18th and began loading cargo. On 20 July, the ship set sail for the United States. She dropped anchor at San Pedro on 8 August.

After almost two weeks of voyage repairs at the California Shipbuilding Corporation, Broadwater began loading occupation troops on 24 August. She started across the Pacific on the 25th, made an overnight stop at Eniwetok on 7 and 8 September, and arrived in Manila on 15 September. Her passengers went ashore at Manila, and Broadwater got underway for Leyte. She reached San Pedro Bay on the 19th and stayed there until the 23rd. On the 24th, the attack transport anchored in Legaspi harbor, Luzon. She remained at Legaspi until 4 October when she weighed anchor for Japan. She arrived in Tokyo on the 13th. Later that month, the ship headed back to the United States, stopping at Guam on 27 October to embark the personnel of the U.S. Marine Twelfth 155mm Gun Battalion, arriving in early November, 1945.

Decommissioning and fate

By late January 1946, Broadwater had moved to the east coast at Norfolk to prepare for inactivation. She was decommissioned on 28 February 1946 and was turned over to the Maritime Commission's War Shipping Administration for disposal on 1 March 1946. Her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 20 March 1946 and she was berthed with the Maritime Commission's National Defense Reserve Fleet at James River, Virginia. She was sold for scrapping in late 1974 or early 1975.

References

 This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

• "APA-139 Broadwater". Amphibious Photo Archive. Retrieved 20 April 2007.
• US Marine Corps Muster Rolls, 1893-1958 Roll 1069, Muster of United States Marine Corps Twelfth 155mm Gun Battalion, October 1946