USS Roque

USS Roque (AG-137/AKL-8) was a Camano-class cargo ship constructed for the U.S. Army as USA FS-347 shortly before the end of World War II and later acquired by the U.S. Navy in 1947. She was configured as a transport and cargo ship and was assigned to serve the World War II Trust Territories in the Pacific Ocean.

History
United States
Name	USS Roque
Namesake	An island off the coast of Maine
Builder	Kewaunee Shipbuilding Co., Kewaunee, Wisconsin
Laid down	date unknown
Completed	as U.S. Army FS-347, date unknown
Acquired	by the U.S. Navy, 21 February 1947, at Navy Yard Subic Bay, Philippines
Commissioned	2 May 1947 as USS Roque (AG-137) at Apra Harbor, Guam
Decommissioned	23 July 1951
Reclassified	AKL-8, 31 March 1949
Stricken	date not known
Identification	IMO number: 7050638
Fate	Transferred to the U.S. Department of the Interior, 29 January 1952
General characteristics
Type	Camano-class cargo ship
Displacement	550 tons
Length	177 ft (54 m)
Beam	33 ft (10 m)
Draft	10 ft (3.0 m)
Propulsion	two 500hp GM Cleveland Division 6-278A 6-cyl V6 diesel engines, twin screws
Speed	12 knots
Complement	42 officers and enlisted
Armament	not known

Constructed at Kewaunee, Wisconsin

Roque, built in 1944 by the Kewaunee Ship Building Co., Kewaunee, Wisconsin, for the U.S. Army as freight supply ship FS-347, was acquired by the Navy at Subic Bay, Philippine Islands, 21 February 1947; renamed and reclassified Roque (AG-137) on 3 April 1947; and commissioned at Guam, 2 May 1947.

Pacific Trust Territory services

On 11 June she relieved LSM-437 at Guam. She subsequently steamed on Pacific Ocean logistic and surveillance runs visiting various ports in the Mariana Islands, the Marshall Islands, the Caroline Islands, the Philippines, the Bonin Islands, the Admiralty Islands, and the Hawaiian Islands.

Roque was reclassified AKL-8 on 31 March 1949.

Transfer to the Interior Department

Completing her 4-year naval career, she was decommissioned at Guam 23 July 1951 and loaned to the U.S. Department of the Interior, then struck from the Navy List 29 January 1952 and transferred to the U.S. Department of the Interior for service in the Pacific Trust Territories.

Her subsequent fate is not known.

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - FS-347 - AG-137 / AKL-8 Roque