Magnolia, 1946
ACM-3; WAGL / WLB-328
ex-Barricade; ex-Colonel John Storey; later-Galaxy
Any of various deciduous or evergreen trees and shrubs of the genus Magnolia of the Western Hemisphere and Asia, many of which are cultivated for their showy white, pink, purple, or yellow flowers.
Builder: Marietta Manufacturing Company, Point Pleasant, West Virginia
Length: 188' 8"
Beam: 37'
Draft: 12' 10"
Displacement: 1,323 tons
Cost: N/A
Commissioned: 1942 (US Army); 7 April 1944 (USN); 19 October 1947 (USCG)
Decommissioned: 13 August 1971
Disposition: Sold
Machinery: Skinner Engine Company reciprocating steam engine; 2 Combustion Engineering boilers; 1,200 SHP; twin propellers.
Performance & Endurance:
Max: 11.5 knots; 2,375 mile range
Cruising: 8.5 knots; 3,000 mile range
Deck Gear:
Complement: 52
Armament: 1 x 40mm (USN); None (small arms only--USCG)
Electronics: AN/SPS-53 radar
Tender History:
The Magnolia was originally a Chimo-class mine layer built for the U.S. Army Coastal Artillery Corps in 1942 by the Marietta Manufacturing Company in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. She was christened the Colonel John Storey. She transferred to the Navy and was commissioned as the USS Barricade on 7 April 1944 under the command of LT C. P. Haber, USN. Barricade departed the east coast 14 May 1944 and arrived at Bizerte, Tunisia, 1 June 1944. Until July 1946 she served as a minesweeper tender at Salerno, Naples, and Anzio, Italy; Toulon, Cannes, and Golfe Juan, France; Oran, Algeria; Palermo, Sicily; and Sardinia. Between 17 August and 16 September 1944 she provided important service in the invasion of southern France.
On 23 June 1945 Barricade arrived at Charleston, South Carolina and then proceeded to Jacksonville, Florida, for overhaul (26 June-10 August). She transited the Panama Canal 2 September and proceeded to San Diego. She operated along the coast of California until she was decommissioned 28 June 1946 and transferred to the Coast Guard. Barricade received one battle star for her participation in the invasion of southern France. After her acquisition by the Coast Guard she was converted for use as a buoy tender at the Bethlehem Shipyard in San Francisco, California. She was commissioned CGC Magnolia on 19 October 1947.
She was first assigned to San Francisco and tended aids to navigation and supplied the manned light stations and lightships along the California coast, while conducting occasional search and rescue duties as required. From 28 to 29 April 1951 she assisted the Japanese M/V Flyer. On 9 February 1960 she assisted the disabled M/V Angelo Petri two miles south of the San Francisco Bar. On 5 June 1963 she assisted following the collision between the USNS Asterion and the Japanese M/V Kokoku Maru and transported 19 crew members from the Japanese ship to San Francisco. From 21 to 24 June 1965 she escorted the damaged catamaran Judy Al 165 miles southwest of Eureka, California to that port as her hull was too damaged to permit towing.
She transferred to Astoria, Oregon on 1 September 1965. On 6 December 1967 she escorted the distressed M/V David E. Day, which had grounded on the Columbia River Bar. On 10 August 1968 she assisted following the collision between Seatrain Washington and Rose S 17 miles east of Cape Flattery in fog.
She was decommissioned on 13 August 1971 and was then stored at TRACEN Alameda until she was sold. In 1976 she was converted by Marine Industries Northwest to a salmon and crab processing vessel for service in Alaska. The vessel was owned by Dutch Harbor Seafoods from 1976 to 1997. She was then sold to Galaxy Fisheries which converted her to a freezer longliner and renamed her Galaxy. On 2 October 2002 she suffered a fire and explosion and then sank. Two of her crew of perished.
Sources:
Cutter History File. USCG Historian's Office, USCG HQ, Washington, D.C.
Robert Scheina. U.S. Coast Guard Cutters & Craft, 1946-1990. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1990.