USS Hiwassee, AOG-29
Hiwassee: a river in North Carolina.
Builder: Bast Coast Shipyard, Inc., Bayonne, New Jersey
Length: 220' 6"
Beam: 37'
Draft: 17'
Displacement: 2,270 (fl)
Commissioned: 24 October 1944
Decommissioned: 20 February 1946
Disposition: Sold
Machinery: 720 hp diesel direct drive; single propeller
Top Speed: 10 knots
Complement: 62
Armament: 1 3"/50; 2 x 40mm; 3 x 20mm
History:
The USS Hiwassee (AOG-29) was a Mettawee-Class motor gasoline tanker that was manned by a Coast Guard crew. She was launched on 30 August 1944 under Maritime Commission contract by Bast Coast Shipyard, Inc., Bayonne, N.J.; sponsored by Miss Harriet Savage; acquired 17 October 1944 and commissioned 24 October 1944, Lieutenant R. Raw-cliffe, USCG, in command.
Following shakedown training Hiwassee sailed through the Panama Canal to join the giant Pacific Fleet for the final phases of its island campaign, carrying her precious aviation gasoline and lubricating oil. She arrived Ulithi 1 April 1945, the day of the landings on Okinawa, and departed 24 April for that important island. Arriving 1 May, the ship began shuttling gasoline ashore, protected from the numerous air attacks by smoke screen. She remained off Okinawa after it was secured and until decommissioning 20 February 1946. Hiwassee was turned over to the Army at Okinawa for use there, but was repossessed by the Navy at Subic Bay, Philippines 25 March 1947. The tanker was subsequently sold to Luzon Stevedoring Co.
Hiwassee received one battle star for World War II service.
Sources:
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
Robert Scheina. U.S. Coast Guard Cutters & Craft of World War II. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1982.