 USS Chariton River LSM(R)-407 at sea. Date and location unknown. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSChariton River (LSM(R)-407) |
| Namesake | Chariton River in Iowa and Missouri |
| Builder | Charleston Navy Yard |
| Laid down | 22 January 1945 |
| Launched | 12 February 1945 |
| Commissioned | 9 May 1945, as USS LSM(R)-407 |
| Decommissioned | 10 February 1947 |
| Recommissioned | 1 October 1955 |
| Decommissioned | 26 October 1955 |
| Renamed | USSChariton River, 1 October 1955 |
| Stricken | 1958 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | LSM(R)-401-classlanding ship medium |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 203 ft 6 in (62.03 m) |
| Beam | 34 ft 6 in (10.52 m) |
| Draft |
|
| Propulsion | 2 ×General Motors 16-287A, non-reversing with airflex clutch, diesel engines, direct drive, 2 screws |
| Speed | 13knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) |
| Complement | 6 officers, 137 enlisted |
| Armament |
|
USSChariton River (LSM(R)-407) was anLSM(R)-401-class medium-type landing ship (LSM) built for theUnited States Navy duringWorld War II. Named for theChariton River in northernMissouri and southernIowa, she was the only US Naval vessel to bear the name.
Laid down at Charleston Navy Yard on 22 January 1945, she was launched on 12 February 1945. Among those present at the launching party wereRear admiralJules James, Commandant of the6th Naval District, and Mrs. J.E. Hunt, ships sponsor and wife of U.S. Navy Captain J.E. Hunt. The ship was commissioned asLSM(R)-407 on 9 May 1945 withLT (jg) Robert C. Van Vleck, USNR, commanding.
The ship saw no combat action in World War II and was placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet nearAstoria, Oregon on 10 February 1947. The ships name was changed to the USS Chariton River on 1 October 1955. Struck from the U.S. Naval registry in 1958, the ship was sold to the Tacoma Tug & Barge Company ofTacoma, Washington in 1960 and underwent conversion to a barge.[1]
