 | This article includes alist of references,related reading, orexternal links,but its sources remain unclear because it lacksinline citations. Please helpimprove this article byintroducing more precise citations.(June 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
_in_the_1960s.jpg) USS Monrovia (APA-31), a ship of theCrescent City class | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Crescent City-class |
| Builders | Bethlehem Steel |
| Operators | United States Navy |
| Preceded by | Harry Lee class |
| Succeeded by | President Jackson class |
| In commission |
|
| Completed | 4 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Crescent City-classattack transport |
| Displacement | 7,300 tons (light), 13,910 tons (full) |
| Length | 459 ft 3 in (139.98 m) |
| Beam | 63 ft (19 m) |
| Draft | 24 ft (7.3 m) |
| Propulsion | 1 ×General Electric geared driveturbine, 2 ×Foster-Wheeler D-typeboilers, 1 × propeller, designed shafthorsepower 6,000 |
| Speed | 16 - 16.5knots |
| Capacity | Troops: Officer 83-91 Enlisted 1,465-1475Cargo: 150,000 cu ft, 2,700 tons |
| Complement | 42-46 officers, 478 enlisted |
| Armament | 2 ×5"/38 caliber dual-purpose gun mounts, 2 ×Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun mounts, 4 × twin20mm gun, 12 - 18 × 20 mm single gun mounts. |
| Notes | MCV hull type C2-S-B1 |
TheCrescent City-class attack transport was a class ofU.S. Navyattack transports that saw service inWorld War II and theKorean War. There were four ships in the class:USS Crescent City,USS Charles Carroll,USS Monrovia, andUSS Calvert.
Like all attack transports, the purpose of theCrescent City ships was to transport troops and their equipment to foreign shores in order to executeamphibious invasions using an array of smallerassault boats integral to the attack transport itself. Also like all the attack transports, the class was armed withantiaircraft weaponry to protect itself and its cargo of troops from air attack in the battle zone.
TheCrescent City class began as a class of Navy transport ships (classification AP). Like many other transports, they were redesignated attack transports (APA) on 1 February 1943, the date on which the Navy formalized its separate classification of transport vessels into ordinary transports and attack transports. Unlike many other classes of attack transport, there was no consistent naming convention for these vessels, with individual ships being named after cities, national heroes, or counties of theUnited States.
The four ships of theCrescent City class were based on theMaritime Commission's ubiquitousType C3 merchant/auxiliary hull (specifically, the C3-P or C3-Delta types). These were pre-war merchant ship hull types which had been specifically designed with prospective Naval auxiliary service in mind.
All four ships were laid down byBethlehem Steel at theirSparrow's Point shipyard, but thelead ship, the eponymousCrescent City was launched almost two years before the others, in February 1940. The remaining three were launched between March and September 1942. The commissioning dates were not so far apart though, sinceCrescent City had to undergo several months converting to an attack transport before she was ready to serve in October '41. The rest were commissioned from August to December '42. The build time for these ships, from laying down to commission, appears to have been about nine months - relatively fast for the C3 type.
TheCrescent City class ships were notable for their variety of armament - no two ships had the same configuration. The ships were fitted out with either three or four3"/50 caliber guns but the last two also got one5"/38 caliber gun - a superior weapon which had proven its effectiveness in the antiaircraft role and which all later classes of APA received. The remainder of the weaponry was made up of an assortment of 40 mm and 20 mm guns.
The ships had a moderate troop capacity of around 1,200 to 1,500 men, and a useful cargo capacity of 2,300 to 2,700 tons.
The last three ships in the class saw service in both theMediterranean andPacific Theatres, with one,Charles Carroll, also participating in theNormandy landings inFrance.Crescent City, the lead ship and first to be commissioned, spent the entirety of the war in thePacific Theatre, where she accumulated an impressive tenbattle stars.
Immediately after the end of the war, the ships were engaged in the redeployment of troops for occupation duties inJapan and its former territories inChina andKorea, before taking part inOperation Magic Carpet, the massive sealift organized to return demobilizing troops home to theUnited States. The ships were then decommissioned between 1946 and 1948, but two,Monrovia andCalvert, were recommissioned in 1950 for theKorean War, whereCalvert earned an additional two battle stars to add to the eight received for herWorld War II service.
Subsequently, the ships were decommissioned one by one, from 1968 to 1977, butCrescent City was given a new lease of life as a training ship for theCalifornia Maritime Academy from 1971 to 1995. She was revived again asArtship from 1999 to 2004, but has since joined her sister ships in the scrapyard.
TheCrescent City class as a whole earned an impressive 33 battle stars and twoNavy Unit Commendations for their military service.