USS Hidalgo (AK-189)

USS Hidalgo (AK-189) was an Alamosa-class cargo ship that was constructed for the U.S. Navy during the closing period of World War II. She was declared excess-to-needs and returned to the U.S. Maritime Commission.

History
United States
Name: Hidalgo
Namesake:
Ordered: as type (C1-M-AV1) hull, MC hull 2120[1]
Builder: Walter Butler Shipbuilders, Inc., Superior, Wisconsin
Yard number: 38[1]
Laid down: date unknown
Launched: 28 July 1944
Sponsored by: Mrs. Claude Pepper
Commissioned: 4 August 1945
Decommissioned: 26 April 1946
Stricken: 8 May 1946
Identification:
Fate: sold in 25 February 1947[2]
Turkey
Name: Rize
Namesake: Rize Province
Owner: Deniz Nakliyati T.A.O., Turkey
Acquired: 25 February 1947
Homeport: Istanbul, Turkey
Identification: IMO number: 5297311
Fate: scrapped in August 1982 at Aliağa, Turkey
General characteristics [3]
Class and type: Alamosa-class cargo ship
Type: C1-M-AV1
Tonnage: 5,032 long tons deadweight (DWT)[1]
Displacement:
  • 2,382 long tons (2,420 t) (standard)
  • 7,450 long tons (7,570 t) (full load)
Length: 388 ft 8 in (118.47 m)
Beam: 50 ft (15 m)
Draft: 21 ft 1 in (6.43 m)
Installed power:
Propulsion: 1 × propeller
Speed: 11.5 kn (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity:
  • 3,945 t (3,883 long tons) DWT
  • 9,830 cu ft (278 m3) (refrigerated)
  • 227,730 cu ft (6,449 m3) (non-refrigerated)
Complement:
  • 15 Officers
  • 70 Enlisted
Armament:

Construction

Hidalgo was a diesel-powered C1-M-AV1 cargo hull, was launched 28 July 1944 under Maritime Commission contract, MC hull 2120, by Walter Butler Shipbuilding, Inc., Superior, Wisconsin, sponsored by Mrs. Claude Pepper, wife of the Senator from Florida; placed in service while being towed to Galveston, Texas, and commissioned 4 August 1945, Lieutenant John W. Thompson in command.[4]

Service history

World War II Pacific Theatre operations

After conducting a brief shakedown cruise off the coast of Texas, Hidalgo sailed to the Panama Canal Zone for routing to the Pacific Ocean 5 September 1945, but the war's end brought orders to proceed to Norfolk, Virginia.[4]

Post-war decommissioning

The ship arrived in Hampton Roads, Virginia, 11 March 1946 and decommissioned 26 April 1946. Subsequently, she was sold to Turkey for $693,862.00 and serves as cargo ship SS Rize in merchant service.[4]

Merchant service

Hidalgo was renamed Rize in 1947. Along with her sister ships, ex-Antrim, renamed Kars, ex-Craighead, renamed Kastamonu, and ex-Bullock, renamed Edirne, she would, for the next 15 years, provide cargo service between Turkey and Northern Europe. She was finally broken up in the Turkish port of Aliağa in August 1982.[5]

Honors and awards

Qualified Hidalgo personnel were eligible for the following:

Notes
    Citations
    1. C1 Cargo Ships 2009.
    2. MARAD.
    3. Navsource 2014.
    4. DANFS 2015.
    5. Navsource 2015.

    Bibliography

    Online resources

    • "Hidalgo (AK-189)". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval History and Heritage Command. 16 July 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2016. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
    • "C1 Cargo Ships". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 28 August 2009. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
    • "USS Hidalgo (AK-189)". Navsource.org. 29 August 2014. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
    • "Hidalgo". United States Department of Transportation. Retrieved 19 November 2016.


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