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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive
Contributed by Don McGrogan, BMCS USN Ret.

AE-4 Kilauea / Mount Baker


Flag Hoist/International Radio Call Sign:
November - Charlie - Echo - Juliet
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons




Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Defense Service Medal - American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal
Second Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - National Defense Service Medal
Third Row - Korea Service Medal (4) - Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (1-Taiwan Straits, 6 to 12 September 1958, 5-Vietnam, 13 to 19 January 1965, 24 January to 14 February 1965, 3 May to 21 May 1965, 27 May to 5 June 1965, 8 to 18 June 1965) - Vietnam Service Medal (7)
Fourth Row - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)
Lassen Class Ammunition Ship
  • Laid down (date unknown) as MV Surprise a Maritime Commission type (C2-T Cargo) hull, under a Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 24) at Tampa Shipbuilding Corp., Tampa, FL.
  • Launched (date unknown)
  • Acquired by the Navy from the Maritime Commission, 14 November 1940
  • Converted to an Ammunition Ship at Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Co., Mobile, AL.
  • Commissioned USS Kilauea (AE-4), 16 May 1941, Capt. W. I. Causey in command
  • Renamed USS Mount Baker (AE-4), 17 March 1943
  • During World War II Kilauea / Mount Baker was assigned to both the European and Asiatic-Pacific Theaters
  • Decommissioned in January 1947 at San Diego, CA.
  • Laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, San Diego Group
  • Recommissioned, 5 December 1951, Capt. Richard Mueller Nixon in command
  • During the Korean War participated in the following campaigns:
    Korean War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    Second Korean Winter
    23 March to 3 April 1952
    21 to 30 April 1952     		Korean Summer-Fall 1953
    3 to 8 May 1953
    23 May to 5 June 1953
    14 to 24 June 1953
    30 June to 10 July 1953
    25 to 27 July 1953
    Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952
    1 to 5 May 1952
    18 to 29 May 1952
    20 June to 1 July 1952
    26 July to 2 August 1952
    10 to 23 August 1952
    16 to 30 September 1952
    16 to 27 October 1952     		Third Korean Winter
    4 March 1953
    14 to 17 March 1953
    1 to 6 April 19 53
    17 to 22 April 1953

  • During the Vietnam War participated in the following campaigns:
    Vietnam War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    Vietnamese Counteroffensive
    13 to 28 February 1966
    16 to 25 March 1966
    16 to 26 April 1966
    22 May to 3 June 1966
    14 to 19 June 1966
    23 to 30 June 1966     		Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase VI
    27 November to 3 December 1968
    10 to 19 December 1968
    19 to 31 January 1969
    12 to 22 February 1969
    Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase II
    1 to 10 July 1966
    1 to 12 August 1966
    20 September to 11 October 1966
    25 October to 10 November 1966     		Tet 69/Counteroffensive
    23 February 1969
    12 to 22 March 1969
    31 March to 16 April 1969
    25 April to 6 May 1969
    14 to 23 May 1969
    5 to 8 June 1969
    Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase III
    30 October to 27 November 1967
    17 December 1967 to 5 January 1968
    12 to 14 January 1968
    22 to 29 January 1968     		Vietnam Summer-Fall 1969
    9 to 12 June 1969
    Tet Counteroffensive
    30 January to 2 February 1968
    24 February to 10 March 1968
    18 to 29 March 1968     		.

  • Decommissioned (date unknown)
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 2 December 1969
  • Transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal
  • Final Disposition, scrapped in 1974
  • Mount Baker received four battle stars for Korean War service and seven campaign stars for Vietnam War service
    Specifications:
    Displacement 6,350 t.(lt) 13,855 t.(fl)
    Length 459'
    Beam 63'
    Draft 25' 11"
    Speed 16 kts.
    Complement 280
    Armament
    one single 5"/38 dual purpose gun mount
    four single 3"/50 dual purpose gun mounts
    two twin 40mm AA gun mounts
    eight twin 20mm AA gun mounts
    Cargo Capacity 5,000DWT
    Propulsion diesel, single shaft, 6,000hp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    Mount Baker 102k Mount Baker (AE-4) arriving at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, CA., for overhaul, 9 November 1953. Mount Baker was underwent repairs at Mare Island from 9 November 1953 to 20 January 1954.
    Mare Island Naval Shipyard photo # 19287-11-53, 11/9/53    		 Darryl Baker
    Mount Baker 93k Mount Baker (AE-4) departing Naval Shipyard Mare Island on trails, 3 September 1957. Mount Baker was undergoing repairs at Mare Island from 21 June to 10 September 1957.
    Mare Island Naval Shipyard photo # 36384-9-57, 9/3/57    		 Darryl Baker
    Mount Baker 46k Mount Baker (AE-4) overhead view, at anchor, date and place unknown. Hyperwar US Navy in WWII
    Mount Baker 46k Mount Baker (AE-4) underway, date and place unknown "AE" Sailors Association
    Mount Baker 608k Mount Baker (AE-4) passing under the Golden Gate Bridge at San Francisco, date unknown. Phil Bird LTjg MPA USS Mount Baker
    Mount Baker 484k Mount Baker (AE-4) and Ticonderoga (CVA-14) during an underway replenishment off the coast of California, 2 September 1965. Carrier Air Wing (CAW-5) deployed with Ticonderoga from 1960 to 1966. The A4 Skyhawk aircraft visible on the flight deck belong to VA-56 "Champions" and VA-144 "Roadrunners."
    .US Navy photo CVA-14-2854-9-65 9/2/65.    		 Phil Bird LTjg MPA USS Mount Baker
    View the Mount Baker (AE-4)
    DANFS history entry located at the US Naval Historical Center
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S.Navy Memorial Foundation
    Fleet Reserve Association
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    "AE" Sailors Association
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    © 2005 Gary P. Priolo © 1996 - 2008 NavSource Naval History. All Rights Reserved.
    Last Updated 12 October 2007