Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USS Bootes (AK-99)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Juliet - Tango - Papa
 NJTP
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal
Bottom Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1) - World War II Victory Medal - Philippines Liberation Medal
Crater Class Cargo Ship
  • Laid down, 24 April 1943, as SS Thomas Oliver Larkin, a Maritime Commission type (EC2-S-C1) hull, under Maritime Commission contract (MCE hull 1656), at California Shipbuilding Corp., Wilmington, CA.
  • Launched, 16 May 1943
  • Acquired by the US Navy, 29 May 1943
  • Commissioned, USS Bootes (AK-99), 15 July 1943, LCDR. Howard P. Bacon, USNR, in command
  • During World War II USS Bootes was assigned to Asiatic-Pacific Theater and participated in the following campaign:

    Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates
    Hollandia operation, 21 April to 1 May 1944

  • Decommissioned, 22 April 1946, at Pearl Harbor, T.H.
  • Towed to San Francisco, in May 1947
  • Delivered to the Maritime Commission, 11 September 1947, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, Benecia, CA., name reverted to SS Thomas Oliver Larkin
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 1 August 1947
  • USS Bootes earned one battle star for World War II service
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 14 March 1973, to Tung Ho Steel Enterprises Corp. Kaohsiung, Taiwan, for $216,000 (PD-X-955), removed, 27 May 1973
    Specifications:
    Displacement 4,023 t.(lt) 14,550 t.(fl)
    Length 441' 6"
    Beam 56' 11"
    Draft 28' 4"
    Speed 12.5 kts.
    Complement
    Officers 21
    Enlisted 183
    Cargo Capacity 7,750 DWT
    non-refrigerated 411,750 Cu ft
    Largest Boom Capacity 50 t.
    Armament
    one single 5"/51 cal surface gun mount
    one single 3"/50 cal dual purpose gun mount
    four single 40mm AA gun mounts
    six single 20mm AA gun mounts
    Fuel Capacity
    NSFO 7,285 Bbls
    Propulsion
    one Joshua-Hendy. vertical triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine
    two Babcock and Wilcox header-type boilers, 220psi 450°
    Ship's Service Generators
     three recip-drive 20Kw 120V D.C.
     one turbo-drive 60Kw 120V D.C.
    single propeller, 2,500shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    USS Bootes (AK-99)
    Bootes 123k Amidships looking aft plan view of USS Bootes (AK-99) at Alameda, CA., 4 December 1943.
    Mare Island Navy Yard photo # 8076-43.    		 Darryl Baker
    Bootes 121k Amidships looking forward plan view of USS Bootes (AK-99) at Alameda, CA., 4 December 1943.
    Mare Island Navy Yard photo # 8076-43.    		 Darryl Baker
    Bootes 66k Stern view of USS Bootes (AK-99) off San Francisco, CA., 10 December 1943.
    Mare Island Navy Yard photo # 8261-43.    		 Darryl Baker
    Bootes 69k Broadside view of USS Bootes (AK-99) off San Francisco, CA., 10 December 1943.
    Mare Island Navy Yard photo # 8076-43.    		 Darryl Baker
    Bootes 89k Bows on view of USS Bootes (AK-99) off San Francisco, CA., 10 December 1943.
    Mare Island Navy Yard photo # 8076-43.    		 Darryl Baker
    Bootes 94k USS Bootes (AK-99) off San Francisco, CA., 10 December 1943.
    US National Archives Record Group RG-19-LCM photo # 19-N-57818, a US Navy Bureau of Ships photo now in the collections of the US National Archives, courtesy Shipscribe.com.    		 Mike Green
    National Defense Reserve Fleet
    Bootes
    0913009907    		 119k Ex-USS Bootes (AK-99) laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, Benicia, CA., 19 August 1970.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command, Photo No. NH 89187    		 Mike Green
    USS Bootes (AK-99)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LCDR. Bacon, Howard Perry USNR15 July 1943 - 1 January 1945
    02LT. Anderson, Nils Walter1 January 1945 - 1 November 1945
    03LT. Burkhart, Valentine Anthony1 November 1945 - 22 April 1946
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    MARAD Vessel History Database
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Service Force Ship Type Index Back To The Cargo Ship (AK) Photo Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 17 July 2020