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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS Bracken (APA-64)


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Juliet - Whiskey - Delta
 NJWD
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - China Service Medal (extended) - American Campaign Medal
Bottom Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
Gilliam Class Attack Transport:
  • Laid down, 13 March 1944, as a Maritime Commission type (S4-SE2-BD1) hull under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1857) at Consolidated Steel Corp, Wilmington, CA.
  • Launched, 10 June 1944
  • Acquired by the Navy from the Maritime Commission, 3 October 1944
  • Commissioned USS Bracken (APA-64), 4 October 1944, LCDR. Charles S. Lee USNR in command
  • During World War II USS Bracken was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
    TransRon Fourteen, COMO. D. L. Ryan USN (16);
     TransDiv Forty-Two, CAPT. A.R. Mack USN (17)
  • Following World War II USS Bracken was assigned to Occupation and China service in the Far East for the following periods:

    Navy Occupation Service Medal
    China Service Medal (extended)
    7 to 15 September 3 to 10 November 1945
    11 to 13 November 1945 

  • USS Bracken (APA-64) was assigned to Joint Task Force 1, Task Unit 1.2.6 (Target Vessel Group - Merchant Type Units - Transport Division 93 (TRANSDIV 93) for Operation Crossroads the atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll in July 1946 !--------------------------------------------------------------------->
  • Decommissioned at Bikini Atoll, 27 August 1946
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 5 April 1948
  • Final Disposition, scuttled off Kwajalein, 10 March 1948
    Specifications:
    Displacement 4,247 t.(lt), 7,080 t.(fl)
    Length 426'
    Beam 58'
    Draft 16'
    Speed 16.9 kts.
    Complement
    Officers 27
    Enlisted 293
    Troop Accommodations
    Officers 47
    Enlisted 802
    Largest Boom Capacity 15 t.
    Cargo Capacity 600 DWT
    non-refrigerated 85,000 cu. ft.
    Armament
    one single 5"/38 cal dual purpose gun mount
    four twin 40mm AA gun mounts
    ten single 20mm AA gun mounts
    Fuel Capacities
    NSFO 9,695 Bbls
    Diesel 375 Bbls
    Propulsion
    two Westinghouse steam turbines
    two Babcock & Wilcox D-type boilers, 450psi 750°
    Ships Service Generators
    two turbo-drive 250Kw, 450V A.C.
    one turbo-drive 150Kw, 450V A.C.
    two turbo-drive 100Kw 120V/240V D.C.
    two propellers, 6,000shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    Cecil
    100309607     		118k U.S. Navy attack transports in Pearl Harbor, as seen from the escort carrier USS Breton (CVE-23), 25 January 1945. The transports are right to left to right:
    USS Cecil (APA-96) (in camouflage scheme is measure 32, Design 3D)
    USS Bracken (APA-64) (in camouflage scheme measure 32, Design 4T) and
    USS Newberry (APA-158) (in Camouflage Measure 32, Design 4T).
    U.S. National Archives and Records Administration photo # 80-G-265012, a U.S. Navy photo now in the collections of the U.S. National Archives.    		 Robert Hurst
    Crittenden 127k Operation Crossroads prospective target ships and support ships at Pearl Harbor in a photo released, 27 February 1946.
    Ships present from front to rear include USS Crittenden (APA-77), USS Catron (APA-71), USS Bracken (APA-64), USS Burleson (APA-67), USS Gilliam (APA-57), USS Fallon (APA-81), one unidentified ship, USS Fillmore (APA-83), USS Kochab (AKS-6), USS Luna (AKS-7) and an unidentified tanker and liberty ship. Identifiable on the right are USS LSM-203 and USS LSM-465. Further in the background are a floating drydock and a merchant ship hulk with unidentified fittings forward of the bridge.
    US National Archives photo # 80-G-702126 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives.    		 US Naval Historical Center
    USS Bracken (APA-64)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LCDR. Lee, Charles S., USNR4 October 1944 - 27 August 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
    USS Bracken's shipboard newspaper "Now Hear This"
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Amphibious Ship Type Index Back To The Attack Transport (APA) Photo Index
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 26 May 2023