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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179)
ex
USAT James O'Hara (1946 - 1950)
USS James O'Hara (APA-90) (1943 - 1946)
USAT James O'Hara (1942 - 1943)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - India - Xray - Romeo NIXR

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Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons




Precedence of awards is top to bottom, from left to right
Top Row - China Service Medal (extended) - American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal (2)
Second Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (5)- World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
Third Row - National Defense Service Medal - Korean Service Medal (1) - Philippines Presidential Unit Citation
Fourth Row - Philippines Liberation Medal - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)

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During World War II USS James O'Hara was first assigned to the Europe-Africa-Middle East Theater and later to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
TransRon Eleven, COMO. D. W. Loomis USN (18);
TransDiv Thirty-Three, CAPT. S. M. Haight USN (18) and participated in the following campaigns:

Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaigns	Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns
Sicilian occupation, 10 July 1943	Marianas operation Capture and occupation of Saipan, 15 to 17 July and 23 to 24 June 1944
Salerno landings, 9 September 1943	Western Caroline Islands operation Capture and occupation of Southern Palau Islands, Anguar Island, 17 to 23 September 1944
	Leyte operation Leyte landings, San Ricardo, 20 October 1944
	Luzon operation Lingayen Gulf landings, 9 January 1945
	Iwo Jima operation Assault and occupation of Iwo Jima, 17 February to 5 March 1945

During the Korean War USNS James O'Hara participated in the following campaign:

Korean War Campaign
Campaign and Dates
Second Korean Winter, 7 to 18 November 1950

Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 12 January 1968, to Zidell Explorations Inc. Portland, OR. (PD-X-789) for $128,796.00, withdrawn from the Reserve Fleet at Olympia, 6 February 1968, scrapping completed, 6 December 1968

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Specifications:
Displacement 10,067 t.(lt) 14,700 t.(fl)
Length 492'
Beam 69' 6"
Draft 27' 3" (max)
Speed 18.6 kts. (trial)

Complement

Officers 58

Enlisted 480

Troop Accommodations

Officers150

Enlisted 2,050

Largest Boom Capacity 30 t.

Armament

one single 5"/38 cal dual purpose gun mount

two single 3"/50 cal dual purpose gun mounts

three twin 40mm AA gun mounts

sixteen 20mm AA gun mounts

Fuel Capacities

NSFO 11,935 Bbls

Diesel 375 Bbls

Propulsion

one Allis-Chalmers steam turbine engine

two Foster-Wheeler "D" type boilers, 520psi, 765°

double Falk Main Reduction Gears

four turbo-drive 300Kw 240V D.C. Ship's Service Generators

single propeller, 8,500shp

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Click On Image For Full Size Image	Size	Image Description		Contributed By
USS James O'Hara (APA-90)
	67k	Namesake James O'Hara, born in Ireland in 1752, came to Philadelphia, Pa., from England in 1772. The following year he moved to Pittsburgh and served as a frontier trader and government agent with the Indians in western Pennsylvania and western Virginia. After the start of the Revolutionary War, he enlisted as a private in a company of volunteers and was later elected captain. He journeyed west with a force under George Rogers Clark and participated in the struggle for control of the West. From 1781 to 1783 he served as assistant quartermaster for General Nathaniel Greene. After the war, he returned to Pittsburgh and became a successful businessman. President Washington appointed him Quartermaster General of the Army 19 April 1792. O'Hara resigned his appointment 1 May 1796. From 1796 to 1802 he filled many important government contracts as a businessman. Later he became a prominent manufacturer of glass, and he helped pioneer the cotton trade between the United States and England. In addition, he became a successful banker and an enterprising land speculator. O'Hara died 16 December 1819 in Pittsburgh. Photo from the U.S. Army Quartermasters Museum		Bill Gonyo
19-N-44834	79k	USS James O'Hara (APA-90) at anchor near New York Navy Yard, 1 May 1943, soon after commissioning. She and her sister initially carried three 3"/50 guns, one superfiring over the 5"/51 gun aft and two on the forward end of the long raised deck amidships. All four positions were originally designed to carry 5"/38 dual purpose guns. US National Archives, RG-19-LCM. Photo # 19-N-44834 and # 19-N-44838, courtesy Shipscribe.com		Robert Hurst
19-N-44838	82k
	77k	USS James O'Hara (APA-90) near New York Navy Yard, 1 May 1943, soon after commissioning. US National Archives, RG-19-LCM, Photo # 19-N-44838, a US Navy Bureau of Ships photo now in the collections of the US National Archives, courtesy Shipscribe.com.		Mike Green
	74k	USS James O'Hara (APA-90) underway, 2 May 1943, location unknown. She is newly converted, with triple Welin davits but as yet without her landing craft. US Navy photo from "US Amphibious Ships and Craft", by Norman Friedman.		Robert Hurst
	96k	USS James O'Hara (APA-90) photographed, 8 June 1943 from a blimp of squadron ZP-14, based at NAS Weeksville, N.C. US Navy photo # NH 98783 from the collection at the Naval Historical Center		US Naval Historical Center
100303013	306k	A troop train delivering soldiers of the US Army 45th Infantry Division at Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation, circa June 1943, for boarding of USS Thomas Jefferson (APA-30) and USS James O'Hara (APA-90) for overseas duty. The 45th Infantry Division saw extensive service in the Italian campaigns, southern France, the Rhineland and central Europe. National Archives Identifier 138925976, U.S. Army Signal Corps photos HR-229 S/S Pier; N/S HR-233, Hampton Roads Port of Embarkation, Newport News Virginia.		David Upton
100309024	279k
100301224	212k	U.S. Navy Task Force 85 (Center Force) en route to the landings at Scoglitti, Sicily, 8 July 1943. USS Leonard Wood (APA-12) is at left. The next transport astern of her is USS James O'Hara (APA-90). The destroyer in the center is not identified; USS Parker (DD-604), USS Kendrick (DD-612), USS Laub (DD-613), USS Mackenzie (DD-614), USS Cowie (DD-632), USS Doran (DD-634), and USS Earle (DD-635) were assigned to this force. Photographed from TF 85's flagship, USS Ancon (AGC-4). U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command. Photo # 80-G-215133		Robert Hurst
100309027	351k	USS James O'Hara (APA-90) at anchor in San Francisco Bay, CA., circa 1945-1946. U.S. Navy photo from the collections of the Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum		Darryl Baker
	82k	USS James O'Hara (APA-90) underway in San Francisco Bay, CA., in late 1945 or early 1946. US Navy photo # NH 98763 from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center. Donation of Boatswain's Mate First Class Robert G. Tippins, USN Ret, 2003.		Robert Hurst
	76k	USS James O'Hara (APA-90) at anchor, date and location unknown. US Navy photo.		Gerhard Mueller-Debus
USAT James O'Hara
	52k	USAT James O'Hara moored pierside, location unknown, soon after transfer to US Army, circa 5 April 1946.		Troopships of World War II
	112k	USAT James O'Hara warping into an Army pier at Seattle, WA., 8 October 1946. Her initial postwar conversion to a civilian manned Army transport was austere: she now has civilian-type lifeboats but retains her wartime Welin davits, and is disarmed but retains her gun emplacements on the bow and the forward end of the amidships superstructure. The Army tug is Lt. Col. Albert H. Barkley Photo courtesy Shipscribe.com		Mike Green
	172k	USAT James O'Hara the "flagship of the Seattle Port of Embarkation" circa late 1947. Still in her initial postwar configuration, she began her full conversion to a peacetime transport in February 1948. Some hull and rigging lines in the forward part of the ship have been crudely traced over on this print. Photo courtesy Shipscribe.com.		Robert Hurst
	71k	USAT James O'Hara moored pierside at Seattle, WA., circa 19 January 1948. US Navy photo # NH 98774 from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center		Robert Hurst
	96k	USAT James O'Hara under way, date and location unknown. Although this photo is labeled as USNS James O' Hara is clearly in US Army Transportation Corps colors. US Army photo.		Gerhard Mueller-Debus
USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179)
	63k	Stern view of USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) pierside, early 1950s, location unknown. Note she is still in ATS colors. US Navy photo # NH 98773 from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center.		Robert Hurst
	44k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) underway, post 1950		MSTS Society
	50k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) underway, 4 September 1951, location unknown. US Navy photo # NH 98779 from the Military Sealift Command Collection at the Naval Historical Center		US Naval Historical Center
	69k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) off Seattle, WA., 2 September 1952. US Navy photo # NH 98778 from the Military Sealift Command Collection at the Naval Historical Center		US Naval Historical Center
	57k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) underway, circa 1956, location unknown. US Navy photo # NH 98780 from the Military Sealift Command Collection at the Naval Historical Center		US Naval Historical Center
	99k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) underway, circa 1950s, location unknown. US Navy photo # NH 98781 from the Military Sealift Command Collection at the Naval Historical Center		US Naval Historical Center
	92k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) underway, early 1950s, location unknown. US Navy photo # NH 90559-A from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center.		Robert Hurst
	86k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) pierside, early 1950s, location unknown. US Navy photo # NH 98776 from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center.		Robert Hurst
	58k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) pierside, early 1950s, location unknown. US Navy photo # NH 98775 from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center.		Robert Hurst
	64k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) arriving at Pier 91, Seattle, WA., 4 April 1958, bringing servicemen and dependents from Whittier, AK. The tug assisting her appears to be Foss Maritime's tug Shannon Foss. USNS Marine Lynx (T-AP-194) is in the left background, undergoing inactivation for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Astoria, OR. US Navy photo # NH 98782 from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center		Robert Hurst
100309025	277k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) underway, date and location unknown. US Navy MSTS photo		Nicholas Tiberio
100309026	324k	USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179) underway, date and location unknown. US Navy MSTS photo		Nicholas Tiberio

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USS James O'Hara (APA-90) / USNS James O'Hara (T-AP-179)
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)

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Commanding Officers
01	LCDR. Allen, Charles Vern	26 April 1943 - 3 January 1944
02	CDR. Irish, Elijah Warriner, USN (USNA 1924)	3 January 1944 - 10 May 1945
03	CDR. Miller, Carson Rial, USN (USNA 1923)	10 May 1945 - 5 April 1946

Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves

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Crew Contact And Reunion Information
U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log

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Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
MARAD Vessel History Data Base
USS James O'Hara General Instructions - Exercise 4AP, 17 May 1943, Includes USS Andromeda (AKA-15)
JAMES 0'HARA "Troopships of World War II @copyRoland W. Charles, Published by US Army Transportation Association, Washington, D.C., April 1947

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Last Updated 20 October 2023