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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USS Jason (AV-2)

AV-2 - 1931-International Radio Call Sign:
Nan - Easy - Quack - Boy
 NEQB

ex
 USS Jason (AC-12) (1920 - 1930)
AC-12 - 1921-International Radio Call Sign:
Nan - Nan - Baker
 NNB

ex
 USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) (1913 - 1920)
Fuel Ship #12 - 1913-International Radio Call Sign:
Nan - Item - Cast
 NIC
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Mexican Service Medal - World War I Victory Medal (with Armed Guard clasp) - Yangtze Service Medal
Jason Class Collier:
  • Laid down, 20 March 1912, at Maryland Steel Co., Sparrows Point, MD.
  • Launched, 16 November 1912
  • Commissioned USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12), 26 June 1913
  • Designated USS Jason (AC-12), 17 July 1920
  • Reclassified Seaplane Tender USS Jason (AV-2), 21 January 1930
  • Decommissioned, 30 June 1932, at Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, WA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 19 May 1936
  • Sold 29 July 1936, to American Steam Ship Corp.
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping at Baltimore in 1948
    Specifications:
    Displacement 19,250 t.
    Length 536'
    Beam 65'
    Draft 27' 8"
    Speed 14.3 kts.
    AC Complement 82
    Armament four 4" gun mounts
    Propulsion coal fired steam turbine, single propeller
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Source
    USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) (AC-12)
    Jason
    09250872    		 768k
    Namesake
    Jason was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He was also the great-grandson of the messenger god Hermes, through his mother's side.
    Jason bringing Pelias the Golden Fleece; a winged victory prepares to crown him with a wreath. Side A from an Apulian red-figure calyx crater., circa 340 and circa 330 BC, Louvre Museum, Paris, France.    		 Tommy Trampp
    Jason 74k Jason (Fuel Ship #12) afloat just after launching, at Maryland Steel Co., Sparrows Point, Baltimore, MD., 16 November 1912. Tugs are en route to take her to the fitting out berth.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 52193, donation of Mrs. William E. Votruba, 1990    		 Robert Hurst
    Jason 86k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) underway soon after being completed, circa mid-1913.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 52193.    		 US Naval Historical Center
    Jason 164k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo    		 Jim Kurrasch
    Battleship Iowa Pacific Battleship Center
    Jason 338k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) alongside Pier B at the Key West Naval Station, FL., 1 October 1913. The motor boat Lilla is among the small craft in the foreground. Note the elaborate coal handling gear on this pier.
    Wright Langley Collection. Image from Flickr courtesy of Florida Keys Public Libraries photo # MM00038268x. and US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 52194.    		 Robert Hurst
    Jason 120k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) underway, 14 November 1914, location unknown.
    Library of Congress, LC-B2- 3291-3    		 Mike Green
    Jason 54k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) (the Christmas Ship). Jason arrives at Falmouth, England in November 1914 with a cargo of coal for the armored cruisers USS Tennessee and USS North Carolina and Christmas for the children of Europe. The presents were collected from all parts of the United States through the instrumentally of about 150 dally newspaper.
    US Navy photo from the "Army and Navy Register", January 2, 1915" Vol. LVII No. 1798.    		 Ron Reeves
    Jason 71k A halftone image of USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) taken prior to World War I, circa 1913-1917.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 79486, from the United States Navy Illustrated, published in New York, 1917.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason
    US National Archives Photo # 19-N-1809    		 170k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) at New York Navy Yard, 10 May 1918, loading aviation material for transportation to Inverness, Scotland. On deck are eight seaplane barges (YV), one on each coal hatch, and probably aircraft crates secured to the after superstructure. The coal holds are presumably full of additional aviation gear. The Navy's large colliers were often used to carry oversized or priority general cargoes to Europe during World War I. Note the 4"/50 gun on her forecastle.
    US National Archives, RG-19-N box 9. Photo #'s 19-N-1809, ex 7-21-19 and NH 19-N-1805, ex 7-21-15 US Navy Bureau of Ships photos now in the collections of the US National Archives, courtesy Shipscribe.com..    		 Mike Green
    Jason
    US National Archives Photo # 19-N-1805    		 209k
    Jason 73k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) under way probably in the Adriatic Sea, circa 1919.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 390 courtesy R.E. Wayne.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason 261k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) partial crew photo, date and location unknown. Kenneth Daigle
    Jason
    09021230    		 292k USS Jason (Fuel Ship #12) underway in the Panama Canal, May 1920.
    Post card image dated May 1920    		 David Wright
    Jason 100k USS Jason (AC-12) moored pierside at Pearl Harbor, TH., with a deckload of Douglas DT-2 aircraft (of Torpedo Squadron Two), 18 July 1923.
    Note the radio towers in the background.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 52195.    		 US Naval History an Heritage Command
    Jason 79k USS Jason (AC-12) with a Martin SC-2 aircraft (of Torpedo Squadron Four) on deck, during the middle or later 1920s. Note the aviation star insignia on USS Jason's bow.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 52197.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason 84k USS Jason (AC-12) moored pierside, location unknown, circa 1920s. Note the naval aviation symbol painted on her bow.
    US Navy photo    		 Robert M. Cieri
    Jason 119k USS Jason (AC-12) entering Gatun Lock, Panama Canal, with a deck load of seaplane barges, during the early 1920s. The barges are (from the front) YV-21, YV-23 and YV-24.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 78281, courtesy Donald M. McPherson, 1973.    		 US Naval History and Her3itage Command
    Jason 241k Aerial view of USS Jason (AC-12) and the empty USS Dewey (YFD-1) Drydock in the harbor of Olongapo Naval Station in the Philippines, 23 October 1928.
    US National Archives photo from group 19-LC-19C cataloged under National Archives Identifier (NAID) 512913.    		 Robert Hurst
    Jason 68k USS Jason (AC-12) or USS Orion (AC-11) at a Caribbean area base, probably the Coco Solo Submarine Base, Panama Canal Zone, circa the mid-1920s. USS O-2 (SS-63) is at right.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 100770, courtesy Paul H. Silverstone, 1986.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason 71k USS Jason (AC-12) at Coco Solo, Panama Canal Zone, circa 1924. Several submarines are in the foreground, including from (left to right):
    USS S-19 (SS-124);
    USS O-9 (SS-70);
    USS R-26 (SS-103) ---probably -- and
    USS O-2 (SS-63).
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 102780, courtesy of Chief Boatswain's Mate George Behrens, USN, (Retired), 1974.    		 Robert Hurst
    Jason 493k USS Jason (AC-12) Photo and caption from "The Evening Star. Washington, D.C. Monday, December 6, 1920"
    "NAVAL SHIP ENCOUNTERS SOME ROUGH GOING ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD. An unusual marine photo, showing the U.S.S Jason, one of the Navy's fuel ships, tilting at a sharp angle as she rides over a huge wave on a stormy day in the Pacific."
    Photo © Underwood & Underwood    		 Michael Mohl
    USS Jason (AV-2)
    Jason 153k USS Jason (AV-2)'s well deck, port side looking forward, in Far Eastern waters, circa 1931-1932. Planes on deck are Martin T4M-1s of Torpedo Squadron Five.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 94175, collection of Lieutenant Oscar W. Levy, USN (Supply Corps), (Retired).    		 Robert Hurst
    Jason 101k USS Jason is off in the left distance as a Vought O2U-3 or O2U-4 Corsair float plane of Scouting Squadron Eleven is catapulted from USS Houston (CA-30), in Far Eastern waters, circa 1931-1932.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 94188, collection of Lieutenant Oscar W. Levy, USN (Supply Corps), (Retired).    		 Robert Hurst
    Jason 102k USS Jason (AV-2) in Far Eastern waters, circa 1931-1932. She has two Martin T4M-1s of Torpedo Squadron Five on board.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 94178, collection of LT. Oscar W. Levy, USN (SC), (Ret.).    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason 121k A Vought O2U "Corsair" float plane flies over the Cavite Navy Yard, Philippine Islands, circa 1930. The seaplane tender USS Jason (AV-2) is docked at the yard, directly below the plane. Sangley Point Naval Radio Station is in the background.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 52196.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason 73k USS Jason (AV-2) in USS Dewey (YFD-1) Drydock, at Olongapo, Philippine Islands, 8 March 1932.
    US National Archives photo # 80-CF-22672-3 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason 112k USS Jason (AV-2) in USS Dewey (YFD-1) Drydock, at Olongapo, Philippine Islands, 9 March 1932. USS Canopus (AS-9) is in the upper right, with four submarines moored alongside. The outboard submarine is USS S-38 (SS-143).
    US National Archives photo # 80-CF-22672-1 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jason
    09021211    		 194k USS Jason (AV-2) coaling from barge YC-479 (or YC-473 ?) at Pearl Harbor, H.T., 2 May 1932, just before she made her final voyage to the U.S. West Coast. Several Martin T4M-1 torpedo planes are on her deck, amidships.
    US National Archive photo # 80-G-179334 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives.    		 Rick Davis
    CV-3 Saratoga 134k Identifiable ships in this photo possibly at Puget Sound circa 1933 are, from left to right: U.S. Crane Ship No. 1, ex-USS Kearsarge (BB-5); seaplane tender USS Jason (AV-2); one of the Colorado-class battleships, possibly USS West Virginia (BB-48), in the dry dock; and a Pennsylvania-class battleship along the pier. The aircraft carrier in the photo is USS Saratoga (CV-3). Note the "SARA" on the flight deck aft. US Navy photo courtesy of Pieter Bakels.
    Photo and partial text courtesy of Chris Hoehn and David C. Nilsen
    Merchant Service
    Jason 158k Ex-USS Jason (AV-2) in merchant service as SS Jason photographed, 26 May 1943 by a blimp based at NAS Weeksville, N.C, after her conversion to a commercial bulk carrier. Her naval coaling gear has been replaced with a modern self-loader, but the overall layout of the Navy collier remains, including the bridge forward and twin smokestacks.
    US National Archives, RG-80-G, Photo # 80-G-68138, a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives, courtesy Shipscribe.com.    		 Mike Green
    Jason
    09021228    		 214k USAAF recognition slide of SS Jason, circa 1942. David Wright
    Jason
    09021229    		 237k SS Jason, underway, 14 March 1943, location unknown.
    U.S. Coast Guard photo.    		 U.S. Maritime Administration
    USS Jason (AC-12 / AV-2)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01CAPT. Whitton, Arthur Marton, USNRF26 June 1913 - 30 August 1913Collier No. 12
    02LCDR. Courtney, Charles Edward, USN (1899) :RADM30 August 1913 - 17 October 1915Collier No. 12
    03MASTER Meriwether, Henry Thomas, (Naval Auxiliary Service)17 October 1915 - 6 February 1917Collier No. 12
    04LCDR. Meriwether, Henry Thomas, USNRF6 February 1917 - 10 February 1920AC-12
    06LCDR. Flanagan, Martin Joseph, USNRF10 February 1920 - 22 January 1922AC-12
    06LCDR. Chick, Harry Leslie, USNRF22 January 1922 - 10 April 1922AC-12
    07LCDR. Flannagan, Martin Joseph, USNRF10 April 1922 - 29 December 1922AC-12
    08CDR. Mallison, William Thomas, USN (1907)29 December 1922 - 1 December 1924AC-12
    09CDR. Ritter, Harold Hofmann, USN (1907)1 December 1924 - 20 June 1925AC-12
    10CDR. Frederick, Ernest, USN (1903)20 June 1925 - 20 June 1926AC-12
    11CDR. Frellsen, Raymond Foss, USN (1906)20 June 1926 - 9 January 1928AC-12
    12CDR. Turner, Richmond Kelly, USN (1908) :ADM9 January 1928 - 20 April 1929AC-12
    13CAPT. Bristol Jr., Arthur Mark LeRoy (Roy), USN (1906) :VADM20 April 1929 - 10 December 1929AC-12
    15LCDR. Grayson, Robert Houston, USN (1913)10 December 1929 - 5 January 1930AC-12
    15CDR. Thomas, Raymond Gaudenz, USN (1908)05 January 1930 - 10 March 1931AC-12
    16LCDR. Scott, Norman, USN (1911) :RADM10 March 1931 - 21 July 1931AV-2
    17LCDR. Price, John Dale, USN (1916) :VADM21 July 1931 - 9 September 1931AV-2
    18LCDR. McCord, Charles Graham, USN (1911)9 September 1931 - 20 November 1931AV-2
    19CDR. McWhorter, Charles Stakely, USN (1906)20 November 1931 - 21 April 1932AV-2
    20LCDR. Burks, Horace Eliott, USN21 April 1932 - 30 June 1932AV-2
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
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    Last Updated 2 June 2023