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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USAHS Chateau Thierry
ex
 USS Chateau Thierry (AP-31) (1941 - 1944)
 USAT Chateau Thierry (1921 - 1941)


1941 International Radio Call Sign:
Nan - William - King - Zulu
 NWKZ
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Defense Service Medal (with "A" device)
Bottom Row - American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal (1) - World War II Victory Medal
  • Laid down in 1921 at American International Shipbuilding Corp., Hog Island, PA.
  • Launched 24 December 1919
  • Delivered to the U.S. Shipping Board 11 November 1920
  • Transferred to the War Department 21 February 1921, assigned to the U.S. Army Transport Service
  • Named in honor of the U.S. Army’s participation in the Battle of Chateau Thierry in World War I
  • Assigned to the A.T.S. Pacific Fleet with home port at Fort Mason, CA.
  • Commissioned USAT Chateau Thierry, 26 November 1921 Performed her first voyage for the Army Transport Service 10 February 1922
  • USAT Chateau Thierry generally serviced the San Francisco—Honolulu route with occasional voyages to the New York Port of Embarkation at the Army Supply Base, Brooklyn
  • Laid up 23 September 1923 at San Francisco
  • Recommissioned 10 July 1924
  • Transported the 213th Coast Artillery from Philadelphia, PA to Fort Monroe, VA in July 1926 for that regiment’s participation in annual summer training
  • Assigned to the A.T.S. Atlantic Fleet in 1932 with home port at Army Supply Base, Brooklyn
  • Assigned to service the New York—San Juan—Panama route
  • Decommissioned, 20 March 1939 and Laid up in the Maritime Commission Reserve Fleet, concurrently, the crew was transferred to the USAT Hunter Liggett
  • Renovated at Bethlehem Steel Company at New York during October 1939-February 1940 to increase the ship’s troop capacity
  • Recommissioned in February 1940 and resumed the New York—San Juan—Panama route
  • Decommissioned and transferred to the US Navy, 15 July 1941
  • Commissioned USS Chateau Thierry (AP-31), 6 August 1941, LCDR. John K. Davis in command
  • During World War II USS Chateau Thierry (AP-31) was assigned to the Europe-Africa-Middle East Theater and participated in the following campaign:

    Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign
    Sicilian occupation, 9 to 15 July 1943
  • Decommissioned, 9 September 1943, at Boston, MA.
  • Returned to the US Army for conversion to a Hospital Ship
  • Recommissioned USAHS Chateau Thierry, 5 March 1944
  • Decommissioned, date unknown
  • Struck from the Naval Register, date unknown
  • USS Chateau Thierry earned one battle star for World War II service
  • Transferred to the Maritime Commission, 29 August 1946, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Olympia, WA. Group
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 17 June 1957, to Zidell Explorations Inc., Portland, OR.
    Specifications:
    Displacement 7,555 gt.
    Length 448'
    Beam 58'
    Draft 28'
    Speed 15 kts
    Complement 253
    Hospital Ship
    Patient Capacity 508
    Transport
    Armament
    one single 5"/38 dual purpose gun mount
    four single 3"/50 dual purpose gun mounts
    eight .50 cal machine guns
    Propulsion, steam turbine
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    USAT Chateau Thierry
    Chateau Thierry
    092203123    		 817k
    Namesake
    Chateau Thierry - The Battle of Château-Thierry was fought on 31 May 1918 and was one of the first actions of the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) under General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing. It was a battle in World War I as part of the Second Battle of the Marne, initially prompted by a German Spring Offensive. German and local actions at Château-Thierry recommenced on 31 May to 22 July 1918, against the AEF, an American Expeditionary Force, consisting of troops from both the United States Army and Marine Corps units. These units were the newest troops on the front in France and just barely out of training.
    Postcard depicting the World War I Battle of Château-Thierry, published by E.B.Remenson, Chicago, 1919.     		Tommy Trampp
    Chateau Thierry
    092203127    		 172k USAT Chateau Thierry moored pierside while coaling circa 1919, location unknown.
    		John Spivey
    Chateau Thierry 58k USAT Chateau Thierry in harbor, circa the 1920s, possibly soon after completion.
    US Navy photo courtesy Shipscribe.com    		 Mike Green
    Chateau Thierry
    092203125    		 101k Undated RPPC post cards of USAT Chateau Thierry underway the Panama Canal, Miraflores Locks, probably during the 1930s. David Wright
    Chateau Thierry
    092203126    		 219k
    Chateau Thierry 134k USAT Chateau Thierry underway in harbor, circa the 1930s. The original image is printed on a postcard (AZO stock) that was mailed at Brooklyn, New York, 29 July 1936.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 105087. Donation of Charles R. Haberlein Jr., 2007.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Chateau Thierry 103k USAT Chateau Thierry underway in the Panama Canal, entering Miraflores Locks in 1936. Tommy Trampp
    Chateau Thierry 257k USAT Chateau Thierry underway in the Panama Canal in 1936. Tommy Trampp
    Chateau Thierry 99k USAT Chateau Thierry as seen from a soldier's album covering the period April 1938 to August 1940 and captioned "U.S. Army transport at Hilo," Hawaii.
    US Navy photo courtesy Shipscribe.com    		 Mike Green
    Hunter Liggett
    100301433
    NAID 68145029    		 2403k Army Base, Brooklyn, 27 May 1939: USAT Republic (left foreground) with an unidentified Army transport ahead of her;
    USAT Hunter Leggett (right, nearest camera); and possibly USAT Chateau Thierry (middle, background) moored alongside the Munson Steamship Line’s SS Western World undergoing conversion to USAT Leonard Wood.
    US Amry photo from the US National Archives and Records Administration Identified: NAID: 68145029 Local ID: 18-AA-85-25 and NAID: 68145031 Local ID: 18-AA-85-2    		 Theodore Leverett
    Hunter Liggett
    100301434
    NAID 68145031    		 3468k
    Hunter Liggett 107k USAT Hunter Liggett underway, date and place unknown. Richard Leonhardt
    Chateau Thierry 131k USAT Chateau Thierry in harbor, circa 1940-1941. Note her after kingpost pair have been removed.
    US Navy photo courtesy Shipscribe.com    		 Mike Green
    Chateau Thierry 180k USAT Chateau Thierry in harbor, circa 1940-1941. Brian Miller
    Chateau Thierry 292k USAT Chateau Thierry moored pierside, date and location unknown. Hank Zaletel
    Chateau Thierry
    092203124    		 141k USAT Chateau Thierry arriving/departing with Army troops on board, date and location unknown. Hank Zaletel
    Chateau Thierry 36k USAT Chateau Thierry Post Exchange Honolulu Harbor Hawaii match cover. Tommy Trampp
    USS Chateau Thierry (AP-31)
    Chateau Thierry
    RG-19-LCM, Photo No. NH 34587    		 95k USS Chateau Thierry (AP-31) near New York Navy Yard, 19 September 1942. Note the ship has lost her foremost goal post mast.
    US National Archives Photo #'s
    U.S. National Archives, RG-19-LCM, Photo No. NH 34587 and
    U.S. National Archives, RG-19-LCM, Photo No. NH 34588, US Navy Bureau of Ships photos now in the collections of the US National Archives, courtesy Shipscribe.com.    		 Mike Green
    Chateau Thierry
    RG-19-LCM, Photo No. NH 34588    		 110k
    Chateau Thierry 85k USS Chateau Thierry (AP-31) underway, date and location unknown. She is equipped with APA-type triple Welin davits, although not with landing craft. She helped carry the floating reserve during the Sicilian invasion, after which she was returned to the Army.
    US Navy photo from "US Amphibious Ships and Craft", by Norman Friedman.    		 Robert Hurst
    USAHS Chateau Thierry
    Chateau Thierry 239k USAHS Chateau Thierry arriving at Army Base, South Boston, MA. in March 1944.
    US Army Signal Corps Photo # SC 191670    		 Dave Kerr
    Chateau Thierry 223k US Army nurses, LT. Marie Howarth (left) and LT. Gertrude E. Welsh (right) make up hospital beds in one of the wards aboard USAHS Chateau Thierry, while the ship was docked at Army Base South Boston in March 1944,
    US Army Signal Corps Photo # SC 191669    		 Dave Kerr
    USAT Chateau Thierry / USS Chateau Thierry (AP-31) / USAHS Chateau Thierry
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS) and
    US Army Order of Battle 1919-1941 Vol. 4
    US Army Ship's Masters
    01CAPT. Bartlett, Robert A., A.T.S.8 December 1920 - 20 December 1920
    02CHIEF OFFICER Reppa, Frank J., A.T.S.20 December 1920 - 3 January 1921
    03CAPT. Rague, W. J., A.T.S.3 January 1921 - 14 April 1921
    04CAPT. Allen, Jeremiah S., A.T.S.15 April 192 1 -20 February 1922
    05CAPT. Parsons, H., A.T.S.April 1922 - 8 May 1922
    06CAPT. Christensen, B., A.T.S.8 May 1922 - 4 July 1922
    07CAPT. McLellan, Edgar S., A.T.S.4 July 1922 - 8 December 1922
    08CAPT. Williams, Charles F., A.T.S.8 December 1922 - 22 December 1922
    09CAPT. Hitchcock, James C., A.T.S.22 December 1922 - 31 July 1930
    10CHIEF OFFICER Haggerty, F.J., A.T.S.31 July - 30-September 1930
    11CAPT. Torning, Bror E., A.T.S.September 1930 - June 1935
    12UnknownJune 1935 - January 1939
    13CAPT. Fordyce, Lyle C., A.T.S.January 1939 - 20 March 1939
     Decommissioned20 March 1939 - February 1940
    14UnknownFebruary 1940 -15 July 1941
    US Navy Commanding Officers
    01LCDR. Davis, John Kenneth6 August 1941 - 1943
    02CDR. Cloud, Benjamin Watkins1943 - 9 September 1943
    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 US Army Transport Photo Index Back To The US Navy Transport (AP) Photo Index Back To The US Army Hospital Ship Photo Index
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    Last Updated 18 April 2025