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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USNS General W. M. Black (T-AP-135)
ex
 USAT General W. M. Black (1946 - 1950)
 USS General W. M. Black (AP-135) (1945 - 1946)


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Juliet - Bravo - Sierra
 NJBS
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons



Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal
Second Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - National Defense Service Medal
Third Row - Korean Service Medal (6) - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)

USS General W. M. Black (AP-135) was manned by the US Coast Guard during World War II
General G. O. Squier Class Transport
  • Laid down, 26 November 1942, as Maritime Commission type (C4-S-A1) hull, under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 658) at Kaiser Shipbuilding Corp., Yard No. 3, Richmond, CA.
  • Launched, 23 July 1943
  • Acquired by the Navy, 26 January 1944
  • Fitted out as a Naval Transport at Matson Navigation Co., San Francisco, CA.
  • Commissioned USS General W. M. Black (AP-135), 24 February 1944, at San Francisco, CAPT. John. P. Murray Jr., USCG in command
  • During World War II USS General W. M. Black transported passengers in both the Asiatic-Pacific and the Europe-Africa-Middle East Theaters
  • Decommissioned, 28 February 1946
  • Transferred, 28 February 1946, to the US Army Transportation Service, commissioned USAT General W. M. Black
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 12 March 1946
  • Reacquired (Title transfer) by the US Navy, 1 March 1950
  • Assigned to the Military Sea Transport Service (MSTS) and placed in service as USNS General W. M. Black (T-AP-135)
  • During the Korean War General W. M. Black (T-AP-135) participated in the following campaigns:

    Korean War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    Communist China Spring Offensive
    9 to 10 May 1951
    20 to 21 May 1951     		Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952
    7 to 8 September 1952
    23 to 24 October 1952
    UN Summer-Fall Offensive
    4 to 6 August 1951
    8 to 9 August 1951
    25 to 26 September 1951     		Third Korean Winger
    24 to 25 February 1953
    13 to 14 March 1953
    Second Korean Winter
    17 to 18 January 1952
    4 to5 March 1952
    18 to 21 April 1952     		Korean Summer-Fall 1953
    29 May 1953
    14 July 1953

  • Declared surplus and placed out of service, 26 August 1955
  • Struck from the Naval Register, date unknown
  • USS General W. M. Black earned six battle stars for Korean War service
  • Transferred, 28 August 1955, to the Maritime Administration (MARAD) for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, Benecia, CA.
  • Merchant Service
    Sold by the Maritime Administration MARAD for merchant service, 13 April 1967, to Central Gulf Steamship Corp. (Exchange Program)
    Withdrawn from the Reserve Fleet anchorage, 22 April 1967
    Renamed SS Green Forest in May 1967
    Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 3 January 1980, to Sing Cheng Yung Steel Co., Ltd., Taiwan
    Specifications:
    Displacement 9,950 t.(lt) 17,250 t.(fl)
    Length 522' 10"
    Beam 71' 6"
    Draft 26' 6"
    Speed 16.5kts.
    Complement
    Officers 49
    Enlisted 451
    Troop Capacity
    Officers 230
    Enlisted 3,300
    Cargo Capacity 1,900 DWT
    non-refrigerated 79,000 Cu ft.
    Armament
    four single 5"/38 cal dual purpose gun mounts
    four twin 1.1" gun mounts (replaced by two twin 40mm AA gun mounts)
    sixteen single 20mm AA gun mounts
    Fuel Capacity
    NSFO 13,300 Bbls
    Propulsion
    one Westinghouse geared turbine
    two Babcock and Wilcox header-type boilers, 465psi 765°
    double Falk Main Reduction Gear
    three 400Kw 240V D.C. Ship' Service Generators
    single propeller, 9,000shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    USS General W. M. Black (AP-135)
    General W.R. Black 133k
    Namesake

    William Murray Black, born in Lancaster County, Pa., 8 December 1855, graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1877 and entered the Corps of Engineers. He advanced steadily and was appointed Chief of Engineers for the District of Columbia in 1897. During and after the Spanish-American War, he served as Commander, Department of Engineers, in 'both Cuba and Puerto Rico. In 1906 he was appointed Senior Member of the board for raising the famous battleship Maine, and in 1909 he was promoted to Brigadier General to become Chief of Engineers, Department of the East. In 1916 he was appointed Chief of Engineers, United States Army. His accomplishments were many, including river and harbor improvements in Florida ports and fortification and railroad construction in Cuba. General Black retired a Major General 31 October 1919 and died in Washington, D.C., 24 September 1933.
    Digital ID: chi 3b34317 Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs    		 Bill Gonyo
    General W.R. Black 90k Aft plan view of USS General W. M. Black (AP-135) undergoing fitting out for Naval service at the Matson Navigation Co., San Francisco, CA., docks, 4 March 1944.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # 1480-44.    		 Darryl Baker
    General W.R. Black 91k Forward plan view of USS General W. M. Black (AP-135) undergoing fitting out for Naval service at the Matson Navigation Co., San Francisco, CA., docks, 4 March 1944.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # 1481-44.    		 Darryl Baker
    General W.R. Black 71k Broadside view of USS General W. M. Black (AP-135) off San Francisco, CA., 4 March 1944.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # 1485-44.    		 Darryl Baker
    USAT General W. M. Black
    General W M Black 194k USAT General W. M. Black arriving at Fort Mason in San Francisco Bay, circa 1950. The Army tug alongside is Major Ralph Bogle (LT-3). Note Alcatraz Island and a San Francisco Bay ferry in the the background. Brian Miller
    General W M Black 205k
    General W M Black 224k
    General W M Black 295k
    General W M Black 312k
    General W M Black 275k
    General W M Black 40k USAT General W. M. Black under way, date and location unknown. Hyperwar US Navy in WWII
    Merchant Service Central Gulf Lines
    General W.R. Black 170k Ex-USS General W. M. Black (AP-135) in the livery of the Central Gulf Lines Corp. as SS Green Forest under way in the New Waterway, Netherlands, circa 1970s.
    Photo negative owned by Keith Wood, with permission    		 Chris Howell
    General W.R. Black 305k SS Green Forest anchored off Da Nang, South Vietnam in 1969.
    Photo by C Wm. Schell.    		 Gerhard Muller-Debus
    USS General W. M. Black (AP-135 / USAT / T-AP-136)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01CAPT. Murray Jr., John Patrick, USCG24 February 1944 - 10 June 1944
    02CAPT. Jacobs, Donald Gleason, USCG10 June 1944 - 28 February 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
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 8 September 2017