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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USCGC Monomoy (WAG-275)
ex
 USS Monomoy (AG-40) (1941 - 1943)

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from left to right
American Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal

USS Monomoy (AG-40) was manned by the US Coast Guard during World War II
Steel-hulled cargo ship:
  • Built in 1918 as SS Lake Arline (ID-4155) at Globe Shipbuilding Co., Duluth, MN.
  • Acquired by the US Navy as SS J. Floyd Massey, Jr., 15 September 1941, from Steel Products Transportation Co., Buffalo, N.Y
  • Renamed Monomoy, 15 October 1941
  • Converted for Naval service at Maryland Drydock Co., Baltimore, MD.
  • Commissioned, USS Monomoy (AG-40), 24 December 1941. with a Coast Guard crew
  • Decommissioned, 22 October 1943 and transferred to the Coast Guard
  • Recommissioned, USCGC Monomoy (WAG-275), 22 October 1943, LCDR
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 30 October 1943, LCDR. Emmanuel Desses USCG in command
  • Decommissioned by the Coast Guard, date unknown
  • Transferred to the Maritime Commission, 9 September 1946, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group, Lee Hall, VA.
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 22 December 1950, to Patapsco Scrap Co. for $65,090.00 (PD-X-502) in a two ship sale, withdrawn, 21 March 1951
    Specifications:
    Displacement 2,580 t.
    Length 261'
    Beam 43' 6"
    Draft 20' 3"
    Speed 10 kts.
    Compliment 58
    Armament
    one single 4"/50 gun mount
    four single .30 cal. machine guns
    two depth charge projectors
    Propulsion
    one triple expansion reciprocating steam engine
    single propeller, 1,200shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    USS Monomoy (AG-40)
    Monomoy
    094904004    		 299k SS J. Floyd Massey, Jr. at Maryland Drydock Co., Baltimore, MD. in September 1941 during fitting out for naval service as USS Monomoy (AG-40).
    Photo by Eliot Elisofon, Life Magazine. Used for educational and non-commercial purpose.     		John Chiquoine
    Monomoy 51k USS Monomoy (AG-40) near Baltimore, MD., circa December 1941 after completing conversion. As a weather reporting ship this vessel lost all of its cargo handling booms and most of its rig. The round structure aft was for inflating and launching weather balloons.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command. Photo No. 19-N-26273, courtesy Shipscribe.com.    		 Robert Hurst
    Monomoy 176k USS Monomoy (AG-40) in drydock, 27 August 1943, at Maryland Drydock Co., Baltimore, MD. Monomoy assigned to 1st Naval District at Boston, MA., and served as a weather ship from 1942 to 1943 before being transferred to the Coast Guard. Robert Hurst
    USCGC Monomoy (WAG-275)
    Monomoy 108k USCGC Monomoy (WAG-275) under way 16 October 1943 after completing conversion to an Armed Guard training ship. Her armament, very heavy for an auxiliary vessel, consisted of one 5"/38 in the after well deck, two 4"/50 side by side in the forward well deck, and two 3"/50, one forward and one aft. The bulwarks in her well decks have been cut down to deck level and replaced with railings.
    US Coast Guard Historian's Office photo.    		 Robert Hurst
    USS Monomoy (AG-40)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LCDR. Desses, Emmanuel, USCG27 December 1941 - 22 October 1943WAG-275
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler
    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 18 March 2022