Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS Black Warrior River (LFR-404)
ex
 USS Black Warrior River (LSMR-404) (1955 - 1969)
 USS LSM(R)-404 (1945 - 1955)

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons



Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - Combat Action Ribbon (retroactive, 13 - 17 September 1950)
Second Row - American Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - National Defense Service Medal
Bottom Row - Korean Service Medal (7) - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)
LSM(R)-401 Class Landing Ship Medium (Rocket);
  • Laid down, 6 January 1945, at Charleston Naval Yard, Charleston, S.C.
  • Launched, 25 January 1945
  • Commissioned USS LSM(R)-404, 25 April 1945, LTjg. John J.P. Ryan, USNR, in command
  • During the Korean War USS LSM(R)-404 assigned to LSMR Squadron Five and participated in the following campaigns:

    Korean War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    North Korean Aggression
    18 to 19 September 1951     		UN Summer-Fall Offensive
    17 to 25 November 1951
    Communist China Aggression
    10 to 24 December 1950
    3 to 14 January 1951     		Second Korean Winter
    30 November 1951 to 30 April 1952
    Inchon Landing
    13 to 17 September 1950     		Korea Defense, Summer-Fall
    1 May to 23 June 1952
    First U.N. Counter Offensive
    29 January to 11 February 1951     		 

  • Decommissioned, 10 November 1954, at Astoria OR
  • Laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Columbia River Group
  • Renamed USS Black Warrior River (LSM(R)-404, 1 October 1955
  • Reclassified Inshore Fire Support Ship (LFR-404), 1 January 1969
  • Struck from the Naval Register , 1 October 1958
  • USS LSM(R)-404 earned seven battle stars for Korean War service
  • Final Disposition, sold in 1959, to Marine Protein Inc., Panorama City, CA., renamed Cape Flattery and converted to a fish processing barge in 1962, scrapped, circa 1994.
    Specifications:
    Displacement
    light 758 t.
    attack 994 t.
    fully loaded 1,084 t.
    Length 203' 6" o.a.
    Beam 34' 6"
    Draft 7' 2' (lim)
    Speed 12.6 kts.
    Complement
    Officers 5
    Enlisted 133
    Armament
    one single 5"/38 dual purpose gun mount
    two twin 40mm gun mounts
    four twin 20mm gun mounts (after Korean War)
    ten twin tube continuous loading 5" spin stabilizer rocket launchers (two removed after Korean War)
    four 4.2" mortars (removed after Korean War)
    two .50 cal machine guns on the forecastle
    two .30 cal machine guns on the bridge wings.
    Armor 10-lb. STS on conning station, pilot-house, radio room, radar plot, and rocket control, 10-lb. ASPP around 40 and 20mm gun mounts and directors
    Fuel Capacity
    Diesel 1,225 Bbls
    Propulsion
    two General Motors 16-278A (non-reversing with airflex clutch) Diesel engines, direct drive with 1,440 BHP each @ 720rpm
    Ship's Service Generators
     four Diesel-drive 100Kw 450V A.C.
     two Diesel-drive 20Kw 120V D.C.
    twin screws 2,800 shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    USS Black Warrior River LSM(R)-404
    LSM(R)-404 65k USS LSM(R)-404 underway, date and location unknown. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM(R)-404 109k USS LSM(R)-404 in center, and USS Begor (APD-127) stand by as UN forces demolish Hungnam's port facilities at the conclusion of the evacuation, 24 December 1950.
    US National Archives photo # 80-G-426403, a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives    		 US Naval Historical Center
    Big Black River 79k USS LSM(R)-409, USS LSM(R)-412, USS LSM(R)-401, USS LSM(R)-403, USS LSM(R)-404 and LSM(R)-419 moored at Yokosuka, Japan, 1 May 1951
    US Navy photo.    		 Lewis Smith to the USS LSM / LSMR Association
    LSM(R)-404 76k USS LSM(R)-404 underway off San Diego, CA., April 1954.
    Photo by Oather Morper.    		 USS LSM / LSMR Association
    Commercial Service
    LSM(R)-404 38k Ex-Black Warrior River LSM(R)-404 in commercial service as MV Cape Flattery at Ensenada, Mexico, 1994. Warren Gilmour, GM2, USS LSM(R)-404, 26 January 1951 to 21 August 1954.
    LSM(R)-404 60k MV Cape Flattery at Ensenada, Mexico, 1994. Warren Gilmour, GM2, USS LSM(R)-404, 26 January 1951 to 21 August 1954.
    LSM(R)-404 103k MV Cape Flattery at Ensenada, Mexico, 1994. Warren Gilmour, GM2, USS LSM(R)-404, 26 January 1951 to 21 August 1954.
    USS LSM(R)-404 / USS Black Warrior River (LSMR-404) / USS Black Warrior River (LFR-404)
    Dictionary of American Navy Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LTjg. Ryan, John J. P., USNR25 April 1945 - December 1945
    02LTjg. Shook, Robert P., USNRDecember 1945 - May 1946
    03LT. Spadone, Leighton, USNMay 1946 - 1947
    04LT. Flanders, George Joseph Warren, USN1947 - December 1947
    05LT. Doran, Daniel O'Connell, USNDecember 1947 - ?
    06LT. Munroe Jr., William RobertKorea War
    07LT. Wrocklage, George Monroe, USN (USNA 1944)Korea War
    08LT. Gorton, Robert Judson, USN (USNA 1946)1953 - 10 November 1954
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    USS LSM-LSMR Association
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Amphibious Ship Type Index Back To The Landing Ship Medium (Rocket) LSM(R) Index Back To The Inshore Fire Support Ship Photo (LFR) Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 11 June 2021