USS Chiwawa

USS Chiwawa at anchor off Okinawa on 7 September 1945
History
United States
Name	USS Chiwawa
Namesake	Chiwawa River in Washington
Port of registry	Cleveland, Ohio
Ordered	as T3-S-A1 tanker hull, MC hull 516
Builder	Bethlehem Hingham Shipyard
Laid down	as SS Samoset
Launched	25 June 1942
Sponsored by	Mrs. H. G. Smith
Commissioned	24 December 1942
Decommissioned	6 May 1946
Stricken	date unknown
Identification	IMO number: 5385625 MMSI number: 366904950 Callsign: WUR8857
Honors and awards	Two battle stars for her World War II patrols
Fate	Sold by the MARAD in 1961, currently in service as the MV Lee A. Tregurtha, a Great Lakes freighter for the Interlake Steamship Company
General characteristics
Class and type	Chiwawa-class oiler
Type	MARAD T3-S-A1
Tonnage	16,543 DWT
Displacement	21,077 tons
Length	501 ft 7.75 in (152.9017 m)
Beam	68 ft (21 m)
Draft	29 ft 10.5 in (9.106 m)
Depth	37 ft (11 m)
Installed power	7,000 shp (5,200 kW)
Propulsion	geared steam turbine single screw
Speed	15.3 knots (28.3 km/h)
Range	14,500 nmi (26,900 km; 16,700 mi)
Capacity	133,800 bbl (~18,250 t)
Complement	13 officers 200 enlisted
Armament	one 5 in (130 mm) dual purpose gun mount, four 3 in (76 mm) guns, four twin 40 mm gun mounts, four twin 20 mm gun mounts

USS Chiwawa (AO-68) is a former T3-S-A1 Kennebec-class oiler constructed for the United States Navy during World War II. She was the only U.S. Navy ship named for the Chiwawa River in Washington.

Chiwawa was launched 25 June 1942 by Bethlehem Steel Co., Sparrows Point, Maryland, under a Maritime Commission contract as SS Samoset, sponsored by Mrs. H. G. Smith, acquired by the Navy 24 December 1942 and commissioned the same day, reporting to the Atlantic Fleet.

Chiwawa was designated a T3-S-A1 design, where "T" stood for tanker, "3" meant longer than 500 feet (150 m), "S" stood for single-screw steam propulsion, and "A1" meant first design of its kind.^[1][2]