User:Knilsen

My father, Cecil L. Hitchcock, was the commander of a WW II cargo ship in the South Pacific. I have documents and photos that relate to his service on this ship, the USS Glacier (AK-183). The article below was probably written to be sent to the hometown newspapers of the crew members. Would this be the sort of thing to put on Wikipedia, perhaps linked to the ship's page? (I'm afraid I've messed up the ship's page and I don't know how to fix it. Sorry!) History of the U.S.S. GLACIER (AK-183) by Cmdr. C. L. Hitchcock

The U.S.S. GLACIER, named for Glacier County, Montana, is a naval cargo ship that was placed in commission, 14 April 1945, at Houston, Texas. She was originally built for the U.S. Maritime Commission by the Walter Butler Shipbuilding Company of Superior, Wisconsin. In order to get this deep draft vessel from the Great Lakes to the ocean by means of the Mississippi River, it was necessary to fit buoyant pontoons to her hull, and to remove masts and most of the deck house in order for the ship to pass under bridges. After a brief period of shakedown training in April 1945 at Galveston, Texas, the GLACIER and her crew were pronounced ready for cargo and defensive operations by the inspection officers and the Commanding Officer, Lt. Comdr. C. L. Hitchcock, USNR of Gilman, Illinois. The Ship was then assigned to the Pacific Theater of Operations under the Administrative control of the Commander, Service Force, United States Pacific Fleet. The GLACIER then proudly sailed with a self sufficiency in fuel that would take her around the world and with enough food in her own lockers to remain at sea for months at a time.

The mission of the AK-183, the Navy designating symbol for the ship, was to support the Pacific Island bases of the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps with the materials of war in amounts needed, when needed, and where needed as determined by the logistics experts whose brains fathomed problems that were almost as difficult of solution as Einstein's theory of relativity.

The GLACIER was an important part of the gigantic, but little heard of service fleet that accumulated on the stepping stone bases to Japan, the overwhelming stockpiles of war supplies that were to bulwark the attacking forces in successive drives and the all important final decisive blow against the diabolical and fanatical enemy.

In the GLACIER'S task to transport supplies to the staging areas, supply bases, and stepping stone island in the Hawaiian, Gilbert, Marshall, and Marianas groups of islands, the ship's travels reached practically the span of the Pacific which at its maximum is 12,000 land miles in extent, or the equivalent of 3.5 trips from New York to Liverpool.

While the restless GLACIER was equipped with fire power to defend herself, yet her main armament were the fourteen 50 foot barrel-like booms of 1.5, 5, 20, and 30 tons capacity which spewed forth from her two freight train capacity holds Quonset huts, foodstuffs (frozen and dry), spare parts, ammunition, and 500 other separate types of material all of which were as important in the final victory over the enemy as the action of the more glamorous and spectacular combatant ships. Take for instance a look at the cargo manifests where it is discovered that items effecting vital morale had a top priority in space. One shipment of $25,000,000 in U.S. small denomination paper currency, enough to fill a box car, was received by as much acclaim as was the news of a victory at sea. The Navy realized that regular pay days, even if there was no place to spend the money, were one of those very important intangible factors that build up and maintain the will-to-win spirit of the men.

Following V-J Day the never idle GLACIER aided in the redistribution of cargo incident to the occupational activities, demobilization, and the roll-up of bases that were not to be retained in the post war defense periphery.

On 12 December 1945 the personnel of the U.S.S GLACIER received with mixed feelings the news of the order to return the ship to New Orleans, Louisiana for decommissioning. All men with high discharge points were happy to head for Uncle Sugar as the U.S.A. is affectionately called in Navy vernacular. Yet, in recollections arising over the never empty Navy coffee (java) cup or from the barter and repartee of a game of Acey-Ducey, all felt in some way that de-commissioning was somewhat of an inglorious finale for a ship that had produced results. It was natural for the men to feel a certain amount of disappointment at the ship's fate for certainly the crew had a moral proprietary interest arising out of satisfaction of a job well done.

On 13 December 1945 the Commanding Officer ordered the ship to sea from Tanapag Harbor, Saipan, Marianas Islands. The course of 080 was then set on the first leg of a great circle course to the Panama Canal. The next day, while still 40 to 50 days from home, it was noted that those liberty dress blue uniforms were being broken out from the bottom of sea bags to be made spic and span for a regal and happy entry on U.S. soil.

And so ends the saga of the U.S.S. GLACIER (AK-183).