USS ''Acubens'' (AKS-5) was an ''Acubens''-class

general stores issue ship General stores issue ship is a type of ship used by the United States Navy during World War II and for some time afterwards. The task of the general stores issue ship was to sail into non-combat, or rear, areas and disburse general stores, such a ...

commissioned by the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

for service in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, named after the star

Acubens Alpha Cancri (α Cancri, abbreviated Alpha Cnc, α Cnc), also named Acubens , is a star system in the constellation of Cancer (constellation), Cancer. Nomenclature ''α Cancri'' (Latinisation of names, Latinised to ''Alpha Cancri'') is t ...

, the alpha star in

Cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

. She was responsible for delivering and disbursing goods and equipment to locations in the war zone. ''Acubens'' was laid down under a

Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 195 ...

contract (MCE hull 1935) as the

Liberty ship Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Ma ...

''SS Jean Louis'' on 25 November 1943 by the Delta Shipbuilding Co.,

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, Louisiana. Launched on 8 January 1944; sponsored by Mrs. J. A. Farrington; acquired by the

on 9 February 1944; converted for naval service by Todd-Johnson Drydocks, Inc., New Orleans; and commissioned on 15 July 1944.

Service history

World War II Pacific operations

Following shakedown out of Norfolk, Virginia, and a short run to New York City, ''Acubens'' sailed for the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...

on 8 September and entered the Pacific. The Acubens was part of a convoy heading for New Guinea, but had to drop out because of a main bearing burning up. After repairs, the ship dropped anchor at Hollandia,

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...

, on 25 October and remained there until 10 November issuing stores to vessels of Task Force 76. On the 10th, ''Acubens'' transported a load of ammunition to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, Australia. The ship left Australia on 13 December bound for the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and reached

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has be ...

on the 21st. ''Acubens'' remained based in the Philippines for the duration of the war. Her routine consisted of loading stores at Milne Bay,

; proceeding to

Manus Island Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth-largest island in Papua New Guinea, with an area of , measuring around . Manus Island is covered in rugged jungles w ...

to load more provisions, then steaming back to the Philippines to distribute her cargo. ''Acubens'' departed the Philippines on 25 November 1945, bound via

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

for the California coast.

Decommissioning

The stores ship arrived at San Francisco on 22 December. Shortly thereafter, work was begun to prepare the ship for decommissioning. ''Acubens'' got underway on 18 January 1946 to return to Pearl Harbor, where she was to be laid up. ''Acubens'' was decommissioned on 11 March 1946. The ship was transferred to the

National Defense Reserve Fleet The National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF) consists of ships of the United States of America, mostly merchant vessels, that have been "mothballed" but can be activated within 20 to 120 days to provide shipping during national military emergencies ...

at Suisun Bay on 20 June 1947, struck from the

Naval Register A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval autho ...

on 17 July 1947 and sold for scrap on 14 October 1964.PMARS Ship Record Detail – ACUBENS (AKS-5)
/ref>

References

External links

* ttp://www.usmm.org/libertyships.html Liberty Ships built by the United States Maritime Commission in World War II
Acubens-AKS-5
{{DEFAULTSORT:Acubens (AKS-5) Liberty ships Acubens-class general stores issue ships Ships built in New Orleans 1944 ships World War II auxiliary ships of the United States