USS ''Lehigh'' (AK-192) was an Alamosa class cargo ship that was constructed by the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during the closing period of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. She was declared excess-to-needs and returned to the

United States Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission 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, 1950. The co ...

shortly after commissioning.

Construction

The second ship to be so named by the Navy, ''Lehigh'' was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract, MC hull 2123, by Walter Butler Shipbuilding Co.,

Superior, Wisconsin Superior (; ) is a city in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 26,751 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located at the western end of Lake Superior in northwestern Wisconsin, the city l ...

, 8 June 1944; launched 25 November 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Stanley Butler; acquired by the Navy 30 July 1945; placed in service the same day for ferrying from

Beaumont, Texas Beaumont is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, located in Southeast Texas on the Neches River about east of Houston (city ...

, to

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal resort town, resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island (Texas), Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a pop ...

; placed out of service on the 31st; and commissioned at

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

13 September 1945.

Post-war decommissioning

Because of the reduced need for cargo ships following World War II, ''Lehigh'' decommissioned 6 November 1945 and was turned over to the

War Shipping Administration The War Shipping Administration (WSA) was a World War II emergency war agency of the US government, tasked to purchase and operate the civilian shipping tonnage the United States needed for fighting the war. Both shipbuilding under the Maritime C ...

(WSA) the same day, and her name was reverted to ''Coastal Expounder''.

Merchant service

''Coastal Expounder'' was used by several shipping companies from 1945–1947, when she was placed in the reserve fleet before being transferred then sold to

Lloyd Brasileiro Companhia de Navegação Lloyd Brasileiro (), usually just called Lloyd Brasileiro, Lóide or Lloydbrás, was a Brazilian shipping company founded on 19 February 1894. It became the only major shipping company in South America, in particular by ...

, Patrimônio Nicional, of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. On 7 March 1947, she was sold for $693,862 and renamed ''Rio Solimões''. She was scrapped in 1969.

Notes

;Citations

Bibliography

Online resources * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lehigh (AK-192) Alamosa-class cargo ships Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Ships built in Superior, Wisconsin 1944 ships World War II auxiliary ships of the United States