USS Telfair (APA-210) was a that saw service with the
US Navy in
World War II and the
Korean War. She remained in service through most of the 1950s and 1960s, where she participated in various peacetime operations.
Telfair was named after
Telfair County, Georgia which was itself named for
Edward Telfair, the second
Governor of that state. She was laid down under a
Maritime Commission contract (MCV hull 558) on 30 May 1944 at
Richmond, California, by
Permanente Metals Corporation; launched on 30 August 1944, and commissioned at
San Francisco on 31 October 1944, Comdr. Lyle O. Armel, USNR, in command.
Operational history
World War II
Following fitting out at
Oakland, California, and shakedown and amphibious training off
San Pedro, California, the attack transport returned via
San Diego to San Francisco to load troops and cargo for her first westward voyage.
On the second day of 1945, she sailed westward and reached
Pearl Harbor on the 8th. Nine days later,
Telfair resumed her voyage carrying elements of the
111th Infantry Division to the
Palaus for
garrison duty. She disembarked troops at
Peleliu between 30 January and 6 February and then continued on to the
Philippines, arriving at
Leyte on 9 February to prepare for the invasion of the
Ryūkyūs.
Invasion of Okinawa
In mid-March, the attack transport embarked elements of the Army's
77th Division and sortied from
San Pedro Bay with Task Group (TG) 51.1. The Western Islands Attack Group, as TG 51.1 was called, was...
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