USS Myers (original) (raw)

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For similarly named United States Navy ships, see USS Meyer.

USS Myers
History
United States
Name USS Myers
Namesake Machinist's Mate First Class Merton B. Myers (1921-1943), a U.S. Navy sailor and Navy Cross recipient
Builder Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc., Hingham, Massachusetts
Laid down 15 January 1944
Launched 15 February 1944
Sponsored by Mrs. Ralph W. Myers
Commissioned 26 March 1945
Decommissioned 13 January 1947
Reclassified From destroyer escort (DE-595) to high-speed transport (APD-105) 17 July 1944
Stricken 1 June 1960
Fate Sold to Colombia for use as a floating power station
Notes Laid down as _Rudderow_-class destroyer escort USS Myers (DE-595)
General characteristics
Class and type _Crosley_-class high speed transport
Displacement 2,130 long tons (2,164 t) full
Length 306 ft (93 m)
Beam 37 ft (11 m)
Draft 12 ft 7 in (3.84 m)
Speed 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph)
Troops 162
Complement 204
Armament 1 × [5 in (130 mm)](/wiki/5%22/38%5Fcaliber%5Fgun "5"/38 caliber gun") gun 6 × 40 mm guns 6 × 20 mm guns 2 × depth charge tracks

USS Myers (APD-105), ex-DE-595, was a United States Navy high-speed transport in commission from 1945 to 1947.

Merton Bernell Myers was born 15 January 1921 in Long Island City, New York. He enlisted in the Navy 23 August 1939 at Indianapolis, Indiana. As machinist’s mate first class, he was serving on USS Eberle when on 10 March 1943 his ship intercepted German blockade runner Karin in the South Atlantic. Myers volunteered for the boarding party which tried to save Karin from demolition charges set by her crew. All efforts were to no avail; after helping his shipmates to escape the sinking ship, Myers was killed in an explosion. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star.

Construction and commissioning

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Myers was laid down as the _Rudderow_-class destroyer escort USS Myers (DE-595) on 15 January 1944 by Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard, Inc., at Hingham, Massachusetts, and was launched on 15 February 1944, sponsored by Mrs. Ralph W. Myers, the mother of the ship's namesake, Machinist's Mate First Class Merton B. Myers. The ship was reclassified as a _Crosley_-class high-speed transport and redesignated APD-105 on 17 July 1944. After conversion to her new role, she was commissioned on 26 March 1945.

After shakedown off Cuba, Myers moved to Norfolk, Virginia, where she trained officers and men assigned to new high-speed transports. After a period of refresher training in the Caribbean, she proceeded to Newport, Rhode Island, to train prospective crews for new aircraft carriers and cruisers. She operated along the United States East Coast for the rest of her active career.

Decommissioning and disposal

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Myers was decommissioned on 13 January 1947 and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Green Cove Springs, Florida. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 June 1960 and subsequently sold to the government of Colombia for use as a floating power plant.