Menifee (APA 202) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 19 text:

b X-

Page 18 text:

[BUILDING THE MENIFEE Boilers- they make her go Launching day. The stern In 1944, the production magic of Kaiser ' s ship- yards on the West Coast was turned to the building of assault transports. U. S. Pacific forces were bringing the war against Japan to a climax when Kaiser yards at Vancouver, Wash., Port- land, Ore., and Richmond, Calif., started deliv- ering APfl ' s to the Navy for the final assault on the Japanese home islands. The U.S.S. Menifee (flPfl 202) had her begin- ning 21 July when her keel went down in the Vancouver yard. Due to hurry-up Kaiser meth- ods, such as pre-fabricating whole sections of ships separately, the Menifee ' s building pro- ceeded at a pace unheard of in peacetime. Eighty-six days after the keel was laid, a bottle of champagne was smashed against the Meni- fee ' s bow, and the mighty M slid down the ways into the Columbia river. Outfitting took another 20 days. During this period, nearly all the warrant officers and sev- eral other officers and men assigned the Meni- fee were aboard her becoming familiar with their new ship. On 4 November, the Menifee steamed down the river to Astoria to be com- missioned and taken over by the Navy.

Page 20 text:

About to leave the ways The mighty M tastes water