Latimer (APA 152) - Naval Cruise Book

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I-hs251'q hatches include four 5-ton booms, eight 10-ton booms and one 35-ton boom. She has' on board a total of 26 boats for the accomplishment of our mission, these include 22 LCVP's, 2 LCM's, 1 LCPL and 1 LCPR. Berthing space is provided forapproximately 1500 troops and 100 troop officers in addition to space for approximately a 500 man crew of officers' and men. Troop berthing is pro- vided in 6 troop compartments, 4 of which are forward and 2 aft. Crews berthing is located in various compartments throughout the ship., all with a general location amidships. Ourqpeacetime compliment of crew members is approximately 370 men and 35 officers. Our present commanding officer is Captain R.V'. Gregory. He has been commanding officer,since September 1952. Captain, Gregory was preceded by Captain B.C.Allen, Jr. and Captain Max L. Catterton since the ship was recommissioned in September 1950. The ship's first executive officer since her recommis- sioning was Commander J.B. McAuliffe who was relieved by Commander J.F. Finneran, Jr. dur- ing August 1952.

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7 P The keefl for the ship was laid at Portland, Oregon by the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation on 19 JMay 194-4. Six weeks later she was christened the U.S.S. LAT IMER QAPA 1521 in honor of Lati- mer County, Oklahoma and launched at Portland. Action was not long in coming forthe Latimer. Christmas of 1944 found her bound for the Philippines and on Easter Sunday 1945 she took part in the Okinawa Campaign. In 1946 she joined the Sixteenth Fleet and made Norfolk her home port. She was put in mothballs in February 1947. The Latimer was taken out of the inactive fleet and recommissioned on 23 September 1950 at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Va. Since that time she has taken a tour in the Mediterranean, spent a summer in the cold waters of Green- land, Northern Canada and Labrador and has taken a very active part in many practice amphibi- ous operations 'in the Atlantic Fleet. She has made great progress since. 1950 and now ranks at the top of the list of amphibious force PA's, U..S. Atlantic Fleet. The Latimer is an attack transport and as such she has one primary and many secondary functions as a unit of the fleet. Her primary mission is to embark a Battalion Landing Team of troopswithlequipment and to land these troops administratively, to evacuate casualties and to transport equipment and supplies. She has a cruis- ing radius of approximately 10,500 miles at normal cruising speed of 13 knots. The ship has4 car- go hatches. All hatches' carry troop cargo, ammunition and gasoline. Booms to operate these I

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.., ,. N, -6- :fa :nuke 1 , flaw I 1 l CAPTAIN RICHARD V. GREGORY, U. S. N. , was commissioned an Ensign on 2 June 1932 and had his first duty on board the USS PENNSYLVANIA followed by a tour on board the NEW MEX . After that he completed the course atthe Submarine School at New London, Conn. , and then served on board the submarines ARGONAUT, TARPON and SARGO eventually as Commanding Officer of the SARGO These duties were varied by a tour on the four stacker destroyerBLAKE LY and attendance at the Postgraduate School U S Naval Academy Annapolis Md He comman ded the Submarine Repair Unit in Western Australia during i942 1943 Assigned to Washington D C in I944 he served as Head of the Submarine Maintenance Section at the Bureau of Ships After a three year tour of duty on the Staff of the Commander Submarine Force Atlantic Fleet he returned tothe Bureau of Ships and served there until I949 After graduating from the U S Naval War College at Newport he was transferred to the Industrial College of the Armed Forces ln Washington D C where he was an instructor in the Civilian Reserve Instruction Branch He assumed command of the USS LATIMER on I8 September i952 During September I953 he will be transferred to the Amphibious Base at Little Creek Va where he will command the Naval Am phubnous Training Unit The Captain is married has a family mcludung three children and claims Petersburg, Va as his home . I . ' , o 0 . . ' 1 I ' ' I I ' 0 0 n 0 I I Q A 'T o I 0 A 0 s s ' Q c I 9 . I . , I T ' . ' . , ' . Q C .: 1 A ' ,' l I I 0 ' ' 0 n you o I ' 'I ' 0 Y ' It 0 , ' I su , ' . - I 'I 1 so ao, n o Q g , . . . Q T I ' o ll. o