Adria (AF-30)
1945-1960
The feminine form of the Latin name Adrian or Hadrian. Adria was an ancient Italian city from which the Adriatic Sea derived its name.
(AF-30: displacement 7,435; length 338'6"; beam 50'0"; draft 21'1"; speed 11.5 knots; complement 84; armament 1 3-inch, 6 20 millimeter; class Adria; type R1-M-AV3)
Adria (AF-30) was laid down on 27 December 1943, two days after Christmas) under a Maritime Commission contract (M.C. Hull 2194) at Beaumont, Texas, by the Pennsylvania Shipyards, Inc.; launched on 16 April 1944; sponsored by Mrs. L. C. Allen; acquired by the Navy on a loan charter basis on 30 November 1944; converted at Galveston, Texas, for service as a store ship; and placed in commission at Galveston on 26 December 1944, Lt. Cmdr. Laurence W. Borst in command.
After her final fitting out, Adria held a shakedown cruise in the Gulf of Mexico off Galveston. She then sailed to Mobile, Ala., to pick up cargo. The vessel got underway on 19 January 1945 and headed for the Canal Zone. She reached Balboa on the 25th and discharged a portion of her cargo. The ship then transited the Panama Canal and continued on toward Hawaii. She arrived at Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii, on 14 February and was subsequently assigned to Service Squadron 8, Service Force, Pacific Fleet. On 18 February the store ship departed Hawaii; shaped a course for the west coast of the United States; and reached San Francisco, Calif., on the last day of the month.
Upon her arrival in San Francisco, the ship took on cargo and mail destined for Allied bases in the forward areas of the Pacific. She left California on 10 March 1945 and sailed directly to Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. She arrived at that atoll on the 31st and unloaded part of her cargo before continuing on to the Marianas. She arrived at Saipan on 5 April, then moved to Guam on the 9th to discharge the remainder of her provisions.
In mid-April 1945, Adria sailed to Ulithi where she took on more supplies and sailed on 20 April for Kerama Retto. During the rest of April and the first half of May-while the vessel operated near Okinawa unloading her cargo to support forces in the area- enemy air alerts frequently interrupted her operations. During an air raid on 30 April, a small-caliber shell exploded in the gun tub one of Adria's 20-millimeter mounts; fragments fatally wounded Sea1c Harlan T. Baliman, USNR.
With her holds empty, the ship left Okinawa on 7 May 1945 to proceed to Pearl Harbor. After a pause at Ulithi, Adria reached Pearl on 29 May to take on more equipment and supplies and then reversed her course and proceeded back to Okinawa.
The store ship made stops at Eniwetok and Ulithi before reaching Okinawa on Independence Day, 4 July 1945. Over the next three weeks, the vessel unloaded her cargo ashore. When this process was completed, Adria sailed to the Philippine Islands. She paused at Leyte on 27 July; then continued on to Hawaii. The ship pulled into Pearl Harbor on 16 August soon after Japanese capitulation ended World War II. She spent almost one month in port for repairs and loading before sailing once again on 11 September. The vessel made a port call at Okinawa on 2 October; then sailed on to Korea. She touched at Jinsen [Inchon] on the 6th to unload her supplies in support of Allied occupation forces. The ship also stopped at Taku and Tsingtao, China, to discharge cargo, before setting a course for the United States. She reached Seattle, Wash., on 16 November.
After voyage repairs at Seattle, Adria set sail on 16 December 1945 for the western Pacific. She made port calls at Saipan and Guam to unload her cargo; then left the latter island on 5 February 1946 to sail back to the United States. The ship reached Seattle on 28 February, but commenced another shuttle run to the Far East on 19 March. She visited Yokosuka, Japan; Shanghai, China; and Hong Kong. The ship got underway from Shanghai on 24 May 1946 and shaped a course for the Panama Canal Zone. She transited the Panama Canal on 2 July; then sailed via Mobile, Ala., to Norfolk, Va.
Upon her arrival at Norfolk on 10 July 1946, Adria began operations with Service Force, Atlantic Fleet. During the remaining eight years of her naval career, the ship made supply runs to various points in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean. Among her ports of call were Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; Hamilton, Bermuda; Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico; Trinidad; Casablanca, Morocco; Gibraltar; Bremerhaven, Germany; Plymouth, England: and Argentia, Newfoundland. In addition to her overseas cargo runs, Adria operated along the east coast of the United States. She also held a number of training exercises and operations in the Chesapeake Bay. Her routine was also broken by regular periods of repair and upkeep at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Va.
On 6 January 1954, the vessel entered the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for a period of repair work prior to her inactivation. She got underway again on 9 March and sailed to Orange, Texas. Adria arrived there on 18 March. She was placed out of commission, in reserve, at Orange, on 16 June 1954, in the Texas Group, Atlantic Reserve Fleet. She was transferred to the custody of the Maritime Administration (MarAd), entering the fleet at Beaumont, Texas, as 1:20 p.m. on 30 June 1960, and was stricken from the Navy list on 1 July 1960. On 31 July 1960, Adria was transferred permanently to MarAd at 12:00 midnight, remaining in its custody until sold to Consolidated Andy Inc., on 27 July 1977. The well-traveled vessel was physically delivered to her purchaser at 9:55 a.m. on 19 August 1977 to be broken up for scrap.
Luann Parsons
Updated, Robert J. Cressman
25 April 2024
