(YN‑21: dp. 560; l. 151'8"; b. 30'6"; dr. 10'6"; s. 12.2 k.; cpl. 48; a. 1 3"; cl. Aloe)
A flowering tree found in warm regions.
Mimosa (YN‑21) was laid down 15 October 1940 by American Shipbuilding Co., Cleveland, Ohio; launched 15 March 1941; sponsored by Miss Alin Woehrman; and placed in service 28 October 1941, Lt. W. L. Freeburn in command.
Exiting the Great Lakes via the Welland Canal and the St. Lawrence River, Mimosa proceeded by short sailings down the east coast. At the end of the year, with the Nation now at war, she steamed from Jacksonville, Fla., to bolster the defenses of the high priority Panama Canal. For over 2 years she maintained the net defenses at Coco Solo, C.Z., and also installed submarine nets at Trujillo Bay, Honduras; Port Limon, Costa Rica; and Talora Bay, Peru. Mimosa commissioned 10 December 1942.
In January 1944, 1 1⁄2 years after she herself had escaped a torpedo attack, Mimosa gave witness to the effectiveness with which the Navy's antisubmarine program had checked the U‑boat menace when she assisted in removing the nets along the Costa Rican and Honduran coasts. During this duty, the vessel was redesignated AN‑26 on 20 January.
Transiting the canal 21 April, she sailed for the Marianas, arriving 20 June in the midst of the Battle for Saipan. First removing the Japanese defensive nets and wrecked ships, Mimosa labored until 9 September helping to install a new net system for harbors on Saipan and Tinian. The following year on 2 September as the war ended on Missouri's deck, Mimosa began removing the 6 1⁄2 miles of nets she had been tending. The job complete, she sailed 26 October for San Pedro, Calif., arriving 27 November.
Following alterations, she departed San Pedro for Astoria, Oreg., 21 June 1946 with Teak (AN‑35) in tow. Two months later Mimosa was herself towed from Portland to Vancouver, Wash., for inactivation. She decommissioned 27 September 1946 and joined the Pacific Reserve Fleet. On 13 July 1961 she was turned over to the Maritime Commission at Olympia, Wash., and entered the National Defense Reserve Fleet there, where she remains through 1969.
Mimosa (AN‑26) received two battle stars for World War II service.
