WHARTON AP 7
Ship Name and Designation History
This section lists the names and designations that the ship had during its lifetime. The list is in chronological order.
- Wharton Class Transport
- USS WHARTON AP-7
Commissioned Transport (AP) December 7 1940
Decommissioned March 26 1947
Struck from Naval Register April 4 1947
Returned to Maritime Commission (Date unknown) for disposal
Keel Laid October 8 1918 as passenger/cargo ship for Muson Steamship Line
Launched July 20 1919 as SOUTHERN CROSS
Delivered September 24 1921
Acquired by U.S. Navy November 8 1939
Renamed November 10 1939
This section lists active links to the pages displaying covers associated with the ship. There should be a separate set of pages for each incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). Covers should be presented in chronological order (or as best as can be determined).
Since a ship may have many covers, they may be split among many pages so it doesn't take forever for the pages to load. Each page link should be accompanied by a date range for covers on that page.
- Covers Page 1 (1940-46)
Postmarks
This section lists examples of the postmarks used by the ship. There should be a separate set of postmarks for each incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). Within each set, the postmarks should be listed in order of their classification type. If more than one postmark has the same classification, then they should be further sorted by date of earliest known usage.
A postmark should not be included unless accompanied by a close-up image and/or an
image of a cover showing that postmark. Date ranges MUST be based ONLY ON COVERS IN
THE MUSEUM and are expected to change as more covers are added.
>>> If you have a better example for any of the postmarks, please feel free to replace the
existing example.
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Postmark Type |
Date From to Date To |
Thumbnail Link To Close-Up Image |
Thumbnail Link To Full Cover Image |
|---|
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Locy Type F |
1940-12-07 |
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Locy Type F |
1940-12-07 |
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First Day in Commissioning. Cachet by Dr. S. E. Hutnick
|
Locy Type |
1946-05-29 |
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Note:
|
Locy Type |
1941-05-30 |
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R/S on back from Carl E. Crissey
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Locy Type Fz |
1945-02-03 |
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Censored wartime (WWII) use
Other Information
WHARTON was awarded 3 battle stars for her World War II service
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons...
American Defense Service Medal (with Fleet clasp) - American Campaign Medal
- Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (3) - World War II Victory Medal - Philippines Liberation Medal.
NAMESAKE - Captain Franklin Wharton, USMC (July 23 1767 - September 1 1818)
Born in Philadelphia, Wharton was commissioned a Captain of Marines on August 3 1798. He served in frigate "United States" during the Quasi-War with France and subsequently commanded the Marine Barracks at Philadelphia. On March 7 1804, Wharton took office as the third Commandant of the Marine Corps. During this early period, Wharton's principal task was furnishing Marine detachments for the increasing number of warships being fitted out to fight the Barbary pirates.
When American naval strength combined with diplomacy to eliminate this longstanding problem, Congress cut back on the Navy's warships and men. During the early lean years of Wharton's tenure as Commandant, the new Marine Barracks and the Commandant's quarters in Washington, D.C., were completed, mostly by the labor of Marines.
He made substantial contributions to the Corps. Under his leadership, uniforms and military equipment were standardized for the first time; and military practices became uniform throughout the Corps. During his time in office, the Marine Band was established and began winning the national reputation which it still maintains. While still Commandant, Wharton died in New York on September 1 1818.
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