ARCTURUS AKA 1
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.
-
Arcturus Class Attack Cargo Ship
- USS ARCTURUS AK-18
Commissioned Cargo Ship (AK) October 26 1940
- USS ARCTURUS AKA-1
Reclassified Attack Cargo Ship (AKA) February 1 1943
Decommissioned April 3 1946
Struck from Naval Register June 5 1946
Transferred to Maritime Commission for disposal
- STAR ARCTURUS (Panamanian Registry)
Sold March 17 1947 to Johnson Line (Sweden) registered in Panama with Compania Naviera Puerta del Sur
Sold 1969 for scrap
Keel Laid July 26 1938 as Maritime Commission type (C2) hull (MC Hull 19)
Launched May 18 1938 as MORMACHAWK
Operated by Moore-McCormack Lines
Acquired by U.S. Navy September 20 1940
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.
|
Postmark Type |
Date From to Date To |
Thumbnail Link To Postmark Image |
Thumbnail Link To Cover Image |
|---|
Post Office Established November 20 1940 - Disestablished March 30 1946
|
Locy Type |
1940-12-01 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
First Day Postal Service
|
Locy Type |
1940-12-01 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
First Day of Postal Service
Walter Czubay
|
Locy Type |
1940-12-19 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
Ted Harrington
|
Locy Type |
1941-02-12 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
|
Locy Type |
1941-10-27 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
|
Locy Type |
1944-02-27 |
 |
 |
As AKA-1
|
Locy Type |
1940-12-31 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
Favor strike on block of stamps
|
Locy Type |
1940-12-14 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
Favor strike on block of stamps
|
Locy Type |
1940-12-14 |
 |
 |
As AK-18
Favor strike on block of stamps
|
Locy Type P |
1945-04-27
|
 |
 |
As AKA-1
Mark from back of cover
|
Locy Type |
1946-03-27 |
 |
 |
As AKA-1
Last Day Postal Service
Other Information
ARCTURUS was awarded five battle stars for her World War II service
*
North Africa occupation
Fedhala, Morocco, November 8-11 1942
*
Sicilian occupation
Scoglitti, July 9-15 1943
*
Salerno landings
Paestum, September 9-21 1943
*
Invasion of Southern France
La Nartelle, August 15 to September 25 1944
*
Okinawa Gunto operation
Assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, (Hagushi beachhead), April 1-14 1945
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons...
Combat Action Ribbon (retroactive) - China Service Medal (extended) - American Defense Service Medal (with Fleet clasp) - American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal (4) - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1) - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
Personnel Awards...
Purple Heart, September 8-10 1943 - Salerno Landing (7 KIA, 4 WIA)
NAMESAKE - Named for the principal star of the northern constellation Bootes
If you have images or information to add to this page, then either contact the Curator or edit this page yourself and add it. See Editing Ship Pages for detailed information on editing this page.
Copyright 2024 Naval Cover Museum