USNS Private Francis X. McGraw

Private Francis X. McGraw was laid down as SS Wabash Victory (MCV hull 796) by the California Shipbuilding Corporation, Los Angeles, California; launched 6 September 1945; sponsored by Mrs. A. Easterbrook; and delivered to the U.S. Maritime Commission 7 June 1945.

Operated by the Interocean Steamship Company under General Agency Agreement, Wabash Victory carried cargo and passengers to Eniwetok, Ulithi, and Okinawa and, from there, back to the U.S. West Coast between 8 August and 3 November 1945. Employed along the Oregon and California coasts for the next four months, she transited the Panama Canal in mid-March 1946, then headed across the Atlantic Ocean to France. On the 28th, she arrived at Le Havre to begin transporting men and equipment between Europe and the United States.

Two and a half months later, on 14 June 1946, she was transferred to the U.S. War Department but continued her transatlantic runs as an Army transport. Renamed Private Francis X. McGraw, 31 October 1947, the Victory ship remained a unit of the Army Transportation Service until 1 March 1950.

The ship was returned to the U.S. Maritime Commission, she was simultaneously transferred to the Navy, given the designation T–AK–241, and assigned to the newly formed Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS). Since that time, Private Francis X. McGraw, manned by a civil service crew, carried supplies and equipment to "far flung" ports for MSTS, Atlantic.

Although primarily rotated between Caribbean, North Sea, and Mediterranean runs, she was, when necessary, and particularly from the mid-1960s into 1970, been diverted from such assignments to carry cargo to Pacific Ocean ports. Pacific assignments included delivery of chemical weapons to Okinawa in 1965 and removing those weapons to Johnston Atoll in 1971 under Operation Red Hat. In 1964 the U.S.N.S. Private Francis X. McGraw was involved in the salvage efforts of the submarine U.S.S. Thresher.

The vessel was decommissioned and struck from the Navy List at unknown dates. She was transferred to the U.S. Maritime Administration on 8 May 1974 and was sold for scrapping on 21 August 1974.

• Merchant Marine Pacific War Zone Medal
• American Campaign Medal
• Merchant Marine World War II Victory Medal
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  National Defense Service Medal (two awards)

• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• USNS Pvt. Francis X. McGraw (T-AK-241) – ex - USAT Pvt. Francis X. McGraw (1947 - 1950)