She departed Pearl Harbor for operations in the Pacific on 27 January 1945. She arrived in time to participate in the invasion of Iwo Jima. It was during this campaign, on the nite of 21 February 1945, that the ship was hit with a shell on her after deck house. 17 of the crew were wounded and all received the Purple Heart.
Approximately one month later, the ship was again on her way into enemy territory with Transport Squadron 15 as part of the invasion of Okinawa. On Easter Sunday morning, the Berrien and other ships of the task force appeared off the southwest shores of Okinawa as part of a feint to throw enemy forces off balance and help pave the way of the main landings on the western beaches of Hagushi. On that morning, 2 ships were hit with kamikazi planes. The feint succeeded and was used again the next day. This worked well and losses were at a minimum.
The ship cruised offshore for about a week awaiting orders to proceede to Hagushi to unload her cargo. She was sent into enemy waters instead with an escort of the USS Pickney, and 2 destroyers (USS Ammen and USS Brown). While en route, Berrien encountered a mine and had a near miss with 4 torpedoes from a Japanese Submarine. She arrived Okinawa and stayed for 10 days. While there, she was under constant attack from shore batteries and kamikazis. While here, she received a hit near her stacks which wounded a radioman by the name of Kouthca, making him the 18th man to receive the Purple Heart.
From Okinawa, she sailed back to Saipan, and then received orders to head to the South Pacific. The ship had her crew initiated from 'pollywogs' into respectable 'shellbacks' at the Equator. From Tulagi she steamed to Noumee, New Caladonia, then back to the Mariana Islands. On the morning of July 3, on the way into Guam, she participated in the air/sea rescue of 10 Army fliers. From Guam she returned to the US. While in San Franciso, the cease fire order was given on the Pacific front.
Berrien returned to the Pacific and headed from the US to Manila, then to Aomori, Japan, as part of the initial allied landings in northern Honshu. From there, she steamed north to Otaru, in Hokkaido, northernmost of the main Japanese home islands, for another initial landing on Nippon soil. From Otaru, she sailed into Tokyo Bay to load up with Marines and Sailors returning to their homes in the states. She returned to the orient and was in Shanghai, China on the Whang-Poo River in Feb, 1946. She returned to the States shortly after. She had 166 plank owners, and of 321 enlisted, 173 were with her from commissioning, and 20 of the 31 officers.
She was decommissioned May 1946 and returned to the Maritime Commission 12 August 1947 and was placed in the Suisen Bay Reserve Fleet. She participated in the Fleet Repair Program from July 11, 1955 to October 28, 1955 until returned to Suisen Bay. She was sold as scrap to Zidell Explorations Inc. on May 17, 1966 and delivered 16 August 1966.
Berrien received two battlestars for World War II service
[edit] Career
Ordered:
Laid down:
Launched: 20 May 1944
Commissioned: 8 October 1944
Decommissioned: May 1946
Fate: sold as scrap.
Struck: 17 May 1966
[edit] General characteristics
Displacement: 4,247 tons
Length: 426 ft
Beam: 58 ft
Draft: 16 ft
Speed: 17 knots
Complement: 370 (352 actual as of 27 October. 1945)
Armament: 1 × 5 inch 38 DP gun, 4x20 40mm, 10 20mm
