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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS Colleton (APB-36)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Uniform - India - November NUIN

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from top to bottom,left to right
Top Row - Combat Action Ribbon (2) - Presidential Unit Citation (2)
Second Row - Navy Unit Commendation (2) - National Defense Service Medal - Vietnam Service Medal (8)
Third Row - Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation (3) - Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Unit Citation - Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal
Personnel Awards

Purple Heart: (1 KIA SN Edward N. Barr)

Benewah Class Self-propelled Barracks Ship:

Authorized, 17 December 1943, as Barracks Ship (non-self propelled) APL-36

Reclassified Barracks Ship (self-propelled) APB-36, 8 August 1944

Laid down, 9 June 1945 at Boston Naval Shipyard, Boston MA.

Launched, 30 July 1945

Completed in September 1945 and placed in reserve

Commissioned USS Colleton (APB-36), 28 January 1967, at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, LCDR. Floyd R. Banbury USN in command

During the Vietnam War USS Colleton participated in the following campaigns:

Campaign and Dates	Campaign and Dates
Vietnam War Campaigns
Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase II 30 April to 31 May 1967	Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase V 1 July to 5 October 1968
Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase III 1 June to 19 December 1967 18 to 29 January 1968	Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase VI 19 December 1968 to 22 February 1969
Tet Counteroffensive 30 January to 21 February 1968 1 to 21 March 1968 28 March to 1 April 1968	Tet/69 Counteroffensive 23 February to 8 June 1969
Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase IV 2 April 68 to 30 June 68	Vietnam Summer-Fall 1969 9 to 22 June 1969

Decommissioned, 15 December 1969, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA.

Struck from the Naval Register, 6 January 1973

USS Colleton (APB-36) earned eight campaign stars for Vietnam War service

Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 6 January 1973, for $172.226.62, to American Ship Dismantler's Inc., Portland OR.

Specifications:
Displacement 4,000 t.
Length 328'
Beam 50'
Draft 11' 2"
Speed 12 kts.

Complement

Officers 12

Enlisted 129

Troop Accommodation

Officers 26

Enlisted 1200

Armament

two 3"50 MK22 single gun mounts aft of flight deck (Vietnam)

two quad 40mm AA gun mounts

eight 50 cal. machine guns (4 fwd, 4 aft)

ten 30 cal. machine guns

Fuel Capacity

Diesel 2,975 Bbls

Propulsion

two General Motors 12-567A Diesel engines

double Falk Main Reduction Gears

five Diesel-drive 100Kw 120V/240V Ship's Service Generators

twin rudders

two propellers, 1,600shp

Click On Image For Full Size Image	Size	Image Description	Contributed By
10133608	13766k	*USS Colleton* (APB-36)** underway, 17 January 1967, in the Delaware River, south of the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, during acceptance trials. US Naval Shipyard Philadelphia Photo #CSF 269-1-67.	Bill Slover (XO, APB-36 6/67-4/68)
10133604	64k	*USS Colleton* (APB-36)** arriving at Pearl Harbor, HI., 4 April 1967. "It is the only time the ship is still gray and the crew is wearing whites. The flags on the inboard starboard hoist are “Code Hotel” meaning a pilot is on board. When we arrived in Vung Tau, RVN, 2 May 1967, I was the OOD and the ship did not require a pilot and the ship’s crew were not in whites. During the 24 hour period 5-6 May 1967 the ship was painted green. It remained that color until decommissioning 15 December 1969 in Bremerton, WA." Bill Slover (XO, APB-36 6/67-4/68).	Tommy Trampp
	355k	Mobile Riverine Force (MRF) with USS Colleton at anchor in the Mekong Delta, South Vietnam, 24 September 1967. *Colleton* provided berthing accommodations for all the troops of the MRF. She was also equipped with a floating pier for all smaller boats and a helipad to accommodate air traffic. Photo by Robert C Laffoon	David Wright
	18k	*USS Colleton* (APB-36)** at anchor in the Mekong Delta in 1967	Mobile Riverine Force Association (MRFA)
	77k	*USS Colleton* (APB-36)** at anchor in Vietnam circa 1967.	Bruce Schulze MRFA
10133603	12802k	*USS Colleton* (APB-36)** at anchor in the Mekong Delta, South Vietnam, with 12 Task Force 117 riverine craft alongside, 10 October 1967. US Navy photo # Neg. No. APB-70-10-67, by Ed Shinton PH1(DV)	Bill Slover (XO, APB-36 6/67-4/68)
	1609k	*USS Colleton* (APB-36)** South Vietnam, May 1968. Photos by Danna Martin, American Red Cross "Donut Dollie."	Steve Martin
	1793k		Steve Martin

USS Colleton (APB-36)
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)

Commanding Officers
01	LCDR. Banbury, Floyd Ralph, USN	28 January 1967 - 22 February 1968
02	LCDR. Alderson Jr., Donald Marr, USN (USNA 1955)	22 February 1968 - 25 April 1969
03	LCDR. Wehner, George Dillon, USN	25 April 1969 - 15 December 1969


Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves

Crew Contact And Reunion Information
U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log

Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
Mobile Riverine Force Association
Brownwater Navy in Vietnam Web Book
The USS Colleton (APB-36) in Vietnam

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This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo

Last Updated 18 September 2020