Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250)
ex
 USAT Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (1945 - 1950)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Quebec - Delta - Hotel
 NQDH
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

National Defense Service Medal
Alamosa Class Cargo Ship:
  • Laid down, 18 April 1945, as MV Long Splice a Maritime Commission type (C1-M-AV1) hull, under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 2329), at Consolidated Steel Co., Long Beach, CA.
  • Launched, 7 August 1945
  • Delivered to the War Shipping Administration, 20 September 1945 and commissioned by the US Army as USAT Pvt Frank J. Petrarca
  • Decommissioned by the US Army and acquired by the US Navy, 1 March 1950
  • Assigned to the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) and placed in service as USNS Pvt Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250)
  • Placed out of service, 9 April 1959, and returned to the MARAD for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet
  • Reacquired from MARAD, and placed back in service by MSC, 7 April 1960
  • Placed out of service, date unknown
  • Returned to the Maritime Administration for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, Benecia, CA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 15 October 1973
  • Sold for non-transportation use, 28 December 1977, to General Auto Wrecking Co., for $68,010.00, resold to Trident Seafoods Co., converted to a fish processing ship, rename MV Arctic Producer
  • Renamed MV Arctic Enterprise in 1991
  • Current Disposition, active as a fish processing factory ship
    Specifications:
    Displacement 2,505 t.(lt) 8,370 t.(fl)
    Length 338' 8"
    Beam 50'
    Draft 29' 2" (lim)
    Speed 11.5 kts.
    Complement unknown
    Largest Boom Capacity 30 t.
    Cargo Capacity 3,945 DWT
    non-refrigerated 227,730 Cu ft
    refrigerated 9,830 Cu ft
    Fuel Capacity Diesel 6,300 Bbls
    Propulsion
    one Nordberg Diesel TSM6 engine
    two Diesel-drive 250Kw 120V/240V D.C. Ship's Service Generators
    single propeller, 1,750shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250)
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca 34k
    Namesake
    Frank Joseph Petrarca (July 31, 1918 – July 31, 1943) was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in World War II. Petrarca joined the Army from his birth city of Cleveland, Ohio, and by July 27, 1943 was serving as a private first class in the Medical Detachment of the 145th Infantry Regiment, 37th Infantry Division. On that day, at Horseshoe Hill on New Georgia in the Solomon Islands, he provided aid to three wounded soldiers despite intense enemy fire. Two days later, on July 29, he helped another wounded soldier who had been partially buried during a mortar barrage. On July 31, he again braved intense hostile fire to aid a wounded comrade, but was killed before he could reach the soldier. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor five months later, on December 23, 1943. Petrarca, killed on his 25th birthday, was buried at Calvary Cemetery in his hometown of Cleveland, Ohio.    		 Bill Gonyo
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca 88k USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250) moored, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, January 1961    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca 94k USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250) underway, date and location unknown. Tommy Trampp
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca 188k USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250) underway, date and location unknown. Tommy Trampp
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca
    0913025007    		 198k USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250) moored pierside while taking on cargo, date and location unknown.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command, Photo No. NH 85030 courtesy of Donald McPherson, 1976.    		 Mike Green
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca
    0913025008    		 151k USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250) moored pierside with U.S. Army barge BC-6119 alsongside, date and location unknown. David Wright
    Merchant Service
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca 283k Ex-USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250) in service as the Trident Seafoods Co. fish processing factory ship MV Arctic Enterprise moored at the Port of Tacoma, WA., circa 2012, Photo by Kyle Stubbs
    Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca 409k Trident Seafoods Co. fish processing factory ship MV Arctic Enterprise moored with the freighter Bowfin, alongside on the Hylebos Waterway, Tacoma, WA., 26 June 2014. Photo courtesy Kyle Stubbs. Robert Hurst
    USNS Pvt. Frank J. Petrarca (T-AK-250)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    MARAD Vessel History Database
    Medal of Honor Citation for Pvt Frank J. Petrarca USA
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The US Navy Service Force Ship Type Index Back To The US Army Cargo Ship Photo Index Back To The US Navy Cargo Ship Photo Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 21 July 2023