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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS Pee Dee River (LSMR-517)
ex
 USS LSM(R)-517 (1945 - 1955)

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal
Bottom Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns Medal - World War II Victory Medal - National Defense Service Medal
LSM(R)-501 Class Landing Ship Medium (Rocket):
  • Laid down, 28 April 1945 at Brown Ship Building Co, Houston, TX.
  • Launched, 2 June 1945
  • Commissioned USS LSM(R)-517, 21 July 1945, LT Leo H. Bishkin, USNR, in command
  • During World War II USS LSM(R)-517 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
    LSM(R) Flotilla Eighteen, CAPT. C. F. Macklin USN
     LSM(R) Group Forty-Four
     LSM(R) Division One Hundred Seven
  • Decommissioned, 13 April 1955 at Orange, TX.
  • Laid up in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Texas Group, Orange
  • Renamed USS Pee Dee River LSM(R)-517, 1 October 1955
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 1 February 1960
  • Sold, 22 June 1960, to Petromar Corp., Rockport, TX. for use as a shallow drilling ship;
  • Resold, 1989, to Western Sea Inc., Seattle, WA., for service as a fish factory ship, renamed Western Sea
  • Final Disposition, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement
    758 t.(light)
    994 t. (attack)
    1,084 t. (fully loaded)
    Length 206' 3" o.a.
    Beam 34' 6"
    Draft
    light, 5' 4" (mean)
    attack 6' 9" (mean)
    fully loaded 7' 9" (mean)
    Speed 12.6 kts (trial)
    Complement
    5 officers 133 enlisted
    Armament
    one single 5"/38 dual purpose gun mount
    two twin 40mm gun mounts
    four twin 20mm gun mounts
    ten twin continuous loading 5" SS rocket launchers
    four 4.2" mortars
    Armor 10-lb. STS on conning station, pilot-house, radio room, radar plot, and rocket control, 10-lb. ASPP around 40 and 20mm gun mounts and directors
    Fuel Capacity
    Diesel 1,225 Bbls
    Propulsion
    two General Motors 16-278A (non-reversing with airflex clutch) Diesel engines
    Direct drive with 1,440 BHP each @ 720rpm Ship's Service Generators
     four Diesel-drive 100Kw 450V A.C.
     two Diesel-drive 20Kw 120V D.C.
    twin propellers 2,800shp
    Endurance, 3,000 miles @ 13kts
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    USS LSM(R)-517
    Pee Dee River
    100651710     		83k
    Namesake
    Pee Dee River A river in the Carolinas. It originates in the Appalachian Mountains in North Carolina, where its upper course, above the mouth of the Uwharrie River, is known as the Yadkin River. The river empties into Winyah Bay, and then into the Atlantic Ocean near Georgetown.
    Photo - Pee Dee River Blueway, The Thread Trail Blueway segment of the Pee Dee River follows the Anson County boundary. Also known as the Great Pee Dee, this river is 232 miles in its entirety, of which 30.5 miles is designated Thread Trail Blueway. (Carolina Thread Trail)
    Map - Pee Dee River watershed, created 28 February 2007 based on USGS data. Karl Musser, Licensed under Creative Commons 2BY-SA-.5 (Wikipedia)    		 Tommy Trampp
    Pee Dee River 76k USS LSM(R)-517, crew photo, September 1945. This is the crew that manned the ship at Houston and brought her to NAB Little Creek. Stanley Parker USS LSM(R)-517
    Pee Dee River 75k USS LSM(R)-517 underway, date and location unknown. Stanley Parker USS LSM(R)-517
    Pee Dee River 70k USS LSM(R)-517 firing rockets while underway in the Chesapeake Bay off Bloodsworth Island, MD., during Exercise "Camid V", date unknown.
    US Navy photo # USN 445529.    		 USS LSM / LSMR Association
    Pee Dee River 56k USS LSM(R)-517, followed by USS LSM(R)-512 and two additional LSMRs laying smoke, date and location unknown. Stanley Parker USS LSM(R)-517
    Pee Dee River 70k USS LSM(R)-517 underway, off San Diego, CA., 21 August 1954.
    Photo by Oather Morper.    		 USS LSM / LSMR Association
    Pee Dee River 86k USS LSM(R)-517 underway in 1954, location unknown.
    US Navy photo.    		 USS LSM / LSMR Association
    Pee Dee River 61k USS LSM(R)-517 underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo # NH 84999 from the collections of the US Naval Historical Center, courtesy D.M. McPherson, 1976.    		 USS LSM / LSMR Association
    Pee Dee River 72k USS LSM(R)-517 underway, date and location unknown. Stanley Parker USS LSM(R)-517
    Commercial Service
    Pee Dee River 100k Ex-Pee Dee River LSM(R)-517 in commercial service as Western Sea Inc.'s barge Western Sea, date and location unknown. USS LSM / LSMR Association
    USS LSM(R)-517 / USS Pee Dee River (LSMR-517)
    Dictionary of American Navy Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS) annotated and revised
    Commanding Officers
    01LT. Bishkin, Leo H.21 July 1945 -
    02LT. Cummings, Harry Albert, USN (USNA 1944)July 1948 - November 1949
    03LT. Rothermel, James Llewellyn, USN1950
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    USS LSM-LSMR Association
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 29 September 2023