ADMIRAL W S BENSON AP 120

Ship Name and Designation History

This section lists the names and designations that the ship had during its lifetime. The list is in chronological order.

Admiral W.S. Benson Class Transport Keel Laid December 10 1942 - Launched November 22 1943 Completed delivered to Maritime Commisson and transferred to the US Navy January 26 1944 USS ADMIRAL W.S. BENSON AP-120 Commissioned August 23 1944 - Decommissioned June 3 1946 Struck from Naval Register July 3 1946 Transferred to Maritime Commission USAT GENERAL DANIEL I. SULTAN Acquired by U.S. Army Transport Service (Date unknown) and renamed USNS GENERAL DANIEL I. SULTAN T-AP-120 Reacquired by U.S. Navy March 1 1950 Placed In Service by Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) March 1 1950 Placed Out of Service November 7 1968 Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet Scrapped 1987

Naval Covers

This section lists active links to the pages displaying covers associated with the ship. There should be a separate set of pages for each name of the ship (for example, Bushnell AG-32 / Sumner AGS-5 are different names for the same ship so there should be one set of pages for Bushnell and one set for Sumner). Covers should be presented in chronological order (or as best as can be determined).

Since a ship may have many covers, they may be split among many pages so it doesn't take forever for the pages to load. Each page link should be accompanied by a date range for covers on that page.

1. USS ADMIRAL W. S. BENSON Covers Page 1     (1945-46)
2. USNS GENERAL DANIEL I. SULTAN Covers Page 1     (1953)

 

Postmarks

This section lists examples of the postmarks used by the ship. There should be a separate set of postmarks for each incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). Within each set, the postmarks should be listed in order of their classification type. If more than one postmark has the same classification, then they should be further sorted by date of earliest known usage.

A postmark should not be included unless accompanied by a close-up image and/or an image of a cover showing that postmark. Date ranges MUST be based ONLY ON COVERS IN THE MUSEUM and are expected to change as more covers are added.
 
>>> If you have a better example for any of the postmarks, please feel free to replace the existing example.

 

Postmark Type --- Killer Bar Text	Date From to Date To	Thumbnail Link To Postmark Image	Thumbnail Link To Cover Image

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Post Office Established August 10 1944 - Disestablished June 1 1946

 

Locy Type 2z

1945-03-13

Note:

 

Locy Type 9efu

1945-06-28

Registered, postmark from the back.

 

Locy Type 9efu ("S" in "U.S.S." omitted)

c 1944

N/A

"Proof Strike" on Plain Paper. Never Used.

 

Other Information

ADMIRAL W.S. BENSON

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons...
American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)

NAMESAKE - William Shepherd Benson (September 25 1855 - May 20 1932)
Benson completed his U.S. Naval Academy studies in 1877 was followed by years of sea duty, including a cruise around the World in USS DOLPHIN PG-24 during the 1880s. He was also active in coast survey and hydrographic duties, an instructor at the Naval Academy, commanded the cruiser USS ALBANY CL-23 and served as a flag aide and fleet chief of staff, in addition to other assignments. In 1911, Captain Benson became the first Commanding Officer of the battleship USS UTAH BB-31. He was Commandant of the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1913-15, and from there was ordered to Washington, D.C., where he was promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral and became the Navy's first Chief of Naval Operations (CNO). Benson was heavily involved in defining the functions of the new CNO position and strengthening the Navy during a period marked by internal Navy Department tensions, U.S. interventions in the Caribbean and Central America, and the European war crisis. Promoted to the rank of Admiral in 1916, his responsibilities greatly expanded when the United States entered the First World War in April 1917. Over the next year and a half, he oversaw a huge expansion of the Navy, the extension of its operations to European waters and the transportation of the United States' Army to France. After the November 1918 Armistice, he was an active participant in the lengthy peace negotiations held in France. Admiral Benson retired from the Naval service in September 1919. Over the next decade, he was active in the leadership of the U.S. Shipping Board. Admiral William S. Benson died in Washington, D.C. on May 20 1932

GENERAL DANIEL I. SULTAN

Earned 2 Battle Stars (Korea)
* North Korean Offensive
July 1950
* Communist China Aggression
December 1950

Earned 1 Battle Star (Vietnam)
* Vietnam Defense Campaign
August 1965

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons...
National Defense Service Medal (2) - Korean Service Medal (2) - Vietnam Service Medal (1) - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal

NAMESAKE - Daniel Isom Sultan (December 9 1885 - January 14 1947)
Sultan graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1907 and was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers. Prior to World War I, he served in the Philippine Islands and was in charge of the construction of fortifications on Corregidor. In 1918 he was assigned to the War Department General Staff in France. From 1929 to 1931, he commanded troops during a survey of the proposed Inter-Ocean Canal route through Nicaragua; and, from 1934 to 1938, he presided as a Commissioner of the District of Columbia. Promoted to Brigadier General July 8, 1939, he was in command of the 38th Infantry Division at the beginning of World War II. Following his command of the VIII Corps, he was ordered to the China-Burma-India Theater in 1943 to act as Deputy Commander under General Joseph Stilwell. He was promoted to Lieutenant General September 2, 1944 and on October 24 became Commander of the India-Burma Theater. Returning to the United States June 26, 1945, he was appointed Inspector General of the Army on July 14. General Sultan died January 14, 1947 at Washington, D.C., while on active duty

 

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