FRANCIS MARION LPA 249

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.

Paul Revere Class Amphibious Transport Built 1954 as Maritime Administration type (C4-S-1A) hull Launched 13 February 1954 as PRAIRIE MARINER Delivered to Maritime Administration 25 May 1954 Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet 6 January 1955 Acquired by U.S. 16 Navy March 1959 USS FRANCIS MARION APA-249 Commissioned Attack Transport (APA) 6 July 1961 USS FRANCIS MARION LPA-249 Redesignated Amphibious Transport (LPA) 1 January 1969 Decommissioned 1 January 1980 Struck from Naval Register 1 January 1980 ARAGON L-22 (Spanish Naval Service) Sold to Spain 11 July 1980 and renamed Decommissioned by Spanish Navy 2000 Currently in use as training hulk

 

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 incarnation of the ship (ie, for each entry in the "Ship Name and Designation History" section). 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. Francis Marion Covers Page 1    (1962-82)

 

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 Close-Up Image	Thumbnail Link To Full Cover Image

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Post Office Established 6 July 1961 - Disestablished 14 September 1979

 

Locy Type FDC 2(n) Jul 6, 1961

1961-07-06

As APA-249
First Day in Commission

 

Locy Type 2(n)

1962-10-27

As APA-249

 

Locy Type 2(n+) (USS,APA)

1966-07-06

As APA-249

 

Locy Type 2(n+) (USS,LPA)

1973-08-25

As LPA-249

 

Locy Type 2t(n+u) (USS,LPA)

1969-12-14

As LPA-259
USS Luiseno ATF-156 - Welcome to Norfolk, cachet by Tazewell G. Nicholson

 

Locy Type 2t(n+u) (USS,LPA)

1976-07-06

As LPA-249
15th Anniversary, cachet by Richard F. Hoffner, sponsored by Stephen Decatur Chapter No. 4, USCS

 

Locy Type 9eft(nu) (USS,LPA)

1977-04-21

As LPA-249

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USPS FDOI

1982-04-03

N/A

First Day of Issue for Francis Marion postcard, namesake of the ship. Cachet by Stephen Decatur Chapter No. 4, USCS

 

Other Information

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons...
Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation - Navy Battle "E" Ribbon Navy Expeditionary Medal (Cuba) - National Defense Service Medal - Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (Cuba)

NAMESAKE - Francis Marion (1732 - February 27 1790)
Marion gained his first military experience fighting Cherokee Indians in 1759 and 1761, during the French and Indian Wars. Elected to the South Carolina Provincial Congress in 1775, he was soon commissioned Captain and helped defend Patriot positions in Charleston Harbor in 1776. Marion participated in the unsuccessful American campaign to take Georgia in 1779. When the British took Charleston in the following year and overran most of the State, Marion was commissioned a Brigadier General and distinguished himself in organizing and leading a guerrilla band which soon won fame harassing British units and intimidating Tories. When the perplexed red coats sent their reliable troubleshooter Colonel Tarleton in pursuit of Marion, the crafty American won the sobriquet, “the Swamp Fox,” by slipping through the Carolina marshlands. He subsequently joined General Green and assisted in the skillful series of tactical maneuvers which exhausted the British Army under Cornwallis, ultimately causing him to abandon the Carolinas and head toward his doom at Yorktown. After peace returned, Marion served in the State senate until retiring from public life in 1790. He died February 27 1790

 

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