ADMIRAL R E COONTZ AP 122

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 January 15 1943, as a Maritime Commission type (P2-SE2-R1), hull Launched April 22 1944 USS ADMIRAL R.E. COONTZ AP-122 Commissioned November 21 1944 - Decommissioned March 26 1946 Struck from the Naval Register April 1946 Transferred to Maritime Commission for transfer to the U.S. Army Transportation Service USAT GENERAL ALEXANDER M. PATCH Commissioned (Date unknown) Reacquired by the Navy March 3 1950 USNS GENERAL ALEXANDER M. PATCH T-AP-122 Placed In Service by the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) Placed Out of Service 1967 Returned to the Maritime Administration May 26 1970 Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River, Fort Eustis, VA Struck from Naval Register August 20 1990 Sold June 4 2001 to Esco Marine Inc., Brownsville, TX for scrap

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 R. E. COONTZ Covers Page 1     (1945-46)
2. USNS GENERAL ALEXANDER M. PATCH Covers Page 1     (1950)

 

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 October 25 1944 - Disestablished March 19 1946

 

Locy Type 2z

1946-03-08

Note:

 

Other Information

ADMIRAL R.E. COONTZ

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 and Europe clasps)

NAMESAKE - Robert Edward Coontz (June 11 1864 — January 26 1935)
Coontz graduated in the Naval Academy Class of 1885, and served in the screw sloops-of-war MOHICAN and JUNIATA, the screw steamer GALENA, and the protected cruiser ATLANTA before he received his Ensign's commission in 1887. He assisted in the development of the first modern signal code used by the Navy, and served in Alaskan waters and on the Great Lakes. Duty in the Bureau of Navigation, correcting and updating officer records, followed. During this time, he worked toward the formulation of legislation favorably affecting junior officers. Coontz later served with the Coast and Geodetic Survey; and, in the cruiser USS CHARLESTON C-22, took part in the seizure of Guam and the bombardment of Manila during the Spanish-American War. After returning home he began almost a decade of sea duty, interrupted only by a brief tour with the Bureau of Equipment. As executive officer of USS NEBRASKA BB-14, he took part in the cruise of the "Great White Fleet" from 1907 to 1909. Duty at the Naval Academy led to the office of Commandant of Midshipmen. Following service in the Bureau of Inspection and Survey he became Governor of Guam in April 1912. After exercising "efficient and enlightened" leadership in that island possession, Coontz assumed command of USS GEORGIA BB-15, and saw expeditionary service in Mexican and Haitian waters during 1914. As commandant of the Puget Sound Navy Yard and the 13th Naval District from 1915 to 1918, Coontz won the Distinguished Service Medal. Becoming acting Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) in December 1918 while Admiral William S. Benson was on special duty in London, Coontz assisted the General Board in preparing a plan for a possible international navy under the League of Nations to maintain world peace. Given command of a battleship division in January 1919, Coontz supported the July 1919 flight of the NC flying boats across the Atlantic. After serving as Commander, Battleship Division 6, Pacific Fleet in September and October, Coontz became Chief of Naval Operations on 1 November 1919. During his tour as CNO from 1919 to 1925, Coontz achieved much despite the rapid demobilization of the Navy in the postwar years. He improved the organization and management of the Navy Department, and he strengthened the position of CNO in relation to the bureau chiefs. He realized the importance of aviation and submarines to the fleet, and advocated establishment of the Naval Research Laboratory in 1921. Under his direction a combined United States Fleet was formed. In the words of one biographer, Coontz "effectively encouraged experimentation and supported change, despite the constraints of the budget, politics, and the national mood." Following his term as CNO, Coontz became Commander in Chief of the United States Fleet. Maneuvers in Hawaiian waters in 1925 were the largest ever conducted by the assembled fleet. In the fall of 1925, Coontz became Commandant of the 5th Naval District and commanding officer of the Naval Operating Base, Norfolk. Following his retirement in 1928, Coontz was recalled briefly to active duty in 1930 to investigate Alaskan railroads. He became national commander in chief of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in 1932 and, that same year, represented Alaska at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Coontz died on January 26 1935 in the naval hospital at Bremerton, Wash

GENERAL ALEXANDER M. PATCH

Earned 1 Battlke Star (Vietnam)
* Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase II, August 1966

Awards Citations and Campaign Ribbons...
National Defense Service Medal (2) - Vietnam Service Medal (1) - Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal

NAMESAKE - Alexander McCarrell Patch, Jr (November 23 1889 - November 21 1945)
Patch graduated from the U.S. Military Academy June 12 1913 and was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the Infantry. Prior to World War I, he served in Texas and Arizona; and from June 1917 until May 1919 he joined the 18th Infantry in France participating in the Aisne-Marne, St. Mihel, and Meuse-Argonne Offensives. During the next 20 years he was stationed at various posts in the United States. Assigned to the 47th Infantry at Fort Bragg, N.C., in August 1940, he was promoted to Brigadier General August 4 1941. Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, he assumed command of Allied forces in New Caledonia March 12 1942, and on December 8 he relieved General Vandegrift, USMC, on Guadalcanal and took command of composite American forces operating against the Japanese in the Solomon Islands. He returned to the United States in April 1943 and assumed command of the IV Corps. In March 1944 he was designated Commanding General of the 7th Army in Sicily. Promoted to Lieutenant General August 7 1944, he served with the 7th Army in France. He then took command of the 4th Army in July 1945 and died November 21 while on duty at Fort Sam Houston, Tex

 

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