ALGOL LKA 54

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.

Andromeda Class Amphibious Cargo Ship Keel Laid December 10 1942 Launched February 17 1943 as JAMES BARNES Renamed August 30 1943 Acquired by U.S. Navy November 27 1943 USS ALGOL AKA-54 Placed in Ferry Commission November 27 - December 3 1943 Commissioned (Full) July 21 1944 - Decommissioned November 26 1947 Recommissioned February 18 1948 - Decommissioned January 2 1958 Recommissioned November 17 1961 USS ALGOL LKA-54 Redesignated Amphibious Cargo Ship (LKA) January 1 1969 Decommissioned July 23 1970 Struck from Naval Register January 1 1977 Sunk November 22 1991 as part of the New Jersey Shark River Artificial Reef

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. Algol Covers Page 1     (1949-69)

 

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 July 1 1944 - Disestablished November 24 1947

 

Locy Type 2z

1946-02-04

As AKA-54

 

Locy Type 9efu

1946-02-04

As AKA-54
Favor strike on block of stamps

 

Locy Type 9efu (with bars) USCS Postmark Catalog Illus. A-18

1947-06-14

As AKA-54

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Post Office Reestablished September 6 1949 - Disestablished December 31 1957

 

Locy Type 2(n)

1952-04-01

As AKA-54

 

Locy Type 2r

1953-05-29

As AKA-54

 

Locy Type 2t(nu)

1949-09-30

As AKA-54
Device carried over from 1st post office

 

Locy Type 9ef(nu)

1953-09-14

As AKA-54

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Post Office Reestablished 1961 - Disestablished September 30 1969

 

Locy Type 2(n) (USS)

1963-07-13

As AKA-54
ARM POTOSI, "Welcome to Norfolk" cachet by Tazewell G. Nicholson

 

Locy Type 2(n) (USS)

1966-03-26

As AKA-54
TCG SAROS, "Welcome to Norfolk" cachet by Tazewell G. Nicholson

 

Locy Type 2(n) (USS)

1966-08-27

As AKA-54

 

Locy Type 2t(n+u) (LKA)

1969-03-13

As LKA-54
Apollo Space Program R/S cachet.

 

Locy Type 2t(n+u) (LKA)

1969-09-12

As LKA-54
Last Day in Commission for USS Samsoset ATA-190

 

Locy Type 9ef(nu) (USS)

1961-02-28

As AKA-54

 

Locy Type P [2t(n+u) with first "A" removed]

1969-05-28

As LKA-54

 

Locy Type LDPS 2t(nu) Sep 30, 1969

1969-09-30

As LKA-54
Last Day Postal Service

 

Locy Type LDPS P [2t(nu) with first "A" removed]

1969-09-30

As LKA-54
Last Day Postal Service
Unlisted in USCS Postmark Catalog

 

Other Information

ALGOL earned two battle stars for World War II service
* Luzon operation
Lingayen Gulf landing
January 11-15 1945
* Okinawa Gunto operation
Assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, April 1-10 1945

Earned five battle stars for Korean War service
* North Korean Aggression
September 20 to November 1 1950
* Communist China Aggression
November 15 to January 19 1951
* First UN Counteroffensive
February 23 to March 27 1951
* Communist China Spring Offensive
May 9-14 1951
* Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952
May 9-13 1952
August 9-13 1952

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons...
Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation - China Service Medal (extended) - American Campaign Medal - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (2) - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp) - National Defense Service Medal (2) - Korean Service Medal (5) - Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (1-Cuba) - Philippines Liberation Medal (2) - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal (retroactive)

NAMESAKE - Named for a fixed star in the constellation Perseus. It varies periodically in brightness because of eclipses by a satellite

 

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If you have images or information to add to this page, then either contact the Curator or edit this page yourself and add it. See Editing Ship Pages for detailed information on editing this page.

 

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