USS Oconee

History
United States
Name	USS Oconee
Namesake	Oconee River in Georgia
Ordered	as T1-M-A2 tanker hull MC hull 1531
Builder	East Coast Shipyard, Inc., Bayonne, New Jersey
Laid down	18 October 1944
Launched	19 November 1944
Acquired	23 December 1944
Commissioned	23 December 1944
Decommissioned	28 March 1946
Stricken	1 May 1946
Identification	IMO number: 5279204
Fate	Reflagged Brazilian, scrapped November 2003
General characteristics
Class and type	Mettawee-class gasoline tanker
Tonnage	1,228 tonnes deadweight (DWT)
Displacement	846 long tons (860 t) light 2,270 long tons (2,306 t) full load
Length	220 ft 6 in (67.21 m)
Beam	37 ft (11 m)
Draft	17 ft (5.2 m)
Propulsion	Diesel direct drive, single screw, 720 hp (537 kW)
Speed	10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement	62
Armament	1 × 3"/50 caliber gun 2 × single 40 mm guns 3 × single 20 mm guns

USS Oconee (AOG-34) was a Mettawee-class gasoline tanker acquired by the U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of transporting gasoline to warships in the fleet, and to remote Navy stations.

Oconee, formerly MC Hull 1531, was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract on 18 October 1944 by East Coast Shipyard, Inc., Bayonne, New Jersey; launched 19 November 1944; sponsored by Miss Ethel Borst; acquired by the Navy on 23 December 1944; and commissioned 12 January 1945.

Following shakedown in the Chesapeake Bay, Oconee, manned by a U.S. Coast Guard crew, sailed to Bermuda and Aruba before transiting the Panama Canal 15 March 1945. Stopping briefly at San Diego, California, the gasoline tanker proceeded to Pearl Harbor, arriving there 4 May. After a short upkeep period she sailed unescorted to Eniwetok, Marshall Islands, thence on to Ulithi. From mid-June to the end of July she serviced all sizes of ships and craft in the huge anchorage then steamed to Okinawa with her vital cargo. She remained there through the end of the war, serving ships of the mighty U.S. fleet and riding out two treacherous typhoons.

On 12 November Oconee sailed for San Francisco, California, stopping at Pearl Harbor before arriving on 28 December. She decommissioned there on 28 March 1946, was struck from the Navy List on 1 May, and returned to the Maritime Commission on 1 July. She was sold for commercial service, as M/V Piratini, and reflagged Brazilian. She was scrapped in November 2003.

Oconee's crew was eligible for the following medals:

• American Campaign Medal
• Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
• World War II Victory Medal
• Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)

 This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

• NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - AOG-34 Oconee