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NavSource Online: Mine Warfare Vessel Photo Archive
Courtesy of Mike Smolinski

Limpkin (MSC 195)
ex-Limpkin(AMS 195)


Limpkin served the Navies of the United States and Indonesia
Falcon Class Motor Minesweeper:

  • Laid down 17 April 1953 as AMS-195 by Broward Marine Inc., Fort Lauderdale, FL
  • Launched 21 May 1954
  • Reclassified as a Coastal Minesweeper, MSC-195, 7 February 1955
  • Commissioned USS Limpkin (MSC 195), 26 March 1955
  • Decommissioned 26 September 1968 and placed in service as a Naval Reserve training ship, based at Perth Amboy, NJ
  • Transferred to Indonesia in 1971 and renamed Pulau Anjer (M 719)
  • Struck from the Naval Register 1 May 1976
  • Disposed of for scrap through the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service 1 September 1976.

    Specifications:

  • Displacement 362 t.
  • Length 144' 3"
  • Beam 27' 2"
  • Draft 12'
  • Speed 13.6 kts.
  • Complement 40
  • Armament: One twin 20mm mount
  • Propulsion: Four 600shp Packard diesel engines, two shafts.
    Click on thumbnail
    for full size image    		 Size Image Description Source
    Limpkin 48k
    Namesake:

    Limpkin - A species of long-billed wading birds found in Florida, the West Indies, and Central America

    		 Tommy Trampp
    Photo added 26 December 2021
    Limpkin 103k Joseph M. Radigan (of blessed memory)
    Limpkin 210k Naval History and Heritage Command photos NH 81815 and NH 81816 Mike Green
    Limpkin 210k
    Limpkin 266k "27 April 1962 - The coastal mine sweeper USS Limpkin (MSC-195) is one of 14 mine craft participating in LANTPHIBEX 1-62 at Vieques, Puerto Rico. LANTPHIBEX 1-62 involved a Marine assault using the island of Vieques off the coast of Puerto Rico as a training exercise for a potential invasion of Cuba. President Kennedy was on hand to observe the exercise. Some 40,000 Marines was participating in this training session to disembark off of transports for a full scale landing. Minesweepers were on hand to practice clearing the shores off of Cuba of potential obstacles. Official photograph of the U.S. Navy." Bill Gonyo
    Commanding Officers
    01LT Thomas Edward Vines, USN - USNA Class of 195010 April 1955 - 8 July 1956
    02LT Charles Paul Smith, USN - USNA Class of 1948-A8 July 1956 - September 1958
    03LT Paul Joseph Smith, USNSeptember 1958 - 27 June 1959
    04LT Peter Maytham, USN27 June 1959 - 18 August 1961
    05LT Bill Clark Dean, USN18 August 1961 - 17 October 1963
    06LT Jack Lewis Roundtree, USN17 October 1963 - June 1965
    07LT Peter Fraser Hedley, USNJune 1965 - 9 December 1966
    08LT George Nicholas Gee, USN - Retired as Rear Admiral9 December 1966 - 1968
    09LT William Joseph Donnelly, USN1968
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler, Ron Reeves, Bill Gonyo and Joseph M. Radigan (of blessed memory)
    View the Limpkin (MSC 195)
    DANFS History entry located on the Haze Gray & Underway Website
    Back to the Main Photo Index Back to the Mine Warfare Ship Photo Index Back to the Motor Minesweeper (AMS) Photo Index Back to the Coastal Minesweeper (MSC) Photo Index
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    This page created and maintained by Joseph M. Radigan (of blessed memory) & David Wright

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