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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USS Kaweah (AO-15)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Uniform - Golf - Kilo
NUGK
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Defense Medal (with "A" device)
Bottom Row - American Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal
Kaweah Class Fleet Oiler:
  • Laid down, date unknown, under a United States Shipping Board (USSB) contact at William Cramp and Sons, Philadelphia, PA.
  • Launched in 1919
  • Acquired from the USSB, 20 October 1921
  • Commissioned USS Kaweah (AO-15), 28 December 1921, LCDR. O. Bevelagua, USNRF, in command
  • Decommissioned, 15 August 1922, at Norfolk, VA.
  • Laid up in Reserve
  • Recommissioned, 16 December 1940, CDR. Charles B. McVay in command
  • Decommissioned, 16 November 1945
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 28 November 1945
  • Transferred to the War Shipping Administration, 28 May 1946, for disposal
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping 28 May 1946 to Boston Metals Co., Baltimore, MD. for $15,500.00 (PD-X-145). Withdrawn from the James River Reserve Fleet and delivered to Boston Metals, 11 June 1946. Scrapping completed, 1 July 1947
    Specifications:
    Displacement 4,410 t.(lt) 14,950 t.(fl)
    Length 446'
    Beam 58' 2"
    Draft 25' 6"
    Speed 11.3 kts.
    Complement
    Officers 15
    Enlisted 237
    Largest Boom Capacity 8 t.
    Cargo Capacity 9,000 DWT
    Oil 53,100 Bbls
    Gasoline 358, 000 Gals
    Armament
    two single 5"/38 dual purpose gun mounts
    four twin 40mm AA gun mounts
    two single .50 cal mgs.
    two single .30 cal mgs.
    Fuel Capacity
    NSFO 5,935 Bbls
    Propulsion
    one Cramp triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine
    three single end boilers, 190psi °Sat
    Ship's Service Generators
     two turbo-drive 75Kw 120V D.C.
     one turbo-drive 60Kw 120V D.C.
    single propeller, 2,800shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    Kaweah
    091901503    		 117k
    Namesake
    Kaweah - The lower Kaweah River at Terminus Dam, Tulare County, CA., looking towards Three Rivers and Sequoia National Park in the Sierra Nevada, 31 December 2006.
    Photo by Phil Mieszkowski    		 Tommy Trampp
    Wright
    09410154    		 60k Panorama view of U.S. Navy Yard, Philadelphia, PA., looking out into the Delaware River, circa 1921. Visible ships include (left to right):
    Lighter-than-Air Aircraft Tender USS Wright (AZ-1);
    Submarine Tender USS Fulton (AS-1);
    Collier USS Saturn (AG-4);
    Cargo Ship USS Gold Star (AK-12);
    Oiler USS Kaweah (AO-15);
    Stores Ship USS Yukon (AF-9)
    and the Destroyer Tender USS Dobbin (AD-3).
    U.S Naval History and Heritage Command. Photo # S-574-I    		 Robert Hurst
    Wright
    09410156    		 68k A second panorama view of U.S. Navy Yard, Philadelphia, PA., looking out into the Delaware River, same day, circa 1921. Visible ships include (left to right):
    Lighter-than-Air Aircraft Tender USS Wright (AZ-1);
    Submarine Tender USS Fulton (AS-1);
    Collier USS Saturn (AG-4);
    Cargo Ship USS Gold Star (AK-12);
    Oiler USS Kaweah (AO-15);
    Stores Ship     USS Yukon (AF-9)
    and the Destroyer Tender USS Dobbin (AD-3)
    Destroyers;
    USS Simpson (DD-221),
    USS Ellis (DD-154),
    USS MacLeish (DD-220),
    USS Blakeley (DD-150),
    and the minesweeper USS Cormorant (AM-40),
    . The U.S. Army blimp D-4 is airborne over the Delaware River in the background.
    U.S Naval History and Heritage Command. Photo # S-574-J    		 Robert Hurst
    Kaweah
    091901504    		 181k USS Kaweah underway with 5" gun on bow added by CDR. Charles B. McVay III, 28 December 1941.
    Photo by LTjg. H Todd Stradford, medical officer. llicensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license    		 Robert Hurst
    Kaweah 139k USS Kaweah near Norfolk Navy Yard, 13 June 1943.
    US National Archives, RG-19-LCM. Photo # 19-N-51952, courtesy Shipscribe.com.    		 Robert Hurst
    Kaweah 53k USS Kaweah underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from the collections of the US Navy Memorial.    		 Stan Svec
    USS Kaweah (AO-15)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LCDR. Bevelagua, Ottorino USNRF28 December 1921 - 15 August 1922
     Decommissioned15 August 1922 - 15 December 1940
    02CDR. McVay III, Charles Butler :RADM15 December 1940 - 1942
    03CDR. Haff, Theodore Germond1942 - January 1943
    04CDR. Fluck, Herbert ByronJanuary 1943 - 5 December 1944
    05CDR. Hyatt, Delwyn5 December 1944 - 16 November 1945
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    MARAD Vessel History Database
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Service Force Ship Type Index Back To The Fleet Oiler (AO) Photo Index
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 2 January 2026