Written by Kris Land
KEYNOTES: Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport Volume 30, November 18th, 1994, No 22 On Oct. 28, the flag was lowered for the last time on USNV New Bedford (IX-308). The out-of-service ceremony marked the end of a long and varied career for the craft and also closed a chapter in cinematic history.
Although the New Bedford (T-AKL-17) gave almost 50 years of service to the United States military, she is probably best remembered as the ship used in the filming of the 1954 movie classic "Mister Roberts."
Starring the great screen stars Henry Fonda, James Cagney and Jack Lemmon, this film was one of many comedic retrospectives of World War II.
Audio clips from the film provided backdrop for the out-of-service ceremony. Voices of "ghosts" from the past punctuated the celebration with the highlight coming at the conclusion of the ceremony when Ensign Pulver, played by Code 80's Steve Schultz, ran down the brow of the craft, palm tree in hand, to toss it over the pier in one last defiant act. Fun and theatrics aside, the ceremony also paid tribute to the craft with all the pomp and service to the military throughout her illustrious career. Musical selections were played by Navy Band Seattle, and Olympic Chorus of the Northwest (courtesy of the Federal Managers' Association) sang the National anthem and other selections.
The Honorable Rosemary Tierney, Mayor of the City of New Bedford, Mass., attended the ceremony honoring her city's namesake. She was accompanied by retired Navy Captain Frederick R. Purrington. Capt. Purrington retired with over 20 years as a former Navy pilot and past squadron commander. He spent six years and four months as a prisoner of war in Hanoi. He is currently a distinguished resident of the city of New Bedford.
New Bedford was built in 1945 at Whitestone, New York, by Wheeler Shipbuilding Company. She was originally designated FS-289 (freight and supply) as as Army cargo ship. She was transferred to the Navy in 1950 and designated the "USNS New Bedford" (AKL-17). It was her size and the fact that she was a coastal freighter sailing out of Port Hueneme (near Los Angles) that landed her the part in the movie.
The New Bedford is also the sister ship of the ill-fated Pueblo, which was captured by the North Koreans in 1968 and whose crew was imprisoned for 11 months.
The IX-308 came to Keyport in 1963 and was converted for torpedo testing duty and assigned service-craft status. During this assignment, she steamed over 310,000 nautical miles. She was equipped with both surface and underwater launchers and associated fire control equipment. She has supported proofing, acceptance testing and research work on Keyport's ranges since that time. During these pas 31 years, the New Bedford has: 1) fired over 7200 units (torpedoes, targets, etc.); 2) recovered more than 900 units; 3) planted more than 5425 range buoys; 4) retrieved over 4650 range buoys; 5) made several port calls to Vancouver and Nanaimo, British Columbia and two trips to San Diego. Where she resides now.
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1944: Camano Class Light Cargo Ship was laid down for the US Army as FS-289 at Wheeler Shipbuilding in Whitestone, NY.
1945: Delivered to US Army.
1950: Acquired by the US Navy on July 1, 1950 and placed in service as USNS New Bedford (T-AKL-17).
1954: The movie, Mister Roberts, was made on the USNS New Bedford (T-AKL-17).
1955 - 1963: Used as a cargo supply ship for the Texas Towers, a network of advanced radar stations located off the Eastern Seaboard. In 1957, Capt. Sixto Mangual was commander of the AKL-17 and in 1961 it was rechristened the USNS New Bedford. The New Bedford, sailing out of State Pier, was keeping vigil when Texas Tower No. 4 callapsed off the New Jersey coast during a January 1961 nor'easter.
1963: Reclassified as Miscellaneous Unclassified (IX-308).
1971: The New Bedford (IX-308) served as a Torpedo Test Firing Vessel in the Puget Sound area.
1994: Ceremony in New Bedford.
1995: The ship was struck from the Naval Register on April 4.
2004: The Sea Bird's current disposition is a tuna long liner (fishing boat) out of San Diego, CA.
2006: Design of the Tesla Turbine began on June 11, 2006. The Sea Bird was sold by Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service for commercial service.
2007: The Sea Bird was drydocked for renovations.
2008: The Sea Bird setting sail to Sea-Tac in Seattle, WA.
2009 - 2010: The Sea Bird is currently docked at Seattle Sea-Tac.
