Construction and Deployment
Wachapreague (AVP-56) was laid down as a Barnegat-class seaplane tender on 1 February 1943 at Houghton Washington, by the Lake Washington Shipyard. She was reclassified as a motor torpedo boat tender and redesignated AGP-8 on 2 February 1943. She was launched on 10 July 1943, sponsored by Mrs. E. L. Barr, and commissioned on 17 May 1944, Lieutenant Commander Harold A. Stewart, USNR, in command.
Following her shakedown training out of San Diego, California, Wachapreague got underway on 18 July 1944 for Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, en route to the South Pacific. Soon thereafter, she stopped briefly at Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides, and called at Brisbane, Australia, on 17 August 1944, before reaching her ultimate destination, Milne Bay, New Guinea, on 20 August 1944.
Wachapreague dropped anchor at Motor Torpedo Boat Base 21, at that time the largest patrol torpedo boat (PT boat) operating base in the Pacific. She reported to Commander, Motor Torpedo Boats, 7th Fleet, and commenced tending the 10 PT boats from Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron (MTBRon) 12. This unit had previously taken a heavy toll of Japanese barge traffic and had wreaked much havoc upon Japanese shore installations, in almost nightly actions, during the New Guinea campaign. As Allied forces wrapped up the New Guinea operations, Wachapreague received an additional five PT boats from Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 7 (MTBRon 7) as the Navy prepared for operations to liberate the Philippines from Japanese occupation.
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