USS Wharton (AP-7) - Running Aground at Manus

Running Aground At Manus

On 29 February 1944, Wharton got underway for the Ellice Islands to embark the 11th and 58th Construction Battalions for transportation to the Admiralties. At 1700 on 17 April, while entering Seeadler Harbor at Manus, she ran aground due to an inaccurate chart and poor placement of buoys marking the channel. After the ship had been refloated at 0100 on the 18th, a quick check revealed no damage to her hull or machinery.

Wharton later transported 1,782 men of the Royal New Zealand Army from Green Island to Nouméa before sailing for Espiritu Santo and Guadalcanal. At the latter island — the scene of bitter struggles from August 1942 to February 1943 — the ship participated in training exercises with Transport Division 8. After two weeks of practice landings, Wharton sailed for Kwajalein with 1,587 troops of the 2nd Battalion of the 12th Marines and the 1st Battalion of the 3rd Marines embarked. At Kwajalein, she transferred the latter unit to LST's for the impending operations against the Japanese-held Marianas.

She got underway for Guam on 12 June and spent 17 days at sea before returning to Kwajalein, because fierce Japanese resistance on Saipan had forced Admiral Nimitz to postpone American landings on Guam. Underway again on 17 July, the transport made landfall off Guam four days later and soon disembarked her assault troops. That night, she retired to sea until midnight, when she reversed course to return to the beachhead for her role as casualty evacuation ship.