USS Manatee ( AO - 58 ) The USS " Manatee " ( AO - 58 ) , the second U . S . Naval vessel to bear the name , was the " Cimarron " - class fleet replenishment oiler named for a river in Florida . Cimarron class oilers were named after American Indian rivers in the southern United States . " Manatee " was laid down 28 August 1943 by the Bethlehem Sparrows Point Shipyard , Inc . of Sparrows Point , Maryland as a Maritime Commission type ( T3 - S2 - A3 ) tanker hull with a cargo capacity of 146 , 000 barrels , under Maritime Commission contract ( MC hull 724 ) ; launched 18 February 1944 ; sponsored by Mrs . Paul V . McNutt ; and commissioned 6 April 1944 with Lieutenant Commander Joseph B . Smyth in command . Service history . World War II . Shortly after a ten - day shakedown period , " Manatee " departed the Chesapeake Bay area for the Dutch West Indies . Loading at that oil center , she got underway for the Panama Canal and the Pacific . Arriving at Eniwetok 16 June , she replenished the amphibious forces then invading Saipan . She shuttled from Eniwetok to the fueling areas throughout the campaigns for Saipan , Tinian , and Guam , until moving to Manus , largest of the Admiralty Islands , 20 August . From Manus , she continued carrying fuel and other supplies to fast carrier groups through the Battle for Pelelieu and the first phase of the Philippine Campaign . By 20 October , when " Manatee " departed Manus for the last time , Ulithi Atoll had been secured and had become the center for the fleet oilers . From the Admiralties , " Manatee " proceeded north to support the forces then covering the Leyte landings . Her fueling activities kept her in the Philippines until late February 1945 , when she returned to Ulithi . From Ulithi she steamed back to Leyte Gulf to fuel the amphibious forces gathering for the Okinawa campaign . On 28 March she began shuttling oil from Ulithi to the carrier groups operating in the Battle of Okinawa . She continued to work this supply line until the securing of the island 21 June 82 days after the landings . On 2 July , " Manatee " was ordered to join other fast oilers in lending close support to carrier groups during strikes on the Japanese home islands . The oilers moving at night to rendezvous with the carriers , refueled them within of the enemy ’ s coastline and then retired . Efficient organization and rapid routing of empty oilers to Ulithi for refueling resulted in an ample supply of fuel oil for the fleet carrier forces . Crew Members Seman First Class – Donald Mason ( 1944 – 1946 ) Post - war . With the cessation of hostilities 15 August , " Manatee " sailed for Ulithi en route to San Pedro , California , arriving 7 October 1945 . The oiler soon again departed the west coast for the Far East , returning to the western Pacific at the end of November to support the occupation operations . She made three round trip voyages between the oil ports on the Persian Gulf and Tokyo before sailing for Hawaii . Overhaul completed at Pearl Harbor she departed Hawaii 11 September 1947 for the Persian Gulf . On this voyage the oiler was loaded at Ras Tanura , Arabia and off - loaded at Norfolk , Virginia having arrived 17 November via the Suez Canal and Gibraltar . Early the next year she departed for the Persian Gulf and made two voyages to Japan from Bahrein before returning to Norfolk 22 April 1948 . She then commenced shuttle trips between Aruba , Bayonne , New Jersey , and NS Argentia , Newfoundland . Departing the latter port 2 June , she steamed via the Persian Gulf and Japan for California , arriving 20 August . On 6 January 1949 the oiler departed Long Beach , California for the western Pacific . Having completed three round trip cruises between Sasebo and the Persian Gulf , she returned to the west coast 17 July . At San Francisco , her rig for fueling at sea was removed and " Manatee " began 20 months ' service as an MSTS vessel . At first operating along the West Coast , her assignments soon extended to the Caribbean , gulf and east coasts . Before October 1950 she made four trips to Norfolk via the Panama Canal Zone and the Dutch West Indies , as well as several shuttle trips between the latter and east coast ports . On 27 October , she departed Boston for Ras Tanura on the Persian Gulf . By 17 February , having called at Manila , Yokosuka , and Pearl Harbor , she was back at Long Beach . There she was reequipped for fueling at sea and again became a fleet oiler to support the fleet in Korean War . Korean War . On 17 March 1951 " Manatee " arrived in Japanese waters to begin her first annual WesPac deployment . After brief periods at Tokuyama and Sasebo , she received orders to replenish the Taiwan Straits Patrol . She returned to Sasebo 20 May and commenced servicing United Nations ships in combat areas off the Korean coast . She continued to operate out of Sasebo for the next five months , returning to Long Beach 11 August . Her next two WestPac deployments , 21 March to 19 October 1952 and 6 February to 29 July 1953 , followed the same pattern , one month with the Taiwan Straits Patrol and the remainder of the tour operating out of Sasebo in support of Korean operations . For the next five years " Manatee ’ s " operating schedule continued to be six months in the western Pacific , six months on the west coast . During this period , she participated in fleet operations and in underway training exercises , as well as undergoing regular overhauls . Included in her Pacific deployment for 1954 was the replenishment of the ships present in the Marshall Islands for the March hydrogen bomb tests . " Manatee " received eight battle star s for World War II service and six for Korean War service . Vietnam War . Scheduled for only four months deployment in the western Pacific in 1958 , mid - May through mid - September , " Manatee " remained an extra month to service the ships called to the area during the Formosa crisis over Quemoy and Matsu islands . The following year , after her four months WestPac duty , " Manatee " was chosen , because of consistently efficient service , to take part in a joint Canadian - American replenishment demonstration held 8 October 1959 for the 14th Annual Conference of the National Defense Transportation Association . In the year that followed " Manatee " continued to alternate duty on the west coast with Far Eastern service . She was one of seven ships chosen to visit Australia , 29 April – 13 May , for the 1963 Coral Sea celebration . With the stepped - up operations in Vietnam , " Manatee ’ s " 1964 WestPac tour was extended to 8½ months , May 1964 through January 1965 . During this period she operated principally in the South China Sea . South China Sea operations also occupied most of her 1966 , 1967 , and 1968 tours , replenishing the ships of the 7th Fleet on patrol in that area in support of the Vietnam War . After refueling the aircraft carrier " Ticonderoga " off the southern California coast on 20 August 1971 ; a valve on the " Manatee " was left open and about 1000 gallons ( 3800 liters ) of " Bunker C " fuel oil were spilled . This created 30mile - long ( 50 km ) oil slick that happened to wash ashore on the beach of President Nixon ' s Western White House in San Clemente , California . The Navy took charge of the clean up efforts and sent 100 sailors and Marines to clean the beaches . Decommissioned in July 1973 , " Manatee " was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 14 August 1973 . Transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal , she was sold for scrapping , 10 December 1973 , to Zidell Exploration of Portland , Oregon .