USS Shoshone ( AKA - 65 ) USS " Shoshone " ( AKA - 65 ) was a of the United States Navy , named after a river in Wyoming . She was designed to carry military cargo and landing craft , and to use the latter to land weapons , supplies , and Marines on enemy shores during amphibious operations . USS " Shoshone " served as a commissioned ship for 21 months . She was laid down as a Type C2 - S - AJ3 ship on 12 May 1944 under Maritime Commission contract ( MC hull 1388 ) by the North Carolina Shipbuilding Company , Wilmington , North Carolina , and launched on 17 July 1944 , sponsored by Mrs . N . J . Smith . Briefly in commission , from 31 August to 4 September 1944 , for the voyage from Wilmington to the Charleston Navy Yard , where she completed fitting out and was commissioned on 24 September 1944 , Lt . Comdr . Stanley E . Melville , USNR , in command . Service history . World War II , 1944 – 1945 . " Shoshone " arrived at Norfolk on 5 October 1944 and underwent shakedown training in Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay from 7 to 18 October . After repairs , she arrived at Bayonne , New Jersey , on 26 October to load cargo for the Pacific . Underway from Bayonne on 2 November , she transited the Panama Canal on the 9th and arrived on the 22nd at Pearl Harbor , where she discharged her cargo . After undergoing amphibious training from 6 to 16 December , she loaded assault cargo and personnel of the 5th Marines at Maui , from 4 to 9 January 1945 . She underwent additional training between 12 and 14 January ; but , on 13 January , rammed her stern , necessitating repairs at Pearl Harbor from 14 to 25 January . " Shoshone " departed Pearl Harbor on 25 January and arrived at Saipan on 11 February . She participated in an invasion rehearsal off Tinian the next day , and departed Saipan on 16 February for the invasion of Iwo Jima . She arrived off Iwo Jima early on 19 February , sent her boats to help offload troops from the attack transports , and discharged small amounts of high priority cargo as called for by the troops ashore . On 26 February , general unloading of cargo began , and " Shoshone " completed unloading on 1 March and departed Iwo Jima the same day . " Shoshone " arrived at Saipan on 4 March and completed loading personnel and equipment of the 2nd Marine Division by the 8th . She underwent training at Tinian between 17 and 19 March , and departed Saipan on 27 March for the Okinawa invasion . She arrived off Okinawa on 1 April , but never landed her troops there — she was ordered to a position 350 miles southeast of Okinawa on 7 April ; and , on 11 April , was ordered to return to Saipan . Arriving there on 14 April , she offloaded her troops and supplies on 23 May . On 4 June 1945 , " Shoshone " departed Saipan ; and for the next three months , she carried cargo between Western Pacific bases . Post - war activities , 1945 – 1946 . " Shoshone " arrived at Manila on 10 September , and sailed on 17 September as part of a force carrying occupation troops of the 81st Army Division and other 8th Army units to Aomori , Honshū , Japan . She arrived there on 25 September , moved to Otaru Harbor , Hokkaidō , on 5 October ; and offloaded her troops and supplies on 6 and 7 October . Departing Hokkaidō on 12 October , she loaded additional Army troops and equipment at Leyte Gulf between 21 and 29 October , and arrived back at Aomori on 5 November . On 19 November , " Shoshone " sailed from Japan for Seattle with 411 homeward - bound servicemen . Arriving on 29 November , she underwent repairs until 23 December , when she sailed for San Francisco . Between 6 January and 15 February 1946 , she made a round - trip from San Francisco to Pearl Harbor ; and , on 16 May , departed San Francisco with supplies for Kwajalein and Guam . Departing Guam on 25 April , she transited the Panama Canal on 18 and 19 May and arrived at Norfolk , Virginia , on 24 May for deactivation . Decommissioning and sale . " Shoshone " was decommissioned on 28 June 1946 , transferred to the War Shipping Administration on 30 June and struck from the Navy List on 19 July . Sold into mercantile service as " Alameda " in 1947 , she was renamed " Hawaiian Trader " in 1961 , " Short Hills " in 1961 , " Colorado " in 1964 , and " U . S . Mate " in 1966 , before being scrapped in 1971 at Kaohsiung , Taiwan . Awards . " Shoshone " received two battle stars for her World War II service .