USS Venture ( MSO - 496 ) USS " Venture " ( AM - 496 / MSO - 496 ) was an " Aggressive " - class minesweeper acquired by the U . S . Navy for the task of removing mines that had been placed in the water to prevent the safe passage of ships . The third ship to be named " Venture " by the Navy , " MSO - 496 " was laid down on 11 January 1955 at Ft . Lauderdale , Florida , by Broward Marine Inc . as " AM - 496 " ; redesignated " MSO - 496 " on 7 February 1955 ; launched on 27 November 1956 ; sponsored by Mrs . Leroy Williams , wife of the Governor of Florida ; and commissioned on 3 February 1958 , Lt . Comdr . James H . Agles in command . East Coast service . Following shakedown training at Guantanamo Bay , Cuba , during March and April , " Venture " conducted local minesweeping operations out of Charleston , South Carolina , until late June at which time she entered the Charleston Naval Shipyard for post - shakedown availability . That repair period lasted until 1 December when she began preparations to deploy to the Mediterranean Sea . Although her home port was changed from Charleston , South Carolina , to Panama City , Florida , on New Year ' s Day 1959 , the minesweeper embarked upon her first Mediterranean cruise from the former port on 9 January as the flagship of Mine Division ( MinDiv ) 81 . After a routine tour of duty with the U . S . 6th Fleet , " Venture " returned to Charleston on 30 May for a tender availability at the naval shipyard and normal operations out of Charleston until late summer . Venture changes homeports to Panama City , Florida . On 3 August 1959 , the minesweeper departed Charleston , bound finally for Panama City , Florida , her new home port . For the next dozen years , she served the Navy ' s Mine Defense Laboratory located there . For the remainder of her career , the minesweeper and her division mates helped that institution to develop mine warfare countermeasures . When not operating under the auspices of the laboratory , she performed mine warfare training exercises under the direction of the Commander , Mine Squadron 8 . In addition , she periodically provided services in support of the research and developmental work carried on by the Operational Test and Evaluation Force — frequently in conjunction with the Naval Mine Defense Laboratory mentioned above — and by the Naval Ships Research and Development Center ( popularly dubbed the David Taylor Model Basin ) located at Carderock , Maryland . Second deployment with the Sixth Fleet . During that time period , " Venture " departed the immediate area of the eastern Gulf of Mexico infrequently . On occasion , she made visits to Norfolk , Virginia , Charleston , and Mobile , Alabama , but those calls either were very brief or were made strictly for the purpose of repairs and availabilities . Early in 1969 , however , she did clear the Panama City area for a tour of duty overseas . Between 10 January and 16 June 1969 , she made her second and last deployment to the 6th Fleet — almost a decade to the day after she had begun her first Mediterranean mission . Mine countermeasures duties . Back in Panama City by mid - June , the minesweeper resumed duty assisting in the development of mine countermeasures . That task carried the warship through the last two years of her naval career . Just before she began inactivation preparations , she became flagship of MinDiv 21 when the Atlantic Fleet Mine Force was reorganized ; and MinDiv 81 was transformed into MinDiv 21 . " Venture " began preparations for her inactivation on 3 May 1971 at Charleston . She was decommissioned there on 2 August 1971 and , on 10 November , was berthed with the Norfolk Group , Atlantic Reserve Fleet . Decommissioning . In September 1977 , " Venture ' s " name was struck from the Navy list . She was sold for scrapping for $ 27 , 019 in 1978 .