USS Diamond Head (AE-19)

USS Diamond Head (AE-19) was launched on 3 February 1945 by North Carolina Shipbuilding Co., Wilmington, N.C., under a Maritime Commission contract; sponsored by Mrs. D. Bill; transferred to the Navy on 10 March 1945; converted at Bethlehem Key Highway Shipyard, Baltimore, Md.; and commissioned on 9 August 1945, Lieutenant Commander F. C. Snow, USNR, in command.

Diamond Head reported at Norfolk to Commander, Service Force, Atlantic for duty on 20 September 1945 and after training, was used experimentally by the Bureau of Ships to test suitable markings for hospital ships. She departed Norfolk on 5 April 1946 for Galveston, Texas, arriving five days later. Diamond Head was placed out of commission in reserve there on 23 August 1946.

Diamond Head was recommissioned on 9 August 1951 as part of the naval expansion brought about by the Korean War. Reassigned to the Atlantic Fleet, the ammunition ship took her place as part of the vital logistics support force that has given the United States Navy outstanding sea-keeping ability and unprecedented mobility. She has since served in various operations along the east coast and in the Caribbean, and through 1960, has made five cruises with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean.

On 16 March, 1967, Diamond Head left Norfolk, VA, for a 9-month deployment in Vietnam. She transited the Panama Canal on 22 March arriving at Pearl Harbor on 5 April. She arrived Subic Bay, Philippines on 22 April. From May through October, the crew rearmed almost 200 ships transferring almost 12,000 t of ammunition. The ship also visited ports in Manila, Hong Kong, Sasebo Japan, Pearl Harbor, San Diego, and Panama City for much appreciated R & R. Diamond Head arrived in Norfolk on 19 December 1967 reuniting with loved ones.

The ship was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 March 1973 and sold for scrapping in 1974.