USS Eldorado
The Eldorado was assigned to the west coast in the fall of 1953, and continued to serve as flagship for Amphibious Group 1, now commanded by Rear Admiral L. S. Sabin, Jr., until June 1954, then embarked Vice Admiral T. G. W. Settle, Commander, Amphibious Forces, Pacific, until August. On 15 February 1955 she sailed for Keeling, Formosa, where she operated as flagship for Vice Admiral A. M. Pride, Commander, 7th Fleet, until 17 August. She returned to San Diego for amphibious exercises, and on 13 December Rear Admiral G. C. Towner broke his flag on board as Commander, Amphibious Group 3 and Eastern Pacific.
In the summer of 1956 Eldorado sailed to arctic waters with Army officers
embarked, to re-supply bases at Wainwright and Point Barrow, Alaska. From December
1956 to January 1957, she was flagship for Vice Admiral C. F. Espe, Commander,
Amphibious Forces, Pacific, and during the next month, for Vice Admiral R. L.
Denison, Commander, First Fleet. From June 1957 through 1960, she served as
flagship for four successive commanders of Amphibious Group 1, Rear Admirals
F. C. Stelter, Jr., C. K. Duncan, C. O. Triebel and C. C. Kirkpatrick. The only
interruption to this service was in October and November 1958, when she served
Vice Admiral J. Sylvester, Commander, Amphibious Forces, Pacific, as flagship.
In addition to operations along the west coast from her home port at San Diego,
Eldorado took part in arctic supply operations once more in the summer of 1957,
and cruised to the Far East from January to May 1958, and again from December
1959 into 1960. During the second of these, as flagship, Eldorado participated
in exercise "Blue Star," a joint Navy-Marine and Nationalist Chinese
navy-marine amphibious operation off southern Taiwan. In April and May Eldorado
visited ports in Indonesia and Australia, participating in Australia's 18th
annual celebration of the Battle of the Coral Sea before returning to San Diego,
31 May where she remained, participating in local operations through 1962.
Eldorado received two battle stars for World War II service, and eight for Korean
war service.
USS Eldorado (AGC-11) Detailed History
USS Eldorado (AGC-11) was a Mount McKinley-class
amphibious force command ship, named after a mountain range in Nevada. She was
designed as an amphibious force flagship, a floating command post with advanced
communications equipment and extensive combat information spaces to be used
by the amphibious forces commander and landing force commander during large-scale
operations.
[edit] Commissioning and 1944
Eldorado was launched on 26 October 1943 as Monsoon by the North Carolina Shipbuilding
Company in Wilmington, North Carolina, under a Maritime Commission contract,
sponsored by Mrs. P. A. Peeples; transferred to the Navy on 1 February 1944;
converted by Bethlehem Steel Corporation in Brooklyn, New York; and commissioned
on 25 August 1944 , with Captain J. R. Wallace in command.
Eldorado sailed from Naval Station Norfolk on 15 September 1944 and arrived
at San Diego on 29 September to embark Rear Admiral Lawrence F. Reifsnider who
broke his flag as Commander, Amphibious Group 4. In November, Eldorado sailed
to Pearl Harbor and there became flagship for Vice Admiral Richmond K. Turner,
Commander, Amphibious Forces, Pacific.
[edit] 1945
After rehearsal landings in Hawaii, the command ship sailed on 27 January 1945
for the Marianas and further preparations for the assault on Iwo Jima. She also
carried General Holland Smith, USMC, and his staff, and Secretary of the Navy
James Forrestal and his party when she sailed from Saipan on 16 February for
Iwo Jima. From 19 February to 9 March, Eldorado lay off Iwo Jima, her distinguished
passengers directing operations ashore and afloat. She served as headquarters
for war correspondents, and broadcasted directly from the beachhead to the people
at home through her facilities. Through the critical period of this bloody and
arduous operation, she carried out her duties as flagship and operations center
with effective thoroughness.
Arriving at Guam on 12 March 1945, Eldorado embarked Lieutenant General Simon
B. Buckner, USA, Commanding General of the 10th Army, then after rehearsals
at Leyte in the Philippines, hove to off the Hagushi Beaches, Okinawa, for the
initial invasion landings on 1 April. Here she carried out with equal distinction
the same type of duties she had performed at Iwo Jima. Since both the Commander,
Air Support Control Unit, and the Force Fighter Director Officer were embarked,
Eldorado's combat information center was the central unit in the air defense
against the day and night air raids. General Buckner and his staff debarked
on 18 April to establish headquarters on the island itself, and until the ship's
departure on 18 May, she was visited by several distinguished guests, including
Admirals Chester W. Nimitz, William F. Halsey, Jr., and Raymond A. Spruance,
and the noted war correspondent Ernie Pyle.
Post-war
At the end of the war, Eldorado was at Manila preparing for the proposed invasion
of the Japanese home islands. She returned to Pearl Harbor in October where
Admiral Turner and his staff debarked.
Alternately at Pearl Harbor and at west coast ports, Eldorado continued to serve
as flagship for succeeding amphibious commanders in the Pacific. There were
two exceptions: From April to September 1947 and again from January to July
1949, she flew the flag of Commander, Naval Forces, Western Pacific, and cruised
to Chinese waters. During the second tour, she departed Shanghai only a short
time before that city fell to the Communists.
[edit] Korean War
With the outbreak of the Korean war Eldorado was ordered to the Far East. As
flagship for Rear Admiral Lyman A. Thackrey, Commander, Amphibious Group 3,
she acted as standby for USS Mount McKinley during the invasion of Inchon, Korea,
and coordinated and controlled the logistics operations. In October 1950, she
moved to Iwon to support the continued northwest advance of United Nations troops.
Returning to Japan in November, she was ordered again to Inchon to direct the
evacuation. She was at Inchon again in the spring and summer of 1951, and in
June hoisted the flag of Vice Admiral Ingolf N. Kiland, Commander, Amphibious
Forces, Pacific Fleet. She was visited by Generals Matthew B. Ridgeway and Van
Fleet, and the commanding generals of the British troops and Turkish Brigades
during her stay at Inchon, and sent the first pictures of the Korean truce talks
to the outside world.
1950s
Returning to the States, Eldorado became flagship for Rear Admiral W. E. Moore,
Commander, Amphibious Group 1, in October 1952, and sailed for the Far East
where Admiral Moore assumed command of TF 90's amphibious forces. During this
tour she assisted the Japanese Government during the floods at Fukuoka, and
directed Operation Big Switch, the transportation of Chinese and Korean prisoners
of war from the camps at Cheju Do and Koje-do to the port of Inchon for repatriation.
Eldorado returned to the west coast in the fall of 1953, and continued to serve
as flagship for Amphibious Group 1, now commanded by Rear Admiral Lorenzo S.
Sabin, Jr., until June 1954, then embarked Vice Admiral Thomas G. W. Settle,
Commander, Amphibious Forces, Pacific, until August. On 15 February 1955 she
sailed for Keeling, Formosa, where she operated as flagship for Vice Admiral
Alfred M. Pride, Commander, 7th Fleet, until 17 August. She returned to San
Diego for amphibious exercises, and on 13 December Rear Admiral George C. Towner
broke his flag on board as Commander, Amphibious Group 3 and Eastern Pacific.
In the summer of 1956, Eldorado sailed to arctic waters with Army officers embarked,
to resupply bases at Wainwright, Alaska, and Point Barrow, Alaska. From December
1956 to January 1957, she was flagship for Vice Admiral Carl F. Espe, Commander,
Amphibious Forces, Pacific, and during the next month, for Vice Admiral Robert
L. Dennison, Commander, United States First Fleet. From June 1957 through 1960,
she served as flagship for four successive commanders of Amphibious Group 1,
Rear Admirals Frederick C. Stelter, Jr., Charles K. Duncan, Charles O. Triebel,
and Charles C. Kirkpatrick. The only interruption to this service was in October
and November 1958, when she served Vice Admiral J. Sylvester, Commander, Amphibious
Forces, Pacific, as flagship.
In addition to operations along the west coast from her home port at San Diego,
Eldorado took part in Arctic supply operations once more in the summer of 1957,
and cruised to the Far East from January to May 1958, and again from December
1959 into 1960. During the second of these, as flagship, Eldorado participated
in exercise "Blue Star," a joint Navy-Marine and Nationalist Chinese
Navy-Marine amphibious operation off southern Taiwan. In April and May Eldorado
visited ports in Indonesia and Australia, participating in Australia's 18th
annual celebration of the Battle of the Coral Sea before returning to San Diego
on 31 May where she remained, participating in local operations through 1962.
Vietnam War
Eldorado served as flagship for the Commander Amphibious Forces Pacific Fleet
in rotation with USS Estes (AGC-12) and Mount McKinley during the Vietnam War.
In 1967 her crew earned the Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation for her role
in twelve amphibious assaults in Vietnam in conjunction with the Amphibious
Ready Group and the Marine Special Landing Force.
In January 1969, Eldorado's designation was changed to LCC-11.
Decommissioning
During her decommissioning in November 1972, she was berthed adjacent to the
USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) at the 32nd Street Naval Station in San Diego and transferred
much of her equipment to her successor prior to scrapping.
Eldorado received two battle stars for World War II service, and eight for Korean
war service.