USS Clarion River

Clarion River sailing through the San Francisco Bay
History
United States
Name	USS Clarion River (LSM(R)-409)
Namesake	Clarion River in Pennsylvania
Builder	Charleston Navy Yard
Laid down	26 January 1945
Launched	18 February 1945
Commissioned	16 May 1945, as USS LSM(R)-409
Decommissioned	6 February 1947
Recommissioned	5 October 1950
Decommissioned	26 October 1955
Renamed	USS Clarion River, 1 October 1955
Recommissioned	18 September 1965
Decommissioned	8 May 1970
Reclassified	LFR-409 (Inshore Fire Support Ship), 1 January 1969
Honors and awards	4 battle stars (Korea) 9 campaign stars (Vietnam)
Fate	Sold for scrap, November 1970
General characteristics
Class and type	LSM(R)-401-class landing ship medium
Displacement	758 long tons (770 t) light 993 long tons (1,009 t) attack 1,175 long tons (1,194 t) full
Length	203 ft 6 in (62.03 m)
Beam	34 ft 6 in (10.52 m)
Draft	7 ft (2.1 m) forward 9 ft (2.7 m) aft
Propulsion	2 × General Motors 16-287A, non-reversing with airflex clutch, diesel engines, direct drive, 2 screws
Speed	13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph)
Complement	6 officers, 137 enlisted
Armament	1 × single 5"/38 caliber gun 2 × twin 40 mm AA guns 4 × twin 20 mm AA guns (after Korea) 4 × 4.2 in (110 mm) mortars (removed after Korea) 10 × twin-tube continuous loading 5 in (130 mm) spin stabilizer rocket launchers (two removed after Korea) 2 × .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine guns on the forecastle 2 × .30 cal machine guns on the bridge wings

USS Clarion River (LSM(R)-409) was an LSM(R)-401-class medium-type landing ship (LSM) built for the United States Navy during World War II. Named for the Clarion River in west central Pennsylvania, she was the only US Naval vessel to bear the name.

The ship was originally laid down on 26 January 1945 at the Charleston Navy Yard. Launched on 18 February 1945 and commissioned as USS LSM(R)-409 on 16 May 1945.

She was decommissioned on 6 February 1947 at San Diego, California and laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet.

LSM(R)-409 was recommissioned on 5 October 1950 for Korean War service. She was assigned to LSMR Squadron Five and participated in the following campaigns:

• Blockade of Wonsan (1951–1953)
• Communist China Spring Offensive (23 May–6 June 1951)
• UN Summer-Fall Offensive (15–30 July 1951 and 26 August–21 September 1951)
• Third Korean Winter (16–30 April 1953)
• Korean Summer-Fall (1 May–20 July 1953)

During her Korean War service, enemy aircraft attacked her in 1953, but did not damage her.^[1]

Renamed USS Clarion River (LSM(R)-409) on 1 October 1955, the ship was again decommissioned on 26 October of that year at Astoria, Oregon and laid up in the Pacific Reserve Fleet, Columbia River Group.

Clarion River was recommissioned on 18 September 1965 at the San Francisco Naval Shipyard, Hunters Point. Reclassified as an "Inshore Fire Support Ship" USS Clarion River (LFR-409) on 1 January 1969, she participated in the following campaigns:

• Vietnamese Counteroffensive (26 May–4 June 1966 and 13–30 June 1966)
• Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase II (1–2 July, 13 July–4 August, 13–29 October, 12–23 November 1966 and 30 January–13 March 1967)
• Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase III (7 June–6 July, 23 July–17 August, and 26 October–20 November 1967 and 26 December 1967–18 January 1968)
• Tet Counteroffensive (3–25 February 1968)
• Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase V (8 July–13 August and 24 August–23 September 1968)
• Vietnamese Counteroffensive - Phase VI (3 November–7 December 1968)
• Tet 69/Counteroffensive (23 February–8 June 1969)
• Vietnam Summer-Fall 1969 (9 June–31 October 1969)
• Vietnam Winter-Spring 1970 (1 November 1969–30 April 1970)

Decommissioned for the last time on 8 May 1970 at Yokosuka, Japan and struck from the Naval Vessel Register (date unknown), she was sold for scrap in November 1970 to the Nissho-Iwai American Corporation of Sasebo, Japan.

• Navy Unit Citation
• Meritorious Unit Commendation
• Combat Action Ribbon with gold star
• World War II Victory Medal
• National Defense Service Medal with star
• Korean Service Medal with four battle stars
• Vietnam Service Medal with nine campaign stars
• Korean Presidential Unit Citation
• Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross
• United Nations Korea Medal
• Korean War Service Medal
• Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal

• 
  USS Clarion River (LSM(R)-409) with the USS Carronade (IFS-1), USS White River (LSM(R)-536), and USS St. Francis River (LSM(R)-525) off Danang, South Vietnam in November 1967.
• 
  USS Clarion River (LSM(R)-409) and the USS St. Francis River LSM(R)-525 recommissioning ceremony, on 18 September 1965, at the San Francisco Naval Shipyard, Hunters Point.

• List of United States Navy LSMs

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
• "LSM(R) / LFR-409 Clarion River". Amphibious Photo Archive. Retrieved 6 July 2007.
• Muir, Malcolm, Jr. Sea Power on Call: Fleet Operations June 1951-July 1953. Washington, D.C.: Department of the Navy Naval Historical Center, 2005. ISBN 0-945274-53-X.

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