USS Princess Matoika
WW1 troop carrier
USS Princess Matoika
WW1 troop carrier
The Officers and crew of the Princess Matoika in 1918.
20 December 1918
St. Nazaire, Loire Inferieure, France
National Archives Ref Nbr: 111-SC-48790
Photographer: J. M. Lilles S.C.
Men of the 43rd Railway Artillery going aboard Princess Matoika
headed back to the United States
20 December 1918
St. Nazaire, Loire Inferieure, France
National Archives Ref Nbr: 111-SC-48792
Photographer: J. M. Lilles S.C.
Princess Matoika entering locks in St. Nazaire, France
Fred H. Nugent servered as a seaman in the US Navy aboard this vessel durring World War One. This ship made the Atlantic crossing between the USA and France with US troups. On May 10, 1918 Princess Matoika was part of a large convoy of 13 ships sailing Eastbound transporting her first load of troops to Europe. The other ships in the convoy were: Antigone, Kursk, Duca d' Aosta, Pastores, President Lincolin, Caserta, Lenape, Wilhelmina, Covington, Devinsk, Rijndam, and the Dante Alighieri. She was under the command of William Daniel Leahy, who won the Navy Cross as commander of Princess Matoika while transporting troops to France. Leahy later became the Governor of Puerto Rico, and the Ambassador to France in 1940.
Placed under the command of William D. Leahy in April 1918, the ship was readied for her first transatlantic troop run. At Newport News, Virginia, elements of the 4th Infantry Division boarded on 9 May 1918. Sailing at 18:30 the next day, Princess Matoika was accompanied by American transports Antigone and Susquehanna, the British steamer Kursk, and the Italian Duca d'Aosta. The group rendezvoused with a similar group that left New York the same day, consisting of President Lincoln, Kursk, Lenape, Duca d' Aosta, Covington, British troopship Dwinsk, and Italian steamers Caserta and Dante Alighieri. American cruiser Frederick served as escort for the assembled ships, which were the 35th U.S. convoy of the war. During the voyage—because of the inability to finish serving three meals for all the men during daylight hours—mess service was curtailed to two daily meals, a practice continued on later voyages. On 20 May, the convoy sighted and fired on a "submarine" that turned out to be a bucket; the next day escort Frederick left the convoy after being relieved by nine destroyers. Three days later the convoy sighted land at 06:30 and anchored at Brest that afternoon.Princess Matoika sailed for Newport News and arrived there safely on 6 June with Pastores and Lenape. Fate, however, was not as kind to former convoy mates President Lincoln and Dwinsk. On their return journeys they were sunk by German submarines U-90 and U-151, respectively.
On the 15th of June 1918 she sailed again East bound with 25 troops of HQ. CO. 57th Infantry, 102 officers and 3,416 enlisted men of the 113th Infantry and 321 casual troops of the 27th Division. On her second day out at 11:28 in the morning on 16 June she sighted at a range of 100 yards off her port quarter a periscope. Her Armed Guard crew opened fire at the target and the Captain took evasive maneuver, which broke off the attack. The Gunnery Officer reported that at least one shot probably hit the periscope. After loading officers and men from the 29th Infantry Division on 13 June 1919, Princess Matoika set sail from Newport News the next day with Wilhelmina, Pastores, Lenape, and British troopship Czar. On the morning of 16 June, lookouts on Princess Matoika spotted a submarine and, soon after, a torpedo heading directly for the ship. The torpedo missed her by a few yards and gunners manning the ship's 6-inch (150 mm) guns claimed a hit on the sub with their second shot. Later that morning, the Newport News ships met up with the New York portion of the convoy—which included ships George Washington, Covington, Rijndam, Dante Alighieri, and British steamer Vauben—and set out for France. The convoy was escorted by cruisers North CarolinaTemplate:WP Ships USS instances and Frederick, and destroyers Stevens and Fairfax; battleship Texas and several other destroyers joined in escort duties for the group for a time. The convoy had a false alarm when a floating barrel was mistaken for submarine, but otherwise uneventfully arrived at Brest on the afternoon of 27 June. Princess Matoika, Covington, Lenape, Rijndam, George Washington, DeKalb, Wilhelmina, and Dante Alighieri left Brest as a group on 30 June. The following evening at 21:15, Covington was torpedoed by U-86 and sank the next afternoon. Princess Matoika and Wilhelmina arrived back at Newport News on 13 July.
In all, she carried 21,216 troops to France on her six trips overseas. The ship departed New York on 8 August 1919 for her final roundtrip as a Navy transport. She departed Brest 23 August and returned to New York on 10 September. She was decommissioned there on 19 September 1919, and handed over to the War Department for use as a United States Army transport.
NYC newspaper article about the Princess Matoika in late May, 1920.
The Great War of 1914-1918 delayed the Olympic Games of 1916 which had been scheduled for Berlin, but the games resumed after an eight-year absence on 20 April 1920 in Antwerp. The ship arrived at New York on 23 May 1920 with little fanfare and no ceremony.
New York Times newspaper article about the Princess Matoika on January 30, 1921.
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