Arizona On The Ocean: The Story Of The USS Bisbee

Arizona's a landlocked state, meaning there is no point of connection to an open body of water anywhere. Closest chance you have is a five hour drive to Puerto Peñasco, Mexico.

Because of this distance from any sort of water, you might not expect a naval vessel to carry the name of anywhere in Arizona, least of all a small mining town with a population under 10,000.

The USS Bisbee

As World War II reached its peak, the United States was in need of a lot of ammo. The military began commissioning new wartime equipment like they were pancakes on a griddle. One of which, was the USS Bisbee, a Patrol Frigate launched from Los Angeles on September 7th, 1943.

Initially, the Bisbee helped the pacific campaign, patrolling New Guinea and aiding invasions of Biak Island and Leyte. Eventually, on December 14th, 1944 she was stationed at Pearl Harbor. Only a few weeks later, the Bisbee made her way to Alaska as part of Project Hula, which saw the transfer of US Naval Vessels to the Soviet Navy.

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Read More: The Weird and Wild World of Bisbee, Arizona

привет EK-17!

Renamed to EK-17 as an Escort Ship, the Bisbee began its service in the Soviet Navy, although saw very little action in this time period. In 1946, the U.S. Navy began looking to take back the ships they had traded with the Soviets, including our beloved Bisbee.

On November 1st, 1949, the Bisbee returned to her original owners at a U.S. Military base in Yokosuka, Japan. There, she sat, looking pretty and waiting for her next chance. She found that chance on October 18th, 1950, when she was recommissioned and sent to Korea. There, she primarily focused on patrols and escorts, while occasionally joining in on bombardment.

The USS Bisbee was decommissioned for good on October 20th, 1951, before being transferred to Columbia, and being scrapped in 1963.

[US Coast Guard][USS Bisbee via Wikipedia]