From 1944 until 1957, Niantic Victory was operated for the U.S. Maritime Commission by a succession of contractor firms. Her first operator was the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company for service during World War II starting on 18 May 1944. She supplied cargo in the Pacific Ocean for the Pacific War.
After the war on 6 November 1946 she was operated by Waterman SS Corporation as part of the Marshall Plan. On 30 May 1948 after completing her relief efforts she was removed from service and placed in the National Defense Reserve Fleet in Wilmington, N.C. She was laid up till 24 August 1950, but with a new war starting in the Far East she was remove cleaned up and chartered to Union Sulphur and Oil Company.
Korean War
During the Korean War she was operated by the Union Sulphur and Oil Company. SS Niantic Victory served as merchant marine naval supplying goods for the Korean War. About 75 percent of the personnel taking to Korean from the Korean War came by the merchant marine. SS Niantic Victory transported goods, mail, food and other supplies. About 90 percent of the cargo was moved by merchant marine naval to the war zone. SS Niantic Victory made trip between 18 November 1950 and 23 December 1952 helping American forces engaged against Communist aggression in South Korea.[1][2] At the end of the war on 8 April 1955 her operator was changed to Pope and Talbot SS Company. On 11 December 1956 operator was changed to Isbrandtsen Company till 1957. She was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet in Suisun Bay, Benicia, Calif., on 24 January 1958.
US Navy
On 11 August 1960 she was transferred to the US Navy. She was reassigned to the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) for conversion to a Missile Range Instrumentation Ship. Conversion was completed 27 November 1960 and she was renamed the USNS Watertown (T-AGM-6). She was lead ship of three ships in her class.[3]
Watertown carried instrumentation to track and record flight events for military missile and NASA crewed spacecraft, extending the coverage of the tracking network over the Pacific Ocean. She was slated at one time to be part of the Apollo 8 recovery team but was dropped from the program. In 1969, she called at Pitcairn Island.[4][page needed]
In February 1971, the Air Force decided that it no longer required Watertown's services and she was removed from service. Her name was struck from the Navy Directory on 16 February 1972, and she was returned to the Maritime Administration at its berthing facility at Suisun Bay, California, on 23 May 1974.[citation needed] She was sold to Dongkuk Steel Mill Co., Ltd on 23 May 1974 and scrapped in Pusan, South Korea.[citation needed] She arrived in South Korea on 16 July 1974.[citation needed]
