USS Marl

History
United States
Name	USS Marl
Builder	Barrett & Hilp, Belair Shipyard, San Francisco, California
Laid down	16 November 1943
Launched	2 February 1944
In service	29 August 1944
Out of service	2 August 1946
Stricken	15 August 1946
Fate	Sold, 4 September 1948
General characteristics
Class and type	Trefoil-class cargo barge
Displacement	5,281 long tons (5,366 t) light
Length	366 ft 4 in (111.66 m)
Beam	54 ft (16 m)
Draft	26 ft (7.9 m)
Propulsion	None
Speed	Not self-propelled
Complement	114 officers and men
Armament	1 × 40 mm AA gun 4 × 20 mm AA guns

USS Marl (IX-160), a Trefoil-class concrete barge designated an unclassified miscellaneous vessel, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for marl. Her keel was laid down under Maritime Commission contract (T. B7.D1) by Barrett & Hilp, Belair Shipyard, South San Francisco, California, on 16 November 1943. She was launched on 2 February 1944 sponsored by Mrs. J. M. Ryan, converted for Navy use as a cargo barge, acquired by the Navy under loan charter from the Maritime Commission on 29 August 1944; and placed in service at San Francisco the same day.

Assigned to duty with Service Squadron 8, Marl was towed to the Philippines where during the remainder of the war in the Pacific she provided facilities for storing and issuing United States Army and United States Marine Corps supplies at Leyte. On 23 September 1945 she departed San Pedro Bay under tow by Lipan (ATF-85) and headed in convoy bound for Okinawa. A vicious typhoon dispersed the convoy north of the Philippines on 29 September, and mountainous seas parted Marl from her towline early the next day. She was recovered following the storm and towed to Subic Bay on 7 October. She underwent repairs to damaged machinery and continued duty as cargo stores barge until 2 August 1946 when she was placed out of service and delivered to War Shipping Administration. Her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 15 August 1946. Marl was sold by the Maritime Commission to the Asia Development Corporation on 4 September 1948.

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

• Photo gallery at navsource.org