The USS Neville was a Heywood-class attack transport vessel with a notable service history spanning both World Wars. Originally ordered in 1918 as the British cargo ship War Harbour, she was requisitioned by the U.S. Shipping Board before completion and renamed Independence. Built at Bethlehem Steel's Alameda yard in California, she was assigned official number 217172. During her initial service, she was commissioned into the U.S. Navy on 16 November 1918, briefly serving with the Naval Overseas Transportation Service (NOTS), primarily transporting foodstuffs to England in 1919 before decommissioning on 20 March 1919. In 1920, Independence was converted to one of the first U.S. cargo ships with electric drive, using a 3,000-horsepower electric motor directly connected to her propeller shaft. She operated commercially under the USSB until 1931, when she was sold to the Baltimore Mail Steamship Company, rebuilt, and renamed City of Norfolk. She served on routes between the U.S. and Europe, and later between the U.S. East and West Coasts under Panama Pacific Line. Reacquired by the Navy in December 1940, she was converted at Willamette Iron and Steel Works and recommissioned as USS Neville (AP-16) in May 1941. She initially transported military personnel along the U.S. East Coast and in the Caribbean. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Neville undertook transoceanic voyages, including participation in the Solomon Islands campaign, notably landing Marines at Tulagi in August 1942. She also supported operations at Guadalcanal, New Caledonia, and the Gilbert and Marshall Islands, including the invasions of Tarawa and Eniwetok. As an attack transport, Neville was equipped with landing craft and armaments, including 20mm guns, and participated in numerous amphibious assaults throughout the Pacific. She earned five battle stars for her WWII service. After the war, she remained in operation, ferrying troops and veterans until her decommissioning on 30 April 1946. Transferred to the War Shipping Administration and struck from the Navy List in 1946, the ship was scrapped in 1957. Her service exemplifies early innovations in electric drive technology and her significant role in Pacific amphibious operations during WWII.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.