USAMP Colonel George F. E. Harrison

Colonel George F. E. Harrison sailed from Milwaukee on 2 November 1920.^[4] During the voyage she put into Manitowoc when USAMP Colonel John V. White, a sister ship with which she was traveling, broke down and was towed into port.^[6] Harrison made fuel stops at Sarnia, Montreal, and Halifax.^[3] She reached Army Supply Base Brooklyn on 26 November 1920.^[4] Her first task ws to have her radio equipment installed at the Army Marine Repair Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey.^[7] She was assigned call sign WYBE.^[8]

Harrison remained in Brooklyn until 19 October 1921 when she departed for service in the Canal Zone. She arrived at Fort Sherman on 7 November 1921 after stops in Charleston, South Carolina and Cienfuegos, Cuba.^[7][4]

Harrison was assigned to the Panama Coast Artillery District, headquartered at Fort Sherman, in defense of Balboa and the Panama Canal.

On 9 August 1922 the ship was ordered to a new assignment at Manila. In September 1922 Harrison underwent a significant maintenance period in Balboa before heading across the Pacific to the Philippines.^[9] The ship departed Fort Sherman on 24 September 1922, and arrived at Manila on 11 March 1923 with stops in Manzanillo, Mexico, San Francisco, and Honolulu.^[4][7][10]

Harrison was assigned to the coast defense of Manila and Subic Bay. She replaced USAMP General Henry J. Hunt which was sold. Hunt's crew was transferred to Harrison in 1923.^[4]

Harrison's primary mission was to set and maintain electrically-fired mines in the approaches to Manila Bay and Subic Bay.^[7] She was also used for a variety of routine trips in Manila Bay, around the Philippines, and around the region. For example, in October 1926, she carried an inspection party led by General Fred Sladen, commander of the Army Department of the Philippines, to Manila's leper colony.^[11] On 14 February 1930 she towed targets for a live fire exercise of guns on Corregidor.^[12] She transported arriving personnel to Corregidor,^[13] including General Walter K. Wilson, the new commander of the harbor defenses, in 1938.^[14] Generals Lucius Holbrook, and John L. DeWitt^[15] went aboard Harrison for an inspection tour which stopped at Cullon, Puerto Princessa, Pettit Barracks in Zamboanga, and Jolo.^[16] Major General James H. McRae sailed to Sandakan, Borneo to visit with British officials in 1925.^[17]

On 21 November 1935 her station was changed from Manila to Fort Mills on Corregidor.^[4]

In July and August, 1941 Harrison set the entrance and exit minefields in Manila Bay.^[4] The ship was armed with two .30 caliber machine guns, and two .50 caliber machine guns to defend against air attack.^[18] She was in Manila on 7 December 1941 when Japan attacked the United States.^[19]

Once the conflict began, Harrison was generally responsible for maintaining the north channel through the minefield while U.S. Navy ships maintained the south channel,^[4] but under the pressure of war she did whatever job was required. She maintained mines throughout the area, ran communication cables to Corregidor, and transferred personnel, fresh water, and supplies to installations around the bay.^[20] In April 1942, after the fall of Bataan, Harrison rescued about fifty men who were attempting to swim to Corregidor.^[18]

Fuel was in short supply in Manila after hostilities commenced, and the Japanese blockade made resupply impossible. By February 1942, Harrison's operations were curtailed by lack of fuel. Her crew searched the ships which were sunk by the Japanese and found fuel aboard the wreck of S.S. San Jose. They were able to refuel Harrison and several other ships to recommence their operations.^[18]

By the beginning of May Harrison was out of fuel again. A skeleton crew of four men was kept aboard while the rest of the crew were sent to gun positions to defend Corregidor. On 3 May 1942, the ship was attacked by Japanese dive bombers and was hit twice. Her starboard superstructure was destroyed and damage was done belowdeck as well. Four men aboard at the time were killed. On 4 or 5 May 1942 Harrison was attacked again and partially sunk by Japanese dive bombers in South Bay on Corregidor.^[18]

On 30 April 1942 USAMP Colonel George F. E. Harrison and other units of the Harbor Defenses of Manila and Subic Bays were awarded the Presidential Unit Citation for their efforts.^[21]

Sometime between the surrender of Corregidor in May 1942 and July 1942, Harrison was raised by the Japanese and towed to the shipyard in Cavite.^[22] On 15 July 1942 she was renamed Harushima and classified as a cable ship. This was a function for which the ship was better prepared for than most; the Army's electrically-fired sea mines were controlled by miles-long cables laid by mine planters such as Harrison. Harushima laid electrical cables along the Japanese coast in 1944. The ship also escorted convoys and was used in anti-submarine patrols in 1944.^[23]

Harushima was strafed and briefly set afire by a P-51 Mustang near Tokyo on 19 April 1945. On 18 July 1945 Grumman TBF Avengers and F6F Hellcats from Task Force 38 attacked the Japanese Yokosuka Naval Base near Tokyo. Harushima was moored next to the battleship Nagato which was a primary target of the attack. The battleship survived the attack, but Harushima took a direct hit, broke in two and sank.^[23]