USNS Catawba
1979 Powhatan-class fleet ocean tug
USNS Catawba is a Powhatan-class tugboat operated by the Military Sealift Command for the United States Navy. It is currently based in Manama, Bahrain. It was launched in 1979 and is the last ship of its class still in service. In December 2020, the Navy announced its intention to retire Catawba during fiscal year 2023.
Construction and characteristics
The contract for the first four Powhatan-class tugs was awarded to Marinette Marine on 12 September 1975. Catawba was the third of these vessels to be launched. The contract price for the four ships was $30.5 million.
Catawba's keel was laid down on 14 December 1977 at Marinette's shipyard. She was launched on 22 September 1979, and christened by Mrs. James R. Derusha, wife of the president of Marinette Marine.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “USNS Catawba” as 1979 Powhatan-class fleet ocean tug. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as 1979 Powhatan-class fleet ocean tug. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q174780. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1979, 2020, 2023 and 1975.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “USNS Catawba”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow USNS Catawba primary sources, USNS Catawba archive and USNS research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “USNS Catawba”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “USNS Catawba” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.