The keel was laid 8 May 1939, by the Bethlehem Steel Company, Sparrows Point Maryland where she was launched on 17 February 1940, and delivered to Delta Lines on 23 August 1940.

[3] The Navy assumed control on 9 June 1941 and stripped the ship to prepare her for war duty with commissioning on 10 October 1941 as the USS Crescent City.

She carried civilian evacuees back to San Diego, returning immediately with workers and equipment to rush repairs of the damaged naval base at Pearl Harbor.

Assigned to transport men and equipment to set up the advanced base at Efate, New Hebrides, she voyaged on this mission until arriving at San Diego 22 April 1942 for a brief overhaul.

Sailing from Brisbane, Australia, and Wellington, New Zealand to the advanced bases at Nouméa and Espiritu Santo, then dodging enemy forces to deliver men and equipment to sway the balance toward victory on Guadalcanal was Crescent City's mission through the next few months.

When the offensive began to swing north through the Solomon Islands in early 1943, she continued her transport duty to the base established on hard-won Guadalcanal.

On 28 October 1943 Crescent City sortied for the invasion of Bougainville, landing troops at Empress Augusta Bay under air attack 1 November.

On the 13th, after helping repel a torpedo bomber attack, she landed support troops brought from Tulagi and Port Purvis on Florida Island.

Crescent City was held in reserve during the assaults on Kwajalein and Eniwetok, then landed her troops and embarked casualties at Guam from 21 to 25 July 1944.

Crescent City was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation for her outstanding performance throughout World War II, and received 10 battle stars.