The ship’s construction was based on a special design prepared by the firm of Gibbs and Cox to meet requirements of the War Department and the U.S. Army.

(see Mediterranean Theater below) In February she sailed, via Davisville, Rhode Island, where she loaded men of the Naval Construction Battalions to Norfolk, Virginia and then to Panama, thence to Pearl Harbor, arriving at Honolulu 16 March 1944.

The Frederick Funston returned to Los Angeles, and from there went to San Francisco, where she was redelivered to the Army in Early April 1946.

The transport returned to North Africa to load reinforcements whom she landed at Salerno on 22 and 23 September, then made three voyages from Oran to Naples carrying Army service troops, engineers, and rangers.

On 30 November, she cleared Oran for Northern Ireland with paratroopers on board, and after disembarking them, sailed on to New York, arriving 31 December 1943.

After loading men of naval construction battalions at Davisville, Rhode Island, Frederick Funston sailed for the Pacific, arriving at Honolulu 16 March 1944.

During August, the transport joined in training operations in the Hawaiian Islands, then crossed to Manus, from which she sailed 14 October for the invasion of Leyte.

Completing her unloading the next day, Frederick Funston sailed by way of Leyte and Ulithi to Guam to embark Marines for the assault on Iwo Jima.

Another voyage was made to carry occupation troops to the Marianas and return veterans to the United States between 22 December and 7 February 1946.