James Screven was laid down on 4 October 1943, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1213, by the St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida; she was sponsored by Mrs. Gardner T. Gillette, a direct descendant of the namesake, and launched on 23 November 1943.

On 1 June, she was attached to the Naval Transportation Service and, two days later, sailed for Davisville, Rhode Island, where she loaded cargo.

[4] Shaula arrived at Pearl Harbor on 13 July; discharged her cargo; and sailed for Naval Supply Depot (NSD), Oakland, California, on 3 August.

There, she was converted to a fleet issue ship for dry provisions, loaded with cargo, and ordered to return to Pearl Harbor.

From 20 September to 16 October, she discharged cargo to U.S. 3rd Fleet units and, when empty, sailed for San Pedro, Los Angeles, to reload.

She called at Pearl Harbor, and continued to Eniwetok, where she provisioned fleet units from 15 to 25 December 1944, when she moved to Ulithi.

Shaula departed Wakayama, three weeks later for Bungo Suido, to provision minesweepers; thence to Hire Wan, Nagasaki, and Sasebo.

She was included in the list of vessels on whose regular line voyages the International Refugee Organization proposed to make block bookings in the year to July 1950.