USS Matar
USS Matar (AK-119) was a , converted from a Liberty Ship, commissioned by the US Navy for service in World War II. She was first named after Napoleon B. Broward, an American river pilot, captain, and politician; he was elected as the 19th Governor of the US state of Florida. She was renamed and commissioned after Matar, a binary star in the constellation of Pegasus. She was responsible for delivering troops, goods and equipment to locations in the war zone. Construction Napoleon R. Broward was laid down on 16 October 1943, under Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1214, by the St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida; she was sponsored by Mrs. Napoleon B. Broward, widow of the namesake, and launched 30 November 1943. Acquired by the US Navy under bareboat charter 10 December 1943; converted for Navy use by Merrill Stevens Drydock & Repair Co., Jacksonville; and commissioned as Matar at Jacksonville, 17 May 1944. Service history After completing conversion, Matar steamed to Norfolk, Virginia, 28 May, for shakedown in Chesapeake Bay. Thence, she loaded cargo at Davisville, Rhode Island, and Bayonne, New Jersey, before departing New York, for the Pacific Ocean 25 June, arriving Pearl Harbor, 25