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INDIVIDUAL SHIP

USS Saugus

USS Saugus is preserved as one LSV hull that later received the MCS-4 designation without an MCS physical conversion.

MCS-4 · Osage MCS designation classUnited States NavyUnited StatesCold WarVerified subject image
The U.S. Navy vehicle landing ship USS Saugus (LSV-4) underway off Tampa, Florida (USA), on 5 March 1945. She is painted in Camouflage Measure 31, Design 15L.
The U.S. Navy vehicle landing ship USS Saugus (LSV-4) underway off Tampa, Florida (USA), on 5 March 1945. She is painted in Camouflage Measure 31, Design 15L.U.S. Navy Bureau of Ships photo 80-G-701180 · Public domainImage source
Hull / pennantLSV-4, MCS-4
ClassOsage MCS designation class
NavyUnited States Navy
CountryUnited States
Builder / shipyardIngalls Shipbuilding Corp.; completed by Tampa Bay Shipbuilding Co.
Laid down1942-07-27
Launched1943-09-04
Completed1945-02-22
Recorded statusScrapped

Overview

USS Saugus is preserved as one LSV hull that later received the MCS-4 designation without an MCS physical conversion.

USS Saugus is associated with United States and United States Navy. It belonged to Osage MCS designation class, so the class page provides the shared design history while this page concentrates on the individual ship.

Construction and identity

The available construction record identifies USS Saugus as built by Ingalls Shipbuilding Corp.; completed by Tampa Bay Shipbuilding Co., laid down on 1942-07-27, launched on 1943-09-04, and completed on 1945-02-22.

The ship's documented identity includes hull or pennant identifiers LSV-4 and MCS-4 and service with United States Navy.

Service history

Redesignated MCS-4 on 18 October 1956 while inactive, struck in 1961, and never converted from its LSV configuration.

The ship's configuration should be interpreted through the documented class and the dates attached to this individual vessel; equipment should not be assumed to have remained unchanged throughout service.

Class context: Osage MCS designation class

The Osage MCS designation class preserves MCS-3, MCS-4 and MCS-5 as three real LSV hulls that received MCS designations while inactive but were never physically converted to the MCS configuration.

As a member of Osage MCS designation class, USS Saugus shared the class's documented design framework and intended roles of Planned mine countermeasures support. Individual refits, transfers, and wartime changes belong to this ship only when separately documented.

Later service and disposition

Sold for scrap in July 1976 and delivered to the buyer in August. The associated date is 1976-08-09.

USS Saugus matters as an individual career within Osage MCS designation class, allowing class-wide design history to be separated from this ship's own construction, identities, service, and fate.

This ship is recorded as a member of Osage MCS designation class. Shared design history belongs on the class page; this page concentrates on the individual hull where evidence is available.

Sources and further reading

  1. Mine Countermeasures Support Ship (MCS) Index ↗NavSource Naval History · accessed 2026-09-20
  2. USS Saugus (MCS-4) / LSV-4 ↗NavSource Naval History · accessed 2026-09-20
  3. USS Osage (LSV-3) / MCS-3 designation ↗NavSource Naval History · accessed 2026-09-20
  4. USS Monitor (MCS-5) / LSV-5 ↗NavSource Naval History · accessed 2026-09-20
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