"196O-1972"

CAPT Currie was relieved 16 May 1960 by CAPT Leslie S. Robinson. Troops were loaded at Morehead City 17 May and CHILTON proceeded to the Mediterranean Sea with units of PHIBRON 2. Ports visited included Mallorca, Savona, Naples and Aranie Bay among others.

CHILTON was selected to support the Bay of Pigs operation when Cuban nationals planned to land on the south coast of Cuba for an invasion in 1961. This turned into a fiasco and a slaughter because of a lack of air cover claimed to have been promised by the President of the United States then withdrawn at the last minute. Fortunately, CHILTON was not directly involved but remained near Guantanamo Naval Base in the event civilians needed evacuation from the island. The CHILTON was commanded at that time by CAPT George Lawrence Block.

During the Mediterranean cruise of 1961-62 CHILTON visited the ports of Athens, Naples, Alicante, Barcelona, Genoa, Reggio and Cannes. COM J. W. Thomopson, flag of COMPHIBRON TWO and COMTASK FOR 61, was aboard on this cruise and CHILTON was commanded by CAPT Robert M. Brownlie and Executive Officer CDR Vie J. Vaughan.

CHILTON's 1963 cruise to the Mediterranean Sea allowed her crew to visit Naples, Cadiz, Capri, Rome, the Vatican, Rhodes, Izmir, Athens, Piraeus, Nice, the Riviera, Monaco, Monte Carlo and Barcelona where CAPT George Lawrence Block turned over command to CAPT Robert Good Smith on 18 May 1963.

CAPT George C. Talley was Commanding Officer and CDR W. W. Miller was Executive Officer in the spring of 1964 as the good ship USS CHILTON got underway once more on just a few hours notice for the revolution-torn shores of the Dominican Republic where, for over a month, the officers and men worked long, hard hours landing supplies and vehicles on the beaches of this small island in support of Marines and Paratroopers striving to quell riots there.

In 1965-66 CHILTON was commanded by CAPT Clarence Columbus Brock and his Executive Officer was CDR John L. Smeltzer.

CAPT Chester L. Petersen was the skipper when CHILTON took part in "STEEL PIKE I" of 1966, the largest peacetime amphibious exercise in history. Executive Officer CDR Smeltzer was replaced by CDR Homer C. Ragsdale on 18 March 1967.

On 16 January 1967 CHILTON departed Norfolk for an Operation FIREX 68 in the Caribbean with Marines of the Tenth Division who embarked at Morehead City on 17 January. On 18 January an accompanying vessel, the TACONIC, lost her helicopter and detached from GROUP TWO to do a search. They recovered all but the medical officer and one man of this medivac helicopter. CHILTON became SOPA and OTC temporarily. Marines were landed at Viequest VI on 24 January and, following stops at San Juan and St. Thomas, CHILTON arrived back at Norfolk 15 February. At this time the aft 5 inch mount was permanently removed from the fantail. April through July saw local operations, a cruise for seminarians, Marine officer training and midshipment training. On 4 August CAPT Petersen was relieved by CAPT Wayne Stuart Nelson. CHILTON left Norfolk 16 August for the Mediterranean where she took part in PHIBLEX 5-68 at Timbakion then a five day visit to Izmir from the 25th of September. Following an Aegean Sea Cruise to Saros Bay and Corfu she proceeded to Naples. Interspersed with PHIBLEX 7-68 and CARBOLANDEX I (PHIBLEX 8-68) were visits to Melieha Bay and Valletta, Malta and Valencia and to Carboneras, Spain. CHILTON spent 8 days at Toulon, France preparing for PHIBLEX 9-68 at Lovo Santo, Corsica. The holidays were spent at Genoa, Italy where the crew enjoyed tours to Paris, Rome, London, Switzerland and Germany.

Following turnover at Gibralter 21 January 1968, CHILTON headed home to Norfolk arriving 3 February and had her main engine overhauled until 1 May. Following a visit to New York City from 11 to 13 May, CHILTON underwent inspection and a shakedown cruise to Onslow Beach, NC.

On 12 July CAPT Nelson was relieved by CAPT William F. Cantwell, Jr. who took his ship on 26 July to the Mediterranean with BLT 3/2 of Marines. From July to December 1968 CHILTON took part in four different exercises with PHIBSTRIKFORSIXTHFLT in the Mediterranean Sea. Leaving Norfolk 24 July and visiting Almeria, Valletta and Malta enroute, OP "DEEP FURROW" took place at Nea Peramos 17-28 August. After visiting Izmir, Navplion and Naples enroute, Saros Bay was the scene of the second exercise 7-12 October. After another stop at Valletta the next exercise took place at Porto Scudo 26 October to 5 November. A stop at Barcelona preceded the last exercise at Carboneras 20-27 November. CDR Joshua Jacob Nelson replaced CDR Ragsdale as Executive Officer on 18 November 1968.

Thanksgiving was celebrated enroute to our home port of Norfolk which was reached 11 November 1968. All hands had Christmas leaves at home in Norfolk this year.

From December 1969 until August 1970 CHILTON's commanding officer was CAPT J. Haslip and her executive was CDR J. J. McAdams.

On 1 July 1972 CHILTON was surveyed and on that same date she was struck from the Registry of Ships. When she was removed from active shipping, she was put into "mothballs" in the James River storage area. It wasn't until 1 July 1974 that she was sold by the Navy to Ships Incorporated of Camden, NJ. She was towed down the James River 6 August 1974 out of the spare ships anchorage known as the "Ghost Fleet" off Fort Eustis. Nothing more is known of her subsequent fate but our best research would indicated that the USS CHILTON was finally towed to a dock in Camden, NJ where she was cut up and sold as scrap by a firm known as Ship's Inc. which no longer exists. It is entirely possible that the bulk of her metal found its way to Kaosiang, Taiwan where so many of our best ships finally found a new life in some other form. And so..........