days after the great typhoon which devastated the island, and arriving at her destination on 15 October where the troops were disembarked. Operation Magic Carpet On 22 October Grafton was reassigned for Operation Magic Carpet, the major transport operation undertaken for the purpose of returning millions of US servicemen to the United States. Grafton arrived at Saipan on 27 October, where she embarked 1,700 servicemen for passage to San Francisco. Arriving there on 11 November, she disembarked her passengers and then began the first of two passages to Guam to pick up more returning veterans. On 11 February 1946, Grafton arrived at Seattle with her final transport of returning servicemen. Decommissioning and fate Following the end of Magic Carpet, Grafton sailed for Norfolk, Virginia via the Panama Canal and San Francisco, arriving in Hampton Roads on 21 March 1946. On 16 May she was decommissioned, and the next day returned for disposal to the US Maritime Commission. In 1947, the Maritime Commission sold Grafton to American Mail Lines, who registered her at Portland, Oregon and dubbed her Java Mail. She continued with that company until 1969, when she was sold on to Waterman Steamship Corporation who named her Carrier Dove''. The vessel remained in service with Waterman Steamship until 1974, when she was sold to Taiwanese interests and scrapped at Kaohsiung on 28 May of the same year. References Bayfield-class attack transports Ships built in San Francisco 1944 ships World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Grafton County, New Hampshire