 Her keel was laid down on 1 November 1943 by Delta Shipbuilding Company in New Orleans, Louisiana (T. 2.ETI.S.C3).She was launched on 17 December 1943 sponsored by Mrs. Douglas E. Schultheiss, acquired by the Navy on a bareboat charter from the War Shipping Administration on 27 January 1944, and commissioned on 28 January 1944 with Lieutenant G Elden Spencer in command.After shakedown, "Moose" departed Balboa, Panama Canal Zone, on 15 March 1944 for the South Pacific.