USS Neosho, a 7470-ton Cimarron class oiler built at Kearny, New Jersey, was commissioned in August 1939. In the months before the United States entered World War II, she was employed transporting fuel to Hawaii. When the Japanese raided Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, Neosho was docked in the "Battleship Row" attack area, but escaped with slight damage. During the following months, she actively supported U.S. Navy forces as they attempted to disrupt the Japanese offensive and establish a stable defensive perimeter in the Southern Pacific. On 7 May 1942, after supplying fuel to USS Yorktown (CV-5) immediately before the Battle of Coral Sea, Neosho was attacked by Japanese carrier aircraft. She was badly damaged and her escort, USS Sims (DD-409), was sunk. For four days, her crew kept the crippled oiler afloat, but she was beyond saving. Neosho was sunk by USS Henley (DD-391) on 11 May 1942, after her surviving crewmen were rescued.