Laid down as Katkay under a Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1351) on 14 August 1943 at Wilmington, N.C., by the North Carolina Shipbuilding Company; launched on 19 October 1943; sponsored by Miss Julia Raney; acquired by the Navy on 31 January 1944; converted at Hoboken, New Jersey, New Jersey, N.J., by the Bethlehem Steel Co., for naval service as an amphibious force flagship; renamed Auburn and designated AGC-10; and placed in commission at Hoboken, New Jersey on 20 July 1944, Capt. Ralph Orsen Myers in command.