Named for Portage
la Prairie, Man., she was commissioned at Port Arthur
on October 22, 1943, and arrived at Halifax on November
28. After working up in St. Margaret's Bay Portage
was assigned to EG W-2 of Western Escort Force as
Senior Officer's ship, late in January, 1944. In mid-April
she was transferred, still as S.O., to W-3, and continued
as such until late October, when she underwent an
extensive refit at Liverpool, N.S. She then proceeded
to Bermuda for workups, rejoining W-3 in March, 1945.
The group was disbanded in June and Portage was placed
in maintenance reserve at Sydney and then at Halifax,
where she was paid off on July 31, 1946. She was reactivated
for training purposes during the summers of 1947 and
1948, and spent most of the period between 1949 and
1959 in the same role, much of the time on the Great
Lakes. She was finally paid off on September 26, 1958,
and scrapped at Sorel three years later.
