SS John Sergeant

SS John Sergeant was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after John Sergeant, an American politician who represented Pennsylvania in the United States House of Representatives. He was the National Republican Party's vice presidential nominee in the 1832 presidential election, serving on a ticket with Senator Henry Clay.

History
United States
Name: John Sergeant
Namesake: John Sergeant
Owner: War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator: Marine Transport Lines, Inc.
Ordered: as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 63
Awarded: 14 March 1941
Builder: Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland[1]
Cost: $1,075,184[2]
Yard number: 2050
Way number: 2
Laid down: 6 July 1942
Launched: 21 August 1942
Completed: 5 September 1942
Refit: converted to EC2-G-8f, 26 September 1956
Identification:
Fate:
  • Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama, 23 July 1948
  • Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, Texas, 7 October 1949
  • Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Wilmington, North Carolina, 18 July 1952
  • Withdrawn from fleet for conversion, 14 September 1955
Status: Transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service, 26 September 1956
United States
Name: John Sergeant
Owner: Military Sea Transportation Service
Operator: United States Lines Co.
Cost: $2,450,000 (refit cost)
In service: 26 September 1956
Out of service: 11 September 1959
Fate: Laid up in the James River Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, Virginia, 11 September 1959
Status: Sold for scrapping, 28 March 1972, withdrawn from fleet, 20 April 1972
General characteristics
Class and type:
Type: EC2-G-8f (1955-) (refit)
Tonnage:
Displacement:
Length:
  • 441 ft 6 in (134.57 m) oa
  • 467 ft 3 in (142.42 m) oa (refit)
Beam: 57 feet (17 m)
Draft: 27 ft 9.25 in (8.4646 m)
Installed power:
  • 2 × Oil fired 450 °F (232 °C) boilers, operating at 220 psi (1,500 kPa) (removed in refit)
  • 2,500 hp (1,900 kW)
  • gas generators (refit)
  • Gas turbine
  • 6,000 hp (4,500 kW) (refit)
Propulsion:
Speed:
  • 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
  • 18 kn (33 km/h; 21 mph) (refit trial)
Capacity:
  • 562,608 cubic feet (15,931 m3) (grain)
  • 499,573 cubic feet (14,146 m3) (bale)
Complement:
Armament:
Notes: New cargo handling gear installed during refit

Construction

John Sergeant was laid down on 6 July 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 63, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; and was launched on 21 August 1942.[1][2]

History

She was allocated to Marine Transport Lines, Inc., on 5 September 1942.[5]

On 23 July 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama. On 7 October 1949, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, Texas. On 18 July 1952, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Wilmington, North Carolina. On 14 September 1955, she was withdrawn from the fleet for test conversion to rotary compression pump fed open cycle gas turbine power. The Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Newport News, Virginia, performed the conversion and she was reclassified EC2-G-8f. Her hull was lengthened at the bow to 467 ft 3 in (142.42 m), and new rotary compressor gas generator and General Electric gas turbine, producing 6,000 shp (4,500 kW), connected directly to the ship's propeller through double reduction gear, were installed. At trials she ran over 18 kn (33 km/h; 21 mph), above the requested 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph).[4]

After conversion she was transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service. She was operated by United States Lines Co. under a bareboat charter. During her first 27,000 nmi (50,000 km; 31,000 mi) she averaged 15.4 kn (28.5 km/h; 17.7 mph) and consumed an average of 236 bbl (37.5 m3) of fuel per day, or 0.677 bbl (0.1076 m3) per mile.[4]

On 11 September 1959, she was laid up in the James River Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, Virginia. She was sold for scrapping on 28 March 1972, to Peck Iron & Metal Co., Inc., for $38,208. She was removed from the fleet, 20 April 1972.[5]

References
  1. Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyards 2008.
  2. MARCOM.
  3. Davies 2004, p. 23.
  4. USMA.
  5. MARAD.

Bibliography
  • "Bethlehem-Fairfield, Baltimore MD". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  • Maritime Administration. "John Sergeant". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  • Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 4 March 2020.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • "SS John Sergeant". Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  • "Liberty ship conversion and engine improvement program : cumulative report of progress as of November 1, 1957". 1 November 1957. Retrieved 4 March 2020. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)


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