SS Hendrik Willem Van Loon

SS Hendrik Willem Van Loon was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Hendrik Willem Van Loon, a Dutch-American historian, journalist, and children's book author.

History
United States
Name:	Hendrik Willem Van Loon
Namesake:	Hendrik Willem Van Loon
Owner:	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator:	United States Lines Co.
Ordered:	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2482
Awarded:	23 April 1943
Builder:	St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida[1]
Cost:	$1,180,861[2]
Yard number:	46
Way number:	4
Laid down:	5 May 1944
Launched:	14 June 1944
Sponsored by:	Eliza Helen van Loon
Completed:	2 July 1944
Identification:	Call sign: WQFP [2]
Fate:	Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Astoria, Oregon, 15 May 1947
Status:	Sold for scrapping, 19 April 1965
General characteristics [3]
Class and type:	Liberty ship type EC2-S-C1, standard
Tonnage:	10,865 LT DWT 7,176 GRT
Displacement:	3,380 long tons (3,434 t) (light) 14,245 long tons (14,474 t) (max)
Length:	441 feet 6 inches (135 m) oa 416 feet (127 m) pp 427 feet (130 m) lwl
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) 2,500 hp (1,900 kW)
Propulsion:	1 × triple-expansion steam engine,  (manufactured by Joshua Hendy Iron Works, Sunnyvale, California) 1 × screw propeller
Speed:	11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity:	562,608 cubic feet (15,931 m^3) (grain) 499,573 cubic feet (14,146 m^3) (bale)
Complement:	38–62 USMM 21–40 USNAG
Armament:	Varied by ship Bow-mounted 3 inches (76 mm)/50 caliber gun Stern-mounted 4 inches (102 mm)/50 caliber gun 2–8 × single 20 millimeters (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft (AA) cannons and/or, 2–8 × 37 millimeters (1.46 in) M1 AA guns

Construction

Hendrik Willem Van Loon was laid down on 5 May 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2482, by the St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida; sponsored by Eliza Helen van Loon, the widow of the namesake, and was launched on 14 June 1944.[1][2]

History

She was allocated to the United States Lines Co., on 2 July 1944. On 15 May 1947, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Astoria, Oregon. On 1 July 1954, she was withdrawn from the fleet to be loaded with grain under the "Grain Program 1954", she returned loaded on 15 July 1954. On 8 October 1956, she was withdrawn to be unload, she returned on empty 12 October 1956. She was sold for scrapping, 19 April 1965, to Zidell Explorations, Inc., for $46,111.64. She was removed from the fleet on 21 May 1965.[4]

References

1. St. John's River SBC 2010.
2. MARCOM.
3. Davies 2004, p. 23.
4. MARAD.

Bibliography

• "St. John's River Shipbuilding, Jacksonville FL". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 16 October 2010. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "Hendrik Willem Van Loon". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 24 January 2020.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• "SS Hendrik Willem Van Loon". Retrieved 24 January 2020.