SS Mormacwren

Last updated February 20, 2019

Three ships of Moore-McCormack have borne the name Mormacwren

The Moore-McCormack Lines was a series of companies operating as shipping lines, operated by the Moore-McCormack Company, Incorporated, later Moore-McCormack Lines, Incorporated, and simply Mooremack, founded in 1913 in New York City. It ceased trading on its buy-out in 1982. The founders were Albert V. Moore (1880–1953) (director/president) and Emmet J. McCormack (director/treasurer), with Mr Molloy (director/secretary).

MS Mormacwren was launched in 1939 as a diesel powered Type C2 ship. She was acquired by the US Navy in 1941 as an Arcturus-class attack cargo ship and renamed USS Algorab. She was decommissioned in 1946 and sold into civilian service in 1947 as the Kamran. She was renamed Mongola in 1948, Hellenic Sailor in 1954 and was scrapped in 1973.
SS Mormacwren was launched 22 May 1942 at the Consolidated Steel Corporation's Wilmington, California yard as a Type C1-B ship. She was completed as a troop transport and transferred to the United States Maritime Commission in 1946. She was scrapped in 1965.
SS Mormacwren was launched in 1944 as a Type C2-S-B1 ship named Eagle Wing. She was purchased and renamed Mormacwren in 1947 and was sold in 1965 and renamed East Hills. She was scrapped in 1969.

Type C2 ships were designed by the United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) in 1937–38. They were all-purpose cargo ships with five holds, and U.S. shipyards built 173 of them from 1939 to 1945. Compared to ships built before 1939, the C2s were remarkable for their speed and fuel economy. Their design speed was 15.5 knots (28.7 km/h), but some could make 19 knots (35 km/h) on occasion. The first C2s were 459 feet (140 m) long, 63 feet (19 m) broad, and 40 feet (12 m) deep, with a 25-foot (8 m) draft. Later ships varied somewhat in size.

The Arcturus-class attack cargo ships were converted from other ship types by Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. in Chester, Pennsylvania, Tampa Shipbuilding Co. in Tampa, Florida, and Federal Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. in Kearny, New Jersey during World War II.

USS Algorab (AKA-8) was laid down as Mormacwren, one of the earliest Maritime Commission type C2 ships, on 10 August 1938 by the Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Chester, Pennsylvania as hull 177 for Moore-McCormack Lines. Mormacwren was acquired by the United States Navy 6 June 1941, commissioned 15 June 1941 as USS Algorab (AK-25) and was redesignated an attack transport on 1 February 1943 with the hull number chanted to AKA-8. Algorab decommissioned on 3 December 1945 and was delivered to the Maritime Commission on 30 June 1946 for disposal, purchased by Wallem & Co. on 4 April 1947 for commercial service.

This article includes a list of ships with the same or similar names. If an internal link for a specific ship led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended ship article, if one exists.

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