SS Nathanael Greene

Last updated
History
US flag 48 stars.svgUnited States
NameNathanael Greene
Namesake Nathanael Greene
Builder North Carolina Shipbuilding Company, Wilmington, North Carolina
Yard number2
Way number2
Laid down22 May 1941
Launched17 January 1942
Out of service24 February 1943
FateScrapped 1948
General characteristics
Type Liberty ship
Tonnage7,000 long tons deadweight (DWT)
Length441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
Draft27 ft 9 in (8.46 m)
Propulsion
  • Two oil-fired boilers
  • Triple expansion steam engine
  • Single screw
  • 2,500 hp (1,864 kW)
Speed11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph)
Capacity9,140 tons cargo
Complement41
Armament

SS Nathanael Greene (MC contract 146) was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Nathanael Greene, Continental Army general famous for his service in the Southern theater of the American Revolutionary War. She was operated by the United States Lines under charter with the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration.

The ship was laid down by North Carolina Shipbuilding Company in their Cape Fear River yard on May 22, 1941, then launched on January 17, 1942. [1] She was operated by United States Lines for the War Shipping Administration. [2] In September 1942 Greene was part of the heavily escorted Arctic Convoy PQ 18. When fellow merchant ship SS Mary Luckenbach was struck by an aerial torpedo, its cargo of TNT detonated. One member of the Naval Armed Guard detachment assigned to the Greene was killed and the ship damaged. [3] For her conduct during the convoy, the Greene and crew received the Gallant Ship Citation. [4]

She was struck by a torpedo off Oran, Algeria February 23, 1943 and beached. Survey declared her a total loss the next day. She remained in Algeria until sold to an Italian salvage company and was scrapped in 1948. [5]

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References

  1. "North Carolina Shipbuilding". shipbuildinghistory.com. Retrieved 2018-01-05.
  2. "Nathanael Greene". MARAD Vessel History Database. Retrieved 2019-01-05.
  3. "Chronological List of U.S. Ships Sunk or Damaged during July to December 1942". American Merchant Marine at War. Retrieved 2019-01-05.
  4. "Gallant Ships of WWII". American Merchant Marine at War. Archived from the original on 2012-04-19. Retrieved 2019-01-05.
  5. "Nathanael Greene". MARAD Vessel History Database. Retrieved 2019-01-05.