USS Freedom (ID-3024)

Last updated

USSFreedom(No3024).jpg
USS Freedom (ID-3024), c. 1919
History
Flag of the German Empire.svgGermany
NameWittekind
Namesake Wittekind (c. 730–808), Duke of Saxony
Owner North German Lloyd
Builder Blohm & Voss, Hamburg [1]
Launched3 February 1894 [1]
Maiden voyage Bremen–Hoboken, New Jersey, 14 April 1894 [1]
In service1894
Refitlengthened in 1900
Out of service8 August 1914 [2]
FateSeized by the United States, 6 April 1917 [2]
History
US flag 48 stars.svgUnited States
NameUSAT Iroquois
Acquired1917
In service1917
RenamedFreedom, 1918
Out of service1919
History
US flag 48 stars.svgUnited States
NameUSS Freedom (ID-3024)
Acquired24 January 1919 [3]
Commissioned24 January 1919 [3]
Decommissioned23 September 1919 [3]
General characteristics
Tonnage4,997  gross register tons  (GRT)
Length124.69 m (409 ft 1 in) [1]
Beam14.03 m (46 ft 0 in) [1]
Propulsion
Speed12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) [1]
Capacity
Crew70 [1]
After lengthening (1900): [1]
Tonnage5,640  GRT
Length140.51 m (461 ft 0 in)
Capacity
  • Passengers: [1]
  • 177 second class
  • 1,039 steerage
Differences as USS Freedom: [3]
Displacement9,674 tons [4]
Length383 ft 5 in (116.87 m) (between perpendiculars)
Beam46 ft 4 in (14.12 m)
Draft24 ft 11 in (7.59 m)
Complement60
Armament2 × 4-inch (102 mm) guns

USS Freedom (ID-3024) was a cargo and transport ship in the United States Navy in World War I. Originally Wittekind for the North German Lloyd line, the ship also served as USAT Iroquois and USAT Freedom after being seized by the United States in 1917.

Contents

Wittekind was built in Germany for the Bremen – New York service of the Roland Line service of North German Lloyd, and was the sister ship of Willehad. In March 1900 Wittekind was lengthened because her cargo capacity was found lacking. Later that same year, Wittekind was among the first transports to carry German Empire troops as part of the Eight-Nation Alliance intended to put down the Boxer Rebellion in China. In August 1914, at the start of World War I, the ship was interned at Boston in the neutral United States.

When the US entered the war in April 1917, Wittekind was seized and turned over to the United States Shipping Board. Renamed Iroquois, the ship was chartered to the United States Army as a cargo ship after a refit, and, in 1918, was renamed Freedom. In January 1919 the ship was commissioned into the United States Navy, and carried almost 5,000 troops home from Europe before her decommissioning in September. Held in reserve for transport duty, the ship was laid up for five years before being scrapped in 1924.

Wittekind

Wittekind was built by Blohm & Voss of Hamburg for North German Lloyd's Roland Line, which was a fortnightly steerage and freight service between Bremen and New York. Launched on 3 February 1894, Wittekind—named for Wittekind (c. 730–808), the Duke of Saxony — and sister ship Willehad were the first twin-screw steamers expressly built for North German Lloyd. The new liner sailed on her maiden voyage to Hoboken, New Jersey on 14 April. [1]

Wittekind and sister ship Willehad were both quickly found to be deficient in cargo space, and plans were made to lengthen both vessels (though Willehad was never lengthened). [1] Wittekind 's bridge was moved forward and a cargo hatch was installed behind it. After this, the ship was cut into two parts forward of the bridge's new position, and a new 18.29-meter (60.0 ft) section was inserted, which greatly increased the cargo capacity. [2] Sources disagree as to where the procedure was performed with one reporting it was performed at the Seebeck Yard in Germany, while another claims it was done by Tyne Pontoons & Drydock Co., at Newcastle. [5] Wherever the work was performed, it was completed by March 1900. [2]

On 3 July 1900, Wittekind sailed from Bremerhaven with Frankfurt as the initial transport ships to depart with troops of Germany's contribution to the Eight-Nation Alliance intended to put down the Boxer Rebellion in China. Wittekind remained in naval service as a transport and hospital ship through late October 1901. After her naval service ended, Wittekind sailed variously to Baltimore, Maryland; Galveston, Texas; Montreal; and ports in South America through mid-1914. [2]

At sea and headed for Montreal when the United Kingdom declared war on the German Empire, Wittekind instead headed for Boston and safety in the then-neutral United States. The steamer—carrying a cargo of lead and coal tar products reportedly worth $1,000,000—slipped past British cruiser Essex in a dense fog near Sable Island. [6] Wittekind 's wireless operator calculated that the ship passed fewer than 10 nautical miles (19 km) from Essex. The steamer was interned by the US and her Canadian-bound passengers—18 cabin-, and 305 steerage-class who were not allowed to remain in the United States—were greeted by the Canadian Commissioner of Immigration who was stationed at Boston. [6]

Wittekind was joined in Boston by sister ship Willehad; North German Lloyd line-mates Kronprinzessin Cecilie and Köln; the Hamburg America Line steamers Amerika and Cincinnati; and Hansa Line freighter Ockenfels. In March 1916, all except Kronprinzessin Cecilie and Ockenfels were moved from their waterfront piers to an anchorage across the harbor from the Boston Navy Yard. Daily "neutrality duty" by United States Coast Guard harbor tug Winnisimmet kept a watchful eye on the ships. Many crew members of the ships eventually went ashore, were processed through immigration, and found employment, while a contingent of musicians from the vessels toured New England, frequently playing at department stores and restaurants, and drawing the ire of the local musicians' union. [7]

After the US declared war on Germany, Wittekind and the other interned ships were seized on 6 April 1917 and handed over to the United States Shipping Board (USSB). [2]

United States service in World War I

After her seizure and refitting, the former liner was chartered to the United States Army as USAT Iroquois. In 1918, her name was again changed, this time to Freedom. On 24 January 1919, Freedom was acquired by the United States Navy and commissioned the same day. [3]

Freedom was assigned to the Cruiser and Transport Force, and after overhaul at New York, sailed on a voyage to Saint-Nazaire, France, and embarked troops for return to the United States. [3] The cargo ship made two more voyages to France, each to Brest, with a visit to Norfolk, Virginia, between trips. [3] She returned a total of 4,983 troops on her voyages from France. [8]

She arrived at Hoboken on 5 September 1919 and was assigned to duty in the 3rd Naval District. Freedom was decommissioned at New York on 23 September and returned to the USSB the same day. [3] The veteran ship was transferred to the United States Army transport reserve, [8] and was laid up for five years. On 24 February 1924, Freedom arrived at Baltimore for scrapping. [2]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Drechsel, V. I, p. 158
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Drechsel, V. I, p. 159
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Freedom". DANFS .
  4. ↑ According to Gleaves (p. 257), her displacement was 11,175 tons.
  5. ↑ Drechsel, V. I, pp. 158–59.
  6. 1 2 "Steals by cruiser in fog; German SS. Wittekind reaches Boston, narrowly escaping capture" (PDF). The New York Times . 10 August 1914. p. 4. Retrieved 28 March 2008.
  7. ↑ "Heavy tonnage in German steamers tied up in Boston" (fee). The Christian Science Monitor . 4 March 1916. p. 18. Retrieved 28 March 2008.
  8. 1 2 Gleaves, p. 257.

Related Research Articles

USS <i>Mercy</i> (AH-4)

USS Mercy (ID-1305/AH-4) was a hospital ship in the United States Navy during World War I. She was the first U.S. Navy ship of that name. The ship was previously known as SS Saratoga, a steamer for the Ward Line on the New York to Havana route, and considered the fastest steamship in coastal trade. Before being purchased by the Navy, the ship was briefly employed as United States Army transport ship USAT Saratoga, a career that ended after a collision off Staten Island, New York.

USS <i>Comfort</i> (AH-3)

USS Comfort (AH-3) was a hospital ship for the United States Navy in World War I. She was the sister ship of USS Mercy (AH-4) but the two ships were not of a ship class. Comfort was known as SS Havana in passenger service for the Ward Line, and as USAT Havana in United States Army service before her Navy service. Her name was restored to Havana in 1927, and she was renamed SS Yucatán in 1935, and SS Agwileon in 1941. In World War II, she was known as USAT Agwileon and USAHS Shamrock in service for the United States Army.

USS <i>Orizaba</i> United States Navy transport ship

USS Orizaba (ID-1536/AP-24) was a transport ship for the United States Navy in both World War I and World War II. She was the sister ship of Siboney but the two were not part of a ship class. In her varied career, she was also known as USAT Orizaba in service for the United States Army, and as SS Orizaba in interwar civilian service for the Ward Line, and as Duque de Caxias (U-11) as an auxiliary in the Brazilian Navy after World War II.

SS <i>Kronprinzessin Cecilie</i> (1906)

SS Kronprinzessin Cecilie was an ocean liner built in Stettin, Germany in 1906 for North German Lloyd that had the largest steam reciprocating machinery ever fitted in a ship. The last of four ships of the Kaiser class, she was also the last German ship to have been built with four funnels. She was engaged in transatlantic service between her home port of Bremen and New York until the outbreak of World War I.

USS <i>America</i> (ID-3006)

USS America (ID-3006) was a troop transport for the United States Navy in World War I. She was launched in 1905 as Amerika by Harland & Wolff in Belfast for the Hamburg America Line of Germany. As a passenger liner, she sailed primarily between Hamburg and New York. On 14 April 1912, Amerika transmitted a wireless message about icebergs near the same area where RMS Titanic struck one and sank less than three hours later. At the outset of the war, Amerika was docked at Boston; rather than risk seizure by the British Royal Navy, she remained in port for the next three years.

USS <i>Pequot</i> (ID-2998) German-built cargo steamship that served in the US Navy

USS Pequot (ID-2998) was a cargo steamship that was built in 1910 for DDG Hansa of Germany as Ockenfels. She was the second of three DDG Hansa ships to be named after Ockenfels in the Rhineland-Palatinate.

USS <i>Princess Matoika</i> United States Navy transport ship

USS Princess Matoika (ID-2290) was a transport ship for the United States Navy during World War I. Before the war, she was a Barbarossa-class ocean liner that sailed as SS Kiautschou for the Hamburg America Line and as SS Princess Alice for North German Lloyd. After the war she served as the United States Army transport ship USAT Princess Matoika. In post-war civilian service she was SS Princess Matoika until 1922, SS President Arthur until 1927, and SS City of Honolulu until she was scrapped in 1933.

USS <i>Lenape</i>

USS Lenape (ID-2700) was a troop transport for the United States Navy in 1918, during World War I. She was launched in 1912 as SS Lenape, a passenger steamer for the Clyde Line. After the entry of the United States into World War I in 1917, she was chartered by the United States Army as transport USAT Lenape. After her Navy service ended in October 1918, she was returned to the Army.

SS <i>Finland</i> American-flagged ocean liner built in 1902 for the Red Star Line

SS Finland was an American-flagged ocean liner built in 1902 for the Red Star Line. During World War I she served as a transport for the United States Navy named USS Finland (ID-4543). Before her Navy service in 1917, she was also USAT Finland for the United States Army.

USS <i>Covington</i> (ID-1409) United States transport ship

USS Covington (ID-1409) was a German transatlantic ocean liner that was launched in 1908 for the Hamburg America Line (HAPAG) as Cincinnati. In 1917 the United States seized her, had her converted into a troop ship and renamed her Covington. In 1918 SM U-86 torpedoed her, killing six of her complement. Three tugs towed her about 1/3 the way to Brest, but she sank the afternoon of 2 July 1918.

USS <i>Martha Washington</i>

USS Martha Washington (ID‑3019) was a transport for the United States Navy during World War I named for Martha Washington, the first First Lady of the United States. She was originally ocean liner SS Martha Washington for the Austro-American Line before the war. Before and after her Navy service she was the United States Army transport USAT Martha Washington. The liner was sold to the Italian Cosulich Line in 1922. In 1932, when Cosulich was absorbed into Italia Flotte Riunite, the ship was renamed SS Tel Aviv. The ship was scrapped in 1934.

USS <i>Tenadores</i>

USS Tenadores was a transport ship for the United States Navy during World War I. Before the war she was known as SS Tenadores in the service of the United Fruit Company. Before her Navy service, she served as a United States Army transport under the name USAT Tenadores.

<i>Barbarossa</i>-class ocean liner Ocean liner class of the German Empire

The Barbarossa class was a class of ocean liners of North German Lloyd and the Hamburg America Line of the German Empire. Of the ten ships built between 1896 and 1902, six were built by AG Vulcan Stettin, three were built by Blohm & Voss, and one was built by Schichau-Werke; all were built in Germany. They averaged 11,000 gross register tons (GRT) and featured twin screw propellers driven by quadruple-expansion steam engines.

SS <i>Dakotan</i> Cargo ship built in 1912

SS Dakotan was a cargo ship built in 1912 for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company that served as a transport ship in the United States Army Transport Service in World War I, and then was transferred to the Soviet Union under Lend-Lease in World War II before being finally scrapped in 1969. During World War I, she was taken over by the United States Army as USAT Dakotan. Near the end of that war she was transferred to the United States Navy and commissioned as USS Dakotan (ID-3882). During World War II, the ship was transferred to the Soviet Union and renamed SS Zyrianin.

SS <i>Empire Bittern</i> World War II merchant ship of the United Kingdom

Empire Bittern was a steamship, built as a livestock-carrying cargo ship in 1902 at Belfast, Ireland as Iowa for the White Diamond Steamship Company Ltd of Liverpool. The ship was sold to the Hamburg America Line and renamed Bohemia in 1913.

USS <i>Henry R. Mallory</i> American transport for the United States Navy

USS Henry R. Mallory (ID-1280) was a transport for the United States Navy during World War I. She was also sometimes referred to as USS H. R. Mallory or as USS Mallory. Before her Navy service she was USAT Henry R. Mallory as a United States Army transport ship. From her 1916 launch, and after her World War I military service, she was known as SS Henry R. Mallory for the Mallory Lines. Pressed into service as a troopship in World War II by the War Shipping Administration, she was torpedoed by the German submarine U-402 in the North Atlantic Ocean and sank with the loss of 272 men—over half of those on board.

SS <i>El Occidente</i> Cargo ship for the Morgan Line (launched 1910)

SS El Occidente was a cargo ship for the Morgan Line, a subsidiary of the Southern Pacific Company. During World War I, she was known as USAT El Occidente in service with the United States Army and as USS El Occidente (ID-3307) in service with the United States Navy. At the end of war, she reverted to her original name of SS El Occidente.

SS <i>Montanan</i> Cargo ship built in 1912 for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company

SS Montanan was a cargo ship built in 1912 for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company. During World War I service for the United States Army Transport Service, she was known as USAT Montanan. Montanan was built by the Maryland Steel Company as one of eight sister ships for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company, and was employed in inter-coastal service via the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and the Panama Canal after it opened.

USS <i>Eten</i>

USS Eten (ID-4041) was a troop transport commissioned in 1919 to assist in the post-World War I repatriation of U.S. troops from France.

SS <i>Bulgaria</i> (1898)

SS Bulgaria was a passenger-cargo steamship built in 1898 for the Hamburg American Line ("Hapag"). During World War I, she operated as a United States Army animal and cargo ship under the names USAT Hercules and USAT Philippines, and after the war was converted into the troop transport USS Philippines (ID-1677).

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.