SS Laura Bridgman

SS Laura Bridgman was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Laura Bridgman, the first deaf-blind American child to gain a significant education in the English language.

History
United States
Name:	Laura Bridgman
Namesake:	Laura Bridgman
Ordered:	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2382
Builder:	J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia
Cost:	$892,876[1]
Yard number:	167
Way number:	3
Laid down:	23 September 1944
Launched:	30 October 1944
Sponsored by:	Ida Purcell
Completed:	13 November 1944
Identification:	Call Signal: KTAF [1]
Fate:	Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay Group, Suisun Bay, California, 16 October 1945 Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Hudson River Group, 13 July 1950
Status:	Sold for commercial use, 17 January 1950
United States
Name:	Catherine
Owner:	Drytrans
Acquired:	17 January 1950
Fate:	Sold, September 1957
Liberia
Acquired:	September 1957
Fate:	Sold, 14 May 1958
United States
Name:	Penn Explorer
Owner:	Penntrans Co.
Acquired:	14 May 1958
Fate:	Sold, 29 November 1961
Liberia
Acquired:	29 November 1961
Fate:	Scrapped, 1968
General characteristics [2]
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 General Machinery Corp., Hamilton, Ohio) 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

Laura Bridgman was laid down on 23 September 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2382, by J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia; she was sponsored by Ida Purcell, the wife of bishop Clare Purcell, and launched on 30 October 1944.[3][1]

History

She was allocated to Seas Shipping Co., Inc., on 13 November 1944. On 16 October 1945, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in the Suisun Bay Group. She was removed from the fleet on 26 June 1950, to be loaded with grain, she relocated to the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in the Hudson River Group, on 13 July 1950. On 12 December 1950, she was withdrawn from the fleet to be unloaded, she returned to the fleet empty on 19 December 1950. On 17 January 1951, she was sold to Drytrans, Inc., and renamed Catherine. In September 1957, she was transferred to a Liberian shipping company. On 14 May 1958, she was sold to Penntrans Co., and renamed Penn Explorer. She was again sold to a Liberian company on 29 November 1961. She was scrapped in 1968.[4][5]

References

1. MARCOM.
2. Davies 2004, p. 23.
3. J.A. Brunswick 2010.
4. Liberty Ships.
5. MARAD.

Bibliography

• "Jones Construction, Brunswick GA". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
• "Liberty Ships – World War II". Retrieved 15 November 2017.
• Maritime Administration. "Laura Bridgman". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 15 November 2017.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• "SS Laura Bridgman". Retrieved 15 November 2017.