SS W. P. Few

History

United States
Name	W.P. Few
Namesake	William Preston Few
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2363
Builder	J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia
Cost	$1,035,580^[1]
Yard number	148
Way number	2
Laid down	1 May 1944
Launched	22 June 1944
Sponsored by	Mrs. J. Elmer Long
Completed	3 July 1944
Identification	Call Signal: WQAE ^[1]
Fate	Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama, 19 April 1946 Sold for scrapping, 18 September 1958
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 m³) (grain) 499,573 cubic feet (14,146 m³) (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

SS W. P. Few was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after William Preston Few, the first president of Duke University.

Construction

W.P. Few was laid down on 1 May 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2363, by J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia; she was sponsored by Mrs. J. Elmer Long, and launched on 22 June 1944.^[3]^[1]

She was allocated to the Isbrandtsen Steamship Co. Inc., on 3 July 1944. On 19 April 1946, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet in Mobile, Alabama. On 18 September 1958, she was sold, along with 35 other Liberty ships, to Bethlehem Steel, for $2,666,680, for scrapping. She was removed from the fleet on 19 February 1959.^[4]^[5]

"Jones Construction, Brunswick GA". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
"Liberty Ships – World War II". Retrieved 8 November 2017.
Maritime Administration. "W.P. Few". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
"SS W.P. Few". Retrieved 9 November 2017.

This page was last edited on 16 November 2023, at 20:25