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SS ''Mormachawk'' was a United States

cargo vessel A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

and

troop ship A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable land troops directly on shore, typicall ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

operated by

Moore-McCormack Lines 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 t ...

as agents of the

War Shipping Administration The War Shipping Administration (WSA) was a World War II emergency war agency of the US government, tasked to purchase and operate the civilian shipping tonnage the United States needed for fighting the war. Both shipbuilding under the Maritime Co ...

(WSA) from completion 14 December 1942 until placed in reserve after the war September 1946. The ship remained in the Columbia River reserve fleet at Astoria, Oregon until sold for scrapping in 1964.

Construction

''Mormachawk'' was built in 1942 by Consolidated Steel Corp., in the Wilmington yard completed 14 December 1942 grossing 6,711 tons. The ship, a standard ship type C1-B and completed as a troop transport, was the first launched from Consolidated's new Wilmington yard sponsored by Eleanor H. Van Valey, secretary to Admiral Emory Land, Chairman of the

U.S. Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 195 ...

and Administrator of the War Shipping Administration. This ship was Moore-McCormack Lines' second of the name as the earlier type C2 ship of the same name had been acquired by the United States Navy as in 1940.

Operation

''Mormachawk'' operated under the

(WSA) by agents. She was acquired by WSA upon completion on 14 December 1942. During World War II the ship operated in the Pacific as a cargo and troop transport operating from the South Pacific to Alaska. On February 27, 1943 ''Mormachawk'' carried the United States 44th Naval Construction Battalion or the "44th Seabees" on their first mission to

Espiritu Santo Espiritu Santo (, ; ) is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of and a population of around 40,000 according to the 2009 census. Geography The island belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region o ...

New Hebrides New Hebrides, officially the New Hebrides Condominium (french: link=no, Condominium des Nouvelles-Hébrides, "Condominium of the New Hebrides") and named after the Hebrides Scottish archipelago, was the colonial name for the island group ...

. They arrived on March 18, crossing the equator on March 7. The ship transported an advance party of one officer and 86 men of Company "B", 5th Special Naval Construction Battalion, from

Dutch Harbor Dutch Harbor is a harbor on Amaknak Island in Unalaska, Alaska. It was the location of the Battle of Dutch Harbor in June 1942, and was one of the few sites in the United States to be subjected to aerial bombardment by a foreign power during Worl ...

to Adak sailing on 21 July. The 8th Naval Construction Battalion, after completing work in the Aleutian Islands begun in July 1942, returned from Dutch Harbor aboard ''Mormachawk'', leaving Dutch Harbor 8 Aug 1943 and arriving in Seattle, Washington on the 13th.

Postwar disposal

On 3 September 1946 the ''Mormachawk'' was returned to

United States Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 195 ...

and placed in the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...

reserve fleet at

Astoria, Oregon Astoria is a port city and the seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the northwest corne ...

. As part of the modifications from cargo to troop transport the ship had cement ballast permanently installed; 350 tons (317,515 kg) in #2 hold and 114 tons (103,419 kg) in #3 hold. On 21 December 1951 the ship had been recommended for scrap due to the $530,000 cost of reconversion to cargo use. Under an award of 7 January 1964 to Zidell Explorations, Inc. the ship was delivered for scrapping 12 March 1964 from the reserve fleet at Astoria, Oregon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mormachawk 1942 ships Ships built in Los Angeles Troop ships of the War Shipping Administration Type C1-B ships