A Liberty ship, the most common ship stored at the Wilmington Reserve Fleet Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Wilmington was part of the

United States Navy reserve fleets The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and s ...

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in and the county seat of New Hanover County in coastal southeastern North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 at the 2020 census, it is the eighth most populous city in the state. Wilmington is the ...

at . The

reserve fleet A reserve fleet is a collection of naval vessels of all types that are fully equipped for service but are not currently needed; they are partially or fully decommissioned. A reserve fleet is informally said to be "in mothballs" or "mothballed"; a ...

was at and overflowed out of the former

North Carolina Shipbuilding Company North Carolina Shipbuilding Company was a shipyard in Wilmington, North Carolina, created as part of the U.S. Government's Emergency Shipbuilding Program in the early days of World War II. From 1941 through 1946, the company built 243 ships in all ...

in the dredge out Brunswick River. The ships lined both sides of the Brunswick River. The freshwater of the river made a good spot to store ships. The reserve fleet was opened in 1946 to store the now many surplus ships after

World War II 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 ...

. The ''mothball fleet'' was mostly

cargo ship 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 ...

s used in the merchant marine

navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...

. When opened it had mostly cargo ships and a few

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 ...

s. At its peak it had 300

Victory ship The Victory ship was a class of cargo ship produced in large numbers by North American shipyards during World War II to replace losses caused by German submarines. They were a more modern design compared to the earlier Liberty ship, were slight ...

s and

Liberty ship Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Mass ...

s, many that were built at the nearby former North Carolina Shipbuilding Company Shipyard. Some ships in the fleet were reactivated for the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

and

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Wilmington closed in 1962, with the last ship removed in February 27, 1970. The ships in the fleet were either scrapped, used as targets or move to the

James River Reserve Fleet The James River Reserve Fleet (JRRF) is located on the James River in the U.S. state of Virginia at () near Fort Eustis. James River Reserve Fleet, a "ghost fleet,", is part of the National Defense Reserve Fleet. The Reserve Fleet ships in s ...

and

Beaumont Reserve Fleet The Beaumont Reserve Fleet, was established by act of Congress in 1946, as a component of the National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF). The fleet is located in Beaumont, Texas. History In 1946, the US Government excavated 24 million cubic yards of s ...

. * SS Dwight W. Morrow was the last ship to depart Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Wilmington, she was scrapped in February 1970.Steelman, Ben. What was the ‘Mothball Fleet’ MyReporter.com, StarNews

Notable former ships

USS Boulder Victory (AK-227) USS ''Boulder Victory'' (AK-227) was a acquired by the US Navy during World War II. She was the lead ship of 20 ships in her class. She carried ammunition into the Pacific Ocean war zone and, on 20 December 1944 at Manus, New Guinea, she st ...

became one of many

Seagoing cowboys Seagoing cowboys is a term used for men and ships used from 1945 to 1947 for United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration and the Brethren Service Committee of the Church of the Brethren that sent livestock to war-torn countries ...

ships doing livestock war relief, late in life the University of California conducted thermal stress tests on her. *SS ''Edward W. Burton'' removed and converted to

USS Interceptor (AGR-8) USS ''Interceptor'' (AGR-8/YAGR-8) was a acquired by the US Navy in 1955, from the "mothballed" National Defense Reserve Fleet, reserve fleet. She was reconfigured as a radar picket ship and assigned to radar picket duty in the North Pacific Oce ...

a for the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

in 1955. *SS ''James F. Harrell'' removed and converted to

USS Picket (YAGR-7) USS ''Picket'' (YAGR/AGR-7) was a , converted from a Liberty Ship, acquired by the US Navy in 1955. She was obtained from the National Defense Reserve Fleet and reconfigured as a radar picket ship and assigned to radar picket duty in the North P ...

a Guardian radar picket ship for the US Navy in 1955. *SS '' William J. Riddle'' removed and converted to

USS Tracer (AGR-15) USS ''Tracer'' (AGR-15) was a , converted from a Liberty Ship, acquired by the US Navy in 1957. She was reconfigured as a radar picket ship and assigned to radar picket duty in the North Pacific Ocean as part of the Distant Early Warning Line. ...

a Guardian radar picket ship for the US Navy in 1955. *SS ''James W. Wheeler'' removed and converted to

USS Searcher (AGR-4) USS ''Searcher'' (YAGR/AGR-4) was a , converted from a Liberty Ship, acquired by the US Navy in 1954. She was obtained from the National Defense Reserve Fleet and reconfigured as a radar picket ship and assigned to radar picket duty in the North ...

a Guardian radar picket ship for the US Navy in 1955.

References

{{Authority control

Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Wilmington A Liberty ship, the most common ship stored at the Wilmington Reserve Fleet Atlantic Reserve Fleet, Wilmington was part of the United States Navy reserve fleets in Wilmington, North Carolina at . The reserve fleet was at and overflowed out of t ...

History of Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington Reserve Fleet

Notable former ships

See also

References