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These are the ships that carried the 801st in its over 19,000 miles of sailing across the Atlantic and Pacific.
Liberty Ship
S.S. John Clark
S.S. Gideon Wells
S.S. William S. Evarts
The Liberty ship was a standardized, mass-produced cargo ship. It pioneered the use of welding, which greatly cut construction time in comparison with traditional riveted ships. Eventually the average building time dropped to 42 days. Over 2,700 Liberty Ships were built during the war. The ships were crewed by the U.S. Merchant Marine, although they generally had a Navy detachment manning the guns.
The Liberty ship SS Carlos Carrillo off San Francisco around 1945-1946
photo courtesy U.S. Navy Historical Center
| Displacement |
14,245 tons
|
| Length |
441' 6"
|
| Beam |
56' 10 3/4"
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| Draft |
27' 9 1/4"
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| Speed |
11-11.5 knots
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| Complement |
41
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| Range |
23,000 miles
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| Armament |
one 4" gun for use against surface targets
other antiaircraft guns varied with ship and date
|
| Propulsion |
two oil fired boilers, 2,500 HP triple expansion steam engine, single screw |
Landing Ship Tank (LST)
LST 44
LST 205
LST 228
LST 243
LST 731
LST
790
The Landing Ship Tank was created to land heavy troops and heavy equipment directly onto the shore. Over a thousand were built in the United States, with more constructed in Canada and the United Kingdom. Despite its nickname (Large Slow Target) only 26 were lost due to enemy action. Thirteen others were lost due to weather or other accidents, including LST 228 during the Azores operation. LSTs were commissioned Navy vessels and carried an all-Navy crew.
| Displacement |
unloaded: 1,780 t
fully loaded: 3,880 t
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| Length |
328 ft
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| Beam |
50 ft
|
| Draft |
unloaded: bow 2 ft 4 in; stern 7 ft 6 in
loaded: bow 8 ft 2 in; stern 14 ft 1 in
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| Speed |
12 knots
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| Complement |
8 to 10 officers, 100 to 115 enlisted men
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| Troop Capacity |
about 140
|
| Armament |
1 x 3 in gun
6 x 40 mm gun
6 x 20 mm gun
2 x .50 cal machine guns,
4 x .30 cal machine guns
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| Propulsion |
two General Motors 12-567 diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders |
LST 325 shows two of its main design features: a flat bottom which allowed it to beach itself on a coastline, and bow doors and a ramp which allowed it to load and unload cargo without cranes. Unfortunately, the flat bottom also caused the LST to be relatively unseaworthy and the blunt bow doors limited its speed.
Attack Transport
USS Pondera (APA-191)
The attack transport was a variation of the Victory ship, which itself was a slightly larger, faster, tougher, longer-range version of the Liberty ship. The attack transport was designed to transport 1,500 troops and their combat equipment and land them on a hostile shore using its own landing craft. They were commissioned Navy vessels and carried an all-Navy crew. One hundred seventeen Haskell-class attack transports were built during the war.
The USS Pondera (APA-191) in San Francisco Bay in late 1945 or 1946
Photograph courtesy of U.S. Naval Historical Center, a donation of
Boatswain's Mate First Class Robert G. Tippins, USN (Retired)
| Displacement |
14,833 tons
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| Length |
455'
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| Beam |
62'
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| Draft |
28' 1"
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| Speed |
17 knots
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| Complement |
536
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| Range |
23,000 miles
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| Armament |
one 5 " Dual Purpose gun (for use against surface or air targets)
twelve 40 mm
antiaircraft guns
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| Propulsion |
two oil fired boilers, 2,500 HP triple expansion steam engine, single screw |
The USS Pondera was built by Kaiser Shipbuilding Co. in Vancouver Washington, launched on 27 July 1944 and commissioned on 24 September. The Pondera had made two runs to Okinawa and Leyte before carrying part of the 801st in a third trip. After dropping off the 801st on Okinawa she remained in western Pacific waters for some months carrying U.S. troops to Korea and Nationalist Chinese troops to Tsingtao before taking part in two Magic Carpet boatlifts of returning U.S. servicemen, ending in March of 1946. She then sailed for Norfolk for decommissioning on 6 June 1946 and was placed in the James River National Defense Reserve Fleet, where she remained until at least the 1970's.
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