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SS Russell A. Alger

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History
United States
NameRussell A. Alger
NamesakeRussell A. Alger
BuilderOregon Shipbuilding Corporation, Portland, Oregon
Yard number680
Acquired3 March 1943 (delivered WSA)
In service3 March 1943
Out of service9 June 1952 (final layup)
FateSold for scrap 9 May 1973
Notes
  • Official number: 242952
  • Signal: KFKG
General characteristics
TypeLiberty ship
Tonnage7,176 GRT, 10,844 DWT
Length441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
Draft27 ft 9 in (8.46 m)
Propulsion
  • Two oil-fired boilers
  • Triple-expansion steam engine
  • Single screw
  • 2,500 hp (1,864 kW)
Speed11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph)
Capacity9,140 tons cargo
Complement41
Armament

SS Russell A. Alger, (MC hull 1754), was a Liberty ship named after Russell A. Alger, a Michigan Senator, Governor and U.S. Secretary of War.

The ship was a standard type EC2-S-C1 cargo ship ordered from the Oregon Shipbuilding Corporation, Portland, Oregon under contract number MA-6955 of 7,176 GRT, 10,844 DWT given the official number 242952, signal KFKG, and delivered to the War Shipping Administration (WSA) on 3 March 1943.[1][2][note 1] Russell A. Alger was placed under a standard WSA operating agreement with Union Sulphur Company at Portland, Oregon upon delivery. That operating agreement continued through the war until the ship was placed in the Reserve Fleet, Mobile on 18 October 1946.[1]

On 19 February 1947 the ship was taken out of reserve pending bareboat charter to South Atlantic Steamship Line which took effect 14 June 1947 at New Orleans and was then converted to an agreement with the Maritime Commission[note 2] 9 September 1949 in preparation for layup 20 September 1949 at Beaumont, Texas. The ship was brought out of reserve a final time on for operation under an MC agreement by Pacific Far East Lines on 15 August 1951 before entering the reserve at Beaumont a final time on 9 June 1952. The ship was sold for $96,666 to Consolidated Steel for scrap on 9 May 1973 and physically withdrawn from the fleet on 16 May.[1]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ The reference given in previous versions, ShipbuildingHistory, Oregon Shipbuilding, Portland OR, contains a rare error.
  2. ^ WSA ceased to exist as operator after the war with ownership and operation reverting to the MC.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Maritime Administration. "Russell A. Alger". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  2. ^ Merchant Vessels of the United States 1944. Washington, D.C.: United States Department of Transportation, United States Coast Guard. 1944. p. 68. Retrieved 1 July 2019.