SS Charles W. Stiles

SS Charles W. Stiles was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Charles W. Stiles, a parasitologist and zoologist for the U.S. government at the Bureau of Animal Industry in the Department of Agriculture (1891–1902), and was later chief zoologist at the Hygienic Laboratory of the US Public Health and Marine Hospital Service (1902–1931).

History
United States
Name:	Charles W. Stiles
Namesake:	Charles W. Stiles
Ordered:	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2380
Builder:	J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia
Cost:	$919,945[1]
Yard number:	165
Way number:	1
Laid down:	9 September 1944
Launched:	18 October 1944
Sponsored by:	Mrs. P.O. Murphy
Completed:	31 October 1944
Identification:	Call Signal: KSZZ [1]
Fate:	Sold for commercial use, 28 February 1947
Panama
Name:	Bygdin
Namesake:	Bygdin
Owner:	Global Transport Ltd.
Acquired:	28 February 1947
Fate:	Scrapped, 1969
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 m^3) (grain) 499,573 cubic feet (14,146 m^3) (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

Construction

Charles W. Stiles was laid down on 9 September 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2380, by J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia; she was sponsored by Mrs. P.O. Murphy, and launched on 18 October 1944.[3][1]

History

She was allocated to Seas Shipping Co. Inc., on 31 October 1944. On 28 February 1947, she was sold for $562,260.11 to Global Transport Ltd., for commercial use. She was reflagged for Panama, and renamed Bygdin.[4][5]

References

1. MARCOM.
2. Davies 2004, p. 23.
3. J.A. Brunswick 2010.
4. Liberty Ships.
5. MARAD.

Bibliography

• "Jones Construction, Brunswick GA". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
• "Liberty Ships – World War II". Retrieved 15 November 2017.
• Maritime Administration. "Charles W. Stiles". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 15 November 2017.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 15 November 2017.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• "SS Charles W. Stiles". Retrieved 15 November 2017.