SS William Few

SS William Few was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after William Few, an American politician, farmer, businessman, and a Founding Father of the United States. Few represented the US state of Georgia at the Constitutional Convention and signed the United States Constitution. Few, along with James Gunn, were the first Senators from Georgia.

History
United States
Name:	William Few
Namesake:	William Few
Owner:	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator:	Merchant & Miners Transportation Co.
Ordered:	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 309
Awarded:	1 May 1941
Builder:	Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland[1]
Cost:	$1,071,549[2]
Yard number:	2059
Way number:	5
Laid down:	14 July 1942
Launched:	28 August 1942
Sponsored by:	Mrs. Frank Egan
Completed:	10 September 1942
Identification:	Call sign: KHHJ [2]
Status:	Sold for commercial use, 30 December 1946
Honduras
Name:	Norlandia
Owner:	Compañia Navegacion de Vapores (1947—1950) Silet Compañia de Vapores (1950—)
Operator:	Simpson, Spence & Young (1947) North American Shipping & Trading Co. (1947—1954) International Navigation Co.
Status:	reflagged 1961
Greece
Name:	Norlandia
Owner:	Silet Compañia de Vapores
Status:	reflagged 1967
Panama
Name:	Norlandia
Owner:	Silet Compañia de Vapores
Status:	Scrapped, 1969
General characteristics [3]
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 Ellicott Machine Corp., Baltimore, Maryland) 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

William Few was laid down on 14 July 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 309, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; she was sponsored by Mrs. Frank Egan, the daughter J. Kirkpatrick, the chief hull inspector for MARCOM, in Philadelphia, and was launched on 28 August 1942.[1][2]

History

She was allocated to Merchant & Miners Transportation Co., on 10 September 1942. On 30 December 1946, she was sold for commercial use to Compañia Navegacion de Vapores, for $544,506. She was scrapped in Osaka, in 1969.[4]

References

1. Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyards 2008.
2. MARCOM.
3. Davies 2004, p. 23.
4. MARAD.

Bibliography

• "Bethlehem-Fairfield, Baltimore MD". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "William Few". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
• "SS William Few". Retrieved 5 March 2020.