When American Shipper set sail

When American Shipper set sail

The first American Shipper circa 1920.

      Hearing the name American Shipper, many in the industry might think of this magazine.
      A seafarer, however, would wonder 'which one?' as there were four ships named American Shipper, all belonging to United States Lines of New York or its predecessor, American Merchant Lines.
      The first American Shipper was one of the famous Hog Island (type B) transports that were built where the Philadelphia International Airport is now, (then known as Hog Island). The vessel was one of 122 ships built by the American International Shipbuilding Co. for the war effort and delivered to the U.S. Army in 1920 under the name of Tours. In May 1926, the vessel commenced her first voyage as American Shipper, the last of five sister ships assigned to American Merchant Line on its U.S. East Coast-to-Great Britain service. The sisters could carry 89 passengers as well as 8,000 tons of refrigerated and general cargo. Although they were the smallest passenger-cargo liners on the North Atlantic, they were well received by passengers and cargo shippers alike.
      In November 1939, in response to the
war in Europe, Congress passed the
Neutrality Act, which forbade U.S. ships access to warring nations. This was the formal end of U.S. liner service to Europe.
      In 1940, the five sisters were sold to Societe Maritime Anversiose and placed under the Belgian flag. The American Shipper was renamed Ville De Mons and was sunk by enemy action shortly thereafter.

American ShipperII. In 1938, the U.S. Maritime Commission and U.S. Lines, believing there would be a resurgence of U.S.-Europe trade after peace was achieved, contracted with Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss., to replace the Hog Island ships with four passenger-cargo liners of the C3-P type. However, after her keel was laid, it was obvious the war would not be over soon, so the ship was sold to Farrell Lines for use on the South African service. The vessel was launched as the African Meteor in 1942. As the vessel's delivery date approached, the U.S. Navy required transports. Upon delivery in February 1943, the vessel bore the name USS Samuel Chase (AP56). After a long military career, she was scrapped at Brownsville, Texas, in 1973.

American ShipperIII. U.S. Lines tried again in 1941 for another American Shipperand three sisters for its intended North Atlantic service. Once again, the military intervened and the ship was launched as the transport Pass Christian and completed as the Army transport Fred C. Ainsworth in June 1943. The ship was later transferred and operated by the Navy until its scrapping at Kaohsiung in 1973. Neither American Shipper II nor American Shipper III made a commercial voyage, although both served the country gallantly for many years.

American ShipperIV. Finally, in December 1945 at Wilmington, N.C., an American Shipper was delivered to U.S. Lines for use on the North Atlantic. The vessel had about 40 sister ships instead of the four earlier in the century. These C-2-type cargo ships carried only 12 passengers, and were primarily cargo liners. Their cargo capacity was 10,400 tons. This American Shipper plied the Atlantic trades for 23 years before being sold in 1968 and renamed the Transoceanic Freedom and in 1970, Benefina. In December 1974, the ship sank east of Hong Kong carrying a cargo of salt.
      It is fitting that this magazine maintains the title American Shipper to symbolize a time when this country was able to support a strong merchant marine.
      Capt. James McNamara was president of the National Cargo Bureau until March 2010 and is chairman of the Maritime Industry Museum at Fort Schuyler, both in New York. He's a 1964 graduate of SUNY Maritime at Fort Schuyler and sailed with the former States Marine Lines.