SS William B. Woods

SS William B. Woods
Career (United States)
Name:	William B. Woods
Namesake:	William B. Woods
Owner:	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator:	A. H. Bull & Company, Inc.
Ordered:	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 1490
Builder:	J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia
Cost:	$2,740,069
Yard number:	106
Way number:	2
Laid down:	6 July 1942
Launched:	13 March 1943
Sponsored by:	Mrs. Emil J. Kratt
Completed:	7 May 1943
Identification:	Call Signal: KHQC
Fate:	Torpedoed off Italy, 10 March 1944
General characteristics
Class & 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 ft 6 in (135 m)
Beam:	56 ft 10.75 in (17.3419 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:	2 × oil-fired boilers 1 × triple-expansion steam engine, 2,500 horsepower (1,900 kW) (manufactured by Hamilton Engine Co., Hamilton, Ohio) 1 × screw propeller
Speed:	11.5 knots (21.3 km/h)
Capacity:	10,800 long tons deadweight (DWT)
Complement:	41
Armament:	Stern-mounted 4"/50 caliber (102 mm) gun for use against surfaced submarines variety of anti-aircraft guns

SS William B. Woods was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. Named after William B. Woods, an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States and a member of the Ohio General Assembly.

Construction

William B. Woods was laid down on 21 July 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1490, by J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia; sponsored by Mrs.Emil J.Kratt, and launched on 7 April 1943.

History

She was allocated to A. H. Bull & Company, Inc. on 31 May 1943. On 10 March 1944, she was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-952 near Palermo, Italy, 38.43°N 13.50°E / 38.43; 13.50, with the loss of one US Navy Armed Guard and fifty-one US Army personnel.

Bibliography

• "Jones Construction, Brunswick GA". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. http://www.shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/emergencylarge/jonesbrunswick.htm. 
• "Liberty Ships – World War II". http://www.glynngen.com/nautical/glynn/libertyships.htm. 
• Maritime Administration. "William B. Woods". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. https://vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov/sh/ShipHistory/Detail/11618. 
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)". p. 23. http://www.ww2ships.com/acrobat/us-os-001-f-r00.pdf. 
• "SS William B. Woods". http://usmaritimecommission.de/.