 Typical Victory ship | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| United States | |
| Operator | Weyerhaeuser Steamship Company |
| Builder | Permanente Metals, plantNo. 2 |
| Laid down | 20 January 1945 |
| Launched | 3 March 1945 |
| Completed | 28 March 1945 |
| Fate | Scrapped in 1993 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | VC2-S-AP3Victory ship |
| Tonnage | 7,612GRT, 4,553NRT |
| Displacement | 15,200 tons |
| Length | 455 ft (139 m) |
| Beam | 62 ft (19 m) |
| Draught | 28 ft (8.5 m) |
| Installed power | 8,500 shp (6,300 kW) |
| Propulsion | HP & LPturbines geared to a single 20.5-foot (6.2 m) propeller |
| Speed | 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h; 19.0 mph) |
| Boats & landing craft carried | 4 Lifeboats |
| Complement | 62 Merchant Marine and 28 US Naval Armed Guards |
| Armament | |
| Notes | [1] |
TheSSBerea Victory (MCV-734) was a type VC2-S-AP2Victory-classcargo ship built for the United States duringWorld War II. The ship was built as part of theEmergency Shipbuilding program by Permanente Metals Corporation in Yard 2 of theRichmond Shipyards inRichmond, California.[2]Launched on 3 March 1945, theBerea Victory delivered supplies for thePacific War.
The SSBerea Victory keel was laid on January 20, 1945, before being christened on March 28, 1945. TheBerea Victory was aUS Maritime Administration armed cargo ship. She was named forBerea College inBerea, Kentucky as one of 150 educational institutions which had Victory ships named after them. Constructed for theUS Maritime Commission (MARCOM), this 10,600-ton ship was built at the Oregon Shipbuilding yards in just 67 days. The ship was operated by theWeyerhaeuser Steamship Company. under theUnited States Merchant Marine act for theWar Shipping Administration.[3][4]
Victory ships were designed to replace the earlierLiberty ships. Liberty ships were intended to be used solely for World War II. In contrast, Victory ships were built to last longer and serve theUS Navy after the war. The Victory ship differed from a Liberty ship in that they were faster, longer, wider, taller, and had a thinner stack set farther toward thesuperstructure and a long raisedforecastle.
For World War II theBerea Victory was operated by the Weyerhaeuser SS Company. She hadUnited States Navy Armed Guard to man thedeck guns. She took cargo to support troops in the Pacific War. The goods were for theBattle of Okinawa operations, that lasted from 1 April until 22 June 1945. The SSBerea Victory had the dangerous job as being anammunition ship for the Battle of Okinawa. 27 May 1945 Berea Victory depart Luzon toNakagusuku Bay,Okinawa withammunition. The ships: SS Kota Agoeng, SS Cape Constance and SS Greenville Victory were in her convoy.[5] From Nakagusuku Bay she move to Yonabaru as the troops there were low of ammo. The XXIV Corps Ordnance officer unload her 7,200 tons of ammunition with barges, LCMs-Landing Craft Mechanized and LCTs-Landing craft tank. The quick amphibian unloading and delivery aided in the completion of the invasion.[6] On April 6, 1945, the ammunition shipsSSLogan Victory andSS Hobbs Victory sank afterkamikaze attack planes hit them. On April 27, 1945, the ammunition shipsSSCanada Victory, sank after a kamikaze attack. The loss of the three ammunition Victory ships severely hurt the combat forces. These ships were carrying a total of 24,000 tons (54 million pounds) of ammunition; including most of the81 mm mortar shells needed for the invasion.SSSaginaw Victory and theBerea Victory were the only ammunition ship to survive,Saginaw Victory was able to unload all her ammunition over 12 days with the help of aNaval Construction Battalion.[7][8][9][10] More ammunition ships were not needed as the war came to an end without the invasion ofJapan, calledOperation Downfall.[8] Forty-seven ships were sunk bykamikaze attack during World War II.[11]
In 1946 she was operated by the Pan-Atlantic to move post war goods.[12]
After the war in 1948 she was laid up in theNational Defense Reserve Fleet atHudson River, and later transferred toSuisun Bay.
Berea Victory served as a merchant marine ship supplying ammunition for theKorean War. About 75 percent of the personnel serving in the Korean War were delivered by the merchant marine ships.Berea Attorney transported goods, mail, and other supplies. About 90 percent of the cargo was moved by merchant marine ships to the war zone.Berea Victory made trips between 1951 and 1952.[13] At 9am inSuyong, Korea, on 14 August 1951 Colonel Mattis saw smoke rising from #5 hatch of theBerea Victory as she was being unloaded in the harbor. Colonel Mattis took a small boat and found a lit parachute-flare in the ship's hold. Later it was found that a Korean laborer had put it there. The ship's hold had 575 tons of flares, bombs, and other ammunition. Colonel Mattis went down in the smoke-filled hold and removed the burning flare saving the ship. Following his actions others joined to put out the fire. Later Lieutenant Colonel Mattis was awarded a medal for he actions.[14]
Berea Victory was removed from the reserve fleet in 1966 and chartered to ferry military equipment to American forces inSouth Vietnam for theVietnam War.Berea Victory has the dangerous job of delivering ammunition. It took her 21 days to travel fromSan Francisco toSaigon. She took supplies toQui Nhơn in central Vietnam. On 25 Oct. 1967, while docked at Qui Nhon, Vietnamese civilians placed bombs in a hold. The explosion and fire killed 12 men in LCM and 5 Army on the ship. 10 Army men and 10 merchant seamen were wounded.[15][16]
In 1993 she removed from thereserve fleet and wasscrapped inChina.
