 Westerdijk inHolland America Line colours, with wartimeneutrality markings | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | |
| Name | Westerdijk |
| Namesake | Dutch for "West Dyke" |
| Owner |
|
| Operator |  US Navy (1918) |
| Port of registry |  Rotterdam |
| Builder | Irvine's Sb & DD,West Hartlepool |
| Yard number | 523 |
| Laid down | 14 September 1912 |
| Launched | 7 May 1913 |
| Completed | July 1913 |
| Acquired | by US Govt, 21 March 1918 |
| Commissioned | into US Navy, 27 March 1918 |
| Decommissioned | from US Navy, 25 September 1919 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Scrapped in 1933 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | cargo ship |
| Tonnage | 8,261 GRT, 5,235 NRT, 11,927 DWT |
| Displacement | 17,050 tons |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 55.0 ft (16.8 m) |
| Draught | 31 ft 9 in (9.67 m) |
| Depth | 38.7 ft (11.8 m) |
| Decks | 2 + shelter deck |
| Installed power | 755NHP, 4,600ihp |
| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 13 knots (24 km/h) |
| Capacity | 610,000 cubic feet (17,000 m3) grain, 568,000 cubic feet (16,100 m3) bale |
| Complement | in US Navy, 52 |
| Armament |
|
| Notes | sister ship:Oosterdijk |
SSWesterdijk was aHolland America Linecargosteamship that was completed in 1913 and scrapped in 1933. She served in theUnited States Navy, with theNaval Registry Identification NumberID–2514, from March 1918 until September 1919. Some sources anglicise her name asWesterdyk, butLloyd's Registerregistered her with the Dutch spellingWesterdijk.
A smaller cargo steamship, built for a different Dutch shipping company, was also completed in 1913 and calledWesterdijk.[1] In 1923 she was sold to German owners, who renamed herEschersheim.[2] Some sources confuse the two ships, and incorrectly claim that NASM'sWesterdijk becameEschersheim.[3][4]
In 1912 and 1913 Irvine's Shipbuilding & Dry Docks Co Ltd built a pair ofsister ships, with consecutive yard numbers, at its shipyard on theRiver Tees inWest Hartlepool, County Durham, England, for the Nederlandsch-Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij (NASM), known in English as "Holland America Line". Yard number 522 was laid down on 7 June 1912, launched on 21 February 1913 asOosterdijk, and completed that May.[5][6] Yard number 523 was laid down on 14 September 1912, launched on 7 May 1913 asWesterdijk, and completed that July.[7][8]
Westerdijk's lengths were 470.0 ft (143.25 m)overall[7] and 450.4 ft (137.3 m) registered. Her beam was 55.0 ft (16.8 m) and her depth was 38.7 ft (11.8 m).[1] Hertonnages were 8,261 GRT, 5,235 NRT and 11,927 DWT. Her holds had capacity for 610,000 cubic feet (17,000 m3) of grain, or 568,000 cubic feet (16,100 m3) of baled cargo.[7]
She had a singlescrew, driven by a four-cylinderquadruple-expansion steam engine built byRichardsons Westgarth & Company ofHartlepool. It was rated at 755NHP[1] or 4,600ihp, and gave her a speed of 13 knots (24 km/h).[7]
NASM registeredWesterdijk atRotterdam. Hercode letters were QCBW.[1] She was equipped forwireless telegraphy. By 1914 hercall sign was PGZ.[9]
On 30 January 1914 in poor visibilityWesterdijk ran aground in theNieuwe Waterweg, blocked the waterway, and collided withMaersk Line's cargo shipSally Maersk.[7]
In theFirst World Warthe Netherlands were neutral, andWesterdijk continued to trade between the Netherlands and the USA.[10] On 27 February 1916 amine sank theStoomvaart Maatschappij Zeeland steamshipMecklenburg in theNorth Sea.Westerdijk rescued her passengers, crew, and mail. SMZ suspended its service.[11]
On 26 March 1916 theRussianschoonerEkonom foundered in theEnglish Channel offSt Michael's Mount, Cornwall.Westerdijk rescued her crew.[12]
On 20 March 1918 PresidentWoodrow Wilson issued Proclamation 1436, authorising the seizure underangary of Dutch ships in US ports. The next day, theUnited States Customs Service seizedWesterdijk,[3] probably at NASM's pier inHoboken, New Jersey. She was givendefensive armament of one5-inch/51-caliber gun and one4-inch/40-caliber gun.[4]
On 27 March she was commissioned into the United States Navy and assigned to theNaval Overseas Transport Service, withLieutenant Commander Harold L Thompson as her commander. On 9 April she left New York carrying a cargo ofUnited States Army general stores for theAmerican Expeditionary Forces inFrance. She made a total of four transatlantic voyages before theArmistice of 11 November 1918.[3]
On her fourth voyage,Westerdijk returned to New York inballast, and then underwent repairs. She left New York on 19 January 1919, went via thePanama Canal to Chile, loaded general cargo, returned, and unloaded her cargo in New York. She then went toNew Orleans, where she loaded 8,153 tons of cargo for theUnited States Shipping Board. She took her cargo viaNorfolk, Virginia toLiverpool, England, where she arrived on 29 July. After unloading her cargo she left Liverpool on 21 September, and arrived back in Rotterdam on 25 September. There she was decommissioned from the US Navy, struck from theNaval Vessel Register, and returned to her owners.[3]
On 30 October 1928,Westerdijk was one of the ships whose wireless telegraphist reported the position of the airshipGraf Zeppelin on its maiden transatlantic flight.Westerdijk sightedGraf Zeppelin at 12:15 hrsGMT at position48°47′N22°03′W / 48.783°N 22.050°W /48.783; -22.050, about 560 nautical miles (1,040 km) west of Ireland, headed southeast.[13] The airship had leftLakehurst, New Jersey on 29 October, and reachedFriedrichshaven, Baden-Württemberg on 1 November.[14]
In 1933 NASM soldWesterdijk for scrap to P&W MacLellan ofGlasgow. On 15 August that year she arrived inBo'ness on theFirth of Forth in Scotland to bebroken up.[7][15]
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