SS Duncan U. Fletcher

SS Duncan U. Fletcher was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Duncan U. Fletcher, the 21st and 25th Mayor of Jacksonville, Florida, and later the longest serving United States Senator in Florida's history.

History
United States
Name	Duncan U. Fletcher
Namesake	Duncan U. Fletcher
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Lykes Bros. Steamship Co. Inc.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 1529
Builder	J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida
Cost	$1,807,972
Yard number	11
Way number	5
Laid down	3 May 1943
Launched	10 August 1943
Completed	27 August 1943
Identification	Call Signal: KXLM
Fate	Sold for commercial use, 3 March 1947
Greece
Name	Pericles
Namesake	Pericles
Acquired	3 March 1947
Fate	Scrapped, 1966
General characteristics
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 Vulcan Iron Works, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) 1 × screw propeller
Speed	11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity	562,608 cubic feet (15,931 m3) (grain) 499,573 cubic feet (14,146 m3) (bale)
Complement	38–62 USMM 21–40 USNAG
Armament	Varied by ship Bow-mounted 3-inch (76 mm)/50-caliber gun Stern-mounted 4-inch (102 mm)/50-caliber gun 2–8 × single 20-millimeter (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft (AA) cannons and/or, 2–8 × 37-millimeter (1.46 in) M1 AA guns

Construction

Duncan U. Fletcher was laid down on 3 May 1943, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1529, by J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida; she was launched on 10 August 1943.

History

She was allocated to Lykes Brothers Steamship Company, on 27 August 1943. On 23 April 1946, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in the James River Group, Lee Hall, Virginia. On 3 April 1947, she was sold for $544,506 to Ionian Steamship Co., Ltd., for commercial use and renamed Pericles. She was scrapped in 1966.

Bibliography

• "Jones Construction, Panama City FL". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
• Maritime Administration. "Duncan U. Fletcher". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
• "SS Duncan U. Fletcher". Retrieved 11 December 2019.