SS Peter Minuit

SS Peter Minuit was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Peter Minuit, a Walloon from Tournai, in present-day Belgium. He was the 3rd Director of the Dutch North American colony of New Netherland from 1626 until 1631, and 3rd Governor of New Netherland. He founded the Swedish colony of New Sweden on the Delaware Peninsula in 1638. Minuit is generally credited with orchestrating the purchase of Manhattan Island for the Dutch from the Lenape Native Americans. Manhattan later became the site of the Dutch city of New Amsterdam, and the borough of Manhattan of modern-day New York City.

History
United States
Name	Peter Minuit
Namesake	Peter Minuit
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Grace Line, Inc.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 35
Awarded	14 March 1941
Builder	Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland
Cost	$1,103,958
Yard number	2022
Way number	1
Laid down	28 January 1942
Launched	23 April 1942
Completed	27 May 1942
Identification	Call sign: KFNJ
Fate	Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, Texas, 14 June 1948 Sold for scrapping, 11 March 1963, withdrawn from fleet, 19 April 1963
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 Toledo Shipbuilding Co., Toledo, Ohio) 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

Peter Minuit was laid down on 28 January 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 35, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; and was launched on 23 April 1942.

History

She was allocated to Grace Line, Inc., on 27 May 1942. On 14 June 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, Texas. On 11 March 1963, she was sold for scrapping to Southern Scrap Material Co., Ltd., for $46,359.79. She was withdrawn from the fleet on 19 April 1963.

Bibliography

• "Bethlehem-Fairfield, Baltimore MD". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "Peter Minuit". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
• "SS Peter Minuit". Retrieved 24 February 2020.