SS Salvador Brau

SS Salvador Brau was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Salvador Brau, a journalist, poet, dramatist, novelist, historian, and sociologist. He was designated the official historian of Puerto Rico in 1903, by the first American-appointed governor William Henry Hunt.

History
United States
Name	Salvador Brau
Namesake	Salvador Brau
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	William J. Rountree Company
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 1543
Builder	J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida
Cost	$1,306,833
Yard number	25
Way number	3
Laid down	8 November 1943
Launched	15 December 1943
Completed	31 January 1944
Identification	Call Signal: KUWA
Fate	Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet Beaumont, Texas, 1 June 1948 Sold for scrapping, 16 November 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 General Machinery Corp., Hamilton, 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

Salvador Brau was laid down on 8 November 1943, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1543, by J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida; she was launched on 15 December 1943.

History

She was allocated to William J. Rountree Company, on 31 January 1944. On 1 June 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in Beaumont, Texas. On 16 November 1966, she was sold for $45,179.79 to Southern Scrap Material Co., Ltd., for scrapping. She was withdrawn from the fleet on 21 December 1966.

Bibliography

• "Jones Construction, Panama City FL". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
• "Liberty Ships – World War II". Retrieved 30 November 2017.
• Maritime Administration. "Salvador Brau". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
• "SS Salvador Brau". Retrieved 30 November 2017.