SS Walter L. Fleming

SS Walter L. Fleming was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Walter L. Fleming, American Civil War historian and Dean of the Vanderbilt University College of Arts and Science in 1923, and later Director of the Graduate School.

History
United States
Name	Walter L. Fleming
Namesake	Walter L. Fleming
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Waterman Steamship Corp.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 1542
Builder	J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida
Cost	$1,314,932
Yard number	24
Way number	2
Laid down	31 October 1943
Launched	7 December 1943
Completed	30 January 1944
Identification	Call Signal: KUVZ
Fate	Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group, Lee Hall, Virginia, 24 May 1946 Sold for scrapping, 15 September 1959
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 Filer and Stowell, Milwaukee, Wisconsin) 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

Walter L. Fleming was laid down on 31 October 1943, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1542, by J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida; she was launched on 7 December 1943.

History

She was allocated to Waterman Steamship Corp., on 30 January 1944. On 24 May 1946, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in the James River Group, Lee Hall, Virginia. On 15 September 1959, she was sold, along with nine other ships, for $717,810 to Bethlehem Steel, for scrapping. She was withdrawn from the fleet on 28 September 1959.

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. "Walter L. Fleming". 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 Walter L. Fleming". Retrieved 30 November 2017.