Talk:USS Refuge

Phantom ship

The section regarding the ship and its voyage from the Dutch East Indies, 21 December 1941 is misleading at best. The YouTube account, though not a legitimate reliable source, seems reasonable as far as a missionary's recollections. The unescorted voyage through the Indian Ocean and around to New York with subs and German raiders would have been—and was—a tense time. The 1939 NYT reference related to escaping submarines being the source of "Phantom ship" is baloney. The war in the Indo-Pacific was some time off, though Japan was offering to "protect" the Dutch colonies after war in Europe began. That "Phantom ship"—and the article is behind a pay wall—most likely applies to a period of layup during which a June 1, 1939 Vashon Island News-Record Summary states that "once proud S.S. President Madison (perhaps not even this one as the name changes were going on near that time) "has been dismantled and is deserted by all except two watchmen who are on duty alternate day and night shifts." Palmeira (talk) 00:35, 24 July 2015 (UTC)

These ships were never commonly known as the "522" type—very commonly the "502" type

The other two ships of this type covered as of 25 July 2015 mention a confusion between "502" Type and "522" Type. That seems to be a modern "confusion" and not supported by professional contemporary references. Contemporary industry references use "502" Type, the "502s" or the 502-foot class through the 1930s. This was in contrast to their larger "sisters" the "535" Type, the "535s" or the 535-foot class. Just a few references:

• McKellar: Steel Shipbuilding under the U. S. Shipping Board, 1917-1921, Part V, Contract Steel Ships
• EFC Design 1095: Illustrations
• Emergency Fleet Orders
• Historical Dictionary of the U.S. Maritime Industry

About the only place the "522" confusion is mentioned appears to be the modern reference USSB 502/522 Class at GlobalSecurity.org from which some of the existing text appears to be lifted. The registered length, Lloyd's (President Taylor) for example, tended to be Length between perpendiculars and in the case of Lloyd's 502 feet 1 inch (153.0 m). Palmeira (talk) 19:41, 25 July 2015 (UTC)