Liberty Ships: The “Ugly Ducklings” that Transformed Greek Shipping

Liberty Ship USS George Eastman. The US’ Liberty Ships revolutionized Greek shipping. Credit: Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

Liberty Ships, archetypal built during World War II,  transformed the Greek shipping industry.

By Lia Mageira

“Your information altogether depends upon the sea.”
Xenophon, 4th period BC, Greek historiographer and philosopher.

During World War II, betwixt 1941 and 1945, a full of 2,711 cargo ships with a capableness of astir 10 1000 tons each were built astatine eighteen shipyards successful the United States. These ships became known by the codification sanction “Liberty,” with a codification designation of Ec-2.

The operation of each ship, which was for the astir portion carried retired by females since young males were disconnected to war, outgo determination betwixt $1,550,000 to $2,100,000, depending connected the shipyard wherever the vas was built.

The Liberty ships were 133 meters (436 feet) agelong and 17 meters (58) wide. They were equipped with a three-cylinder steam motor with 2,500 horsepower and could make a velocity of eleven knots carrying a afloat load of implicit 10 1000 tons. They had 5 load hulls—three astatine the beforehand and 2 astatine the rear with a raised bridge.

Construction of a Liberty Ship required 3,400 tons of hard alloy for the framework and baffles only; 2,750 tons of expanse metal; astir 7 100 tons of molded materials and astir 50 1000 formed metallic parts.

The exertion of electro-welding allowed for the accelerated operation of ships according to the specifications developed by Henry Kaiser, an American industrialist who became known arsenic the begetter of modern American shipbuilding.

Liberty ships were built astatine a accelerated speed

On nary different juncture successful satellite past person the concepts of “shipbuilding” and “production”
been the same. Their shipbuilder himself said: “I bash not construct, nor manufacture, but I
produce ships!”

The Oregon Shipbuilding Co. completed the operation of the archetypal vessel successful 253 days, of the
tenth successful 154 days, and the nineteenth successful an unthinkable 86 days. The Richmond Shipyard successful California completed 1 vessel successful an astounding sixteen days! By 1944, the mean clip to physique a Liberty vessel was little than forty-two days!

The inaugural for their operation is owed to the continuous nonaccomplishment of ships of Allied Forces that participated successful the Atlantic convoys, transporting invaluable supplies indispensable for the
successful result of the war.

The request for accelerated replacement of mislaid ships led to the adoption of shipbuilding by the method of electro-welding. It was a method that was seldom utilized astatine that clip astatine which astir each ships were built traditionally, with bolts.

As a result, galore were speedy to statement them arsenic “disposable” ships—in different words, ships whose relation was constricted during World War II. However, the people of events turned retired to beryllium rather different.

Liberty ships dodged torpedoes and mines

These ships not lone survived the warfare but went connected to play an important relation successful planetary shipping for much than 25 years afterward. Liberty Ships carried each the value of transport during the war.

The ten-knot, slow-moving ships carried millions of tons of ammunition, supplies, tanks, lipid and coal, locomotives, subject vehicles, pharmaceuticals, and each kinds of materials connected each warfare fronts from the North Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.

They were the ships that defied mines, escaped deadly torpedoes, and traveled done warfare zones. With their constricted subject equipment, immoderate of them adjacent changeable down German craft and sunk submarines.

A Liberty Ship was considered to person completed her ngo if she made adjacent 1 afloat transatlantic voyage. Of the Liberty Ships mislaid during the war, 50 were mislaid connected their maiden voyage. They usually crossed the Atlantic successful 15 days.

The archetypal Liberty was launched connected September 27, 1941, 10 weeks earlier the Japanese onslaught connected Pearl Harbor. She was named the PATRICK HENRY successful grant of an American national who became portion of past for his declaration successful 1775: “Give maine liberty oregon springiness maine death.”

During the War, a full of 182 Liberty Ships sailed nether the British ensign, portion thirty-eight sailed nether the Russian emblem and 15 nether the Greek flag.

Theodore Roosevelt referred to their ungraceful lines with nary flattering words, portion Time Magazine characterized them arsenic “ugly ducklings.” Many others referred to them arsenic “ships for 1 azygous voyage.”

The Liberty Ships, however, which played a cardinal relation successful the result of the war, were to past a precise agelong clip indeed. After the extremity of World War II, the US Navy decided to support immoderate of them acceptable to service the needs of the US successful lawsuit of different war, and the remainder would beryllium sold to 3rd countries for commercialized purposes.

Liberty ships transformed Greek shipping

The Liberty Ships would present enactment successful peaceful missions. The “ugly ducklings,” present colorful and without their airy weapons, transported cargo astir the satellite during the archetypal post-war decades. There are 4 surviving Liberty Ships to this day.

Two ships—still afloat functional—are anchored successful the USA (in Maryland and successful San Francisco Harbor) and are floating museums, retaining their archetypal colors. There is different 1 successful Alaska that has been converted into a factory. The 4th is anchored successful Piraeus Harbor successful Greece.

Nowadays, the “Hellas Liberty” (as it was renamed) is the largest floating depository successful the
Mediterranean Sea.

It was December 2008 erstwhile the vessel sailed nether tow from the USA. It arrived astatine Piraeus Harbor aft a travel of thirty-five days, arriving to large fanfare astatine the port.

With the anchors set, restored, with the emblem waving astatine the stern, without a hint of rust connected it, and with its bow facing the rima of the port, it looks acceptable to acceptable sail erstwhile again astatine the precocious property of seventy-seven.

It is nary coincidence that scenes from planetary and Greek movie productions person been
shot there. The vessel hosts events and classes, portion 2 others big imperishable exhibitions.

The ship’s accommodation is besides afloat accessible to visitors, arsenic is its deck, bronze instruments, and radio.

Of the astir 2,350 remaining ships aft the war, 450 were sold by the U.S. authorities to the Allies connected favorable terms. The “blessed ships” bought by Greek shipowners formed the halfway of the renaissance of post-war shipping, which made the Greek merchant marine a large satellite powerfulness of the seas.

The Liberty Ships, erstwhile successful Greek hands, worked non-stop for 3 decades, transporting each imaginable benignant of cargo. Those who worked connected the Liberty Ships called them “blessed ships.”

Two-thirds of each Liberty Ships sailing successful peacetime came nether the power of Greek owners
at immoderate clip by the precocious 1960s. These were genuinely the “Blessed Ships.”

“Dominance astatine oversea is simply a large thing.”
Thucydides, Greek historian, 5th period BC.