SS Bernard Carter

SS Bernard Carter was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Bernard Carter, a lawyer, professor, and politician from Maryland. Carter was corporate attorney in Baltimore and a professor at the University of Maryland.

History
United States
Name	Bernard Carter
Namesake	Bernard Carter
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	American South African Line, Inc.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 55
Awarded	14 March 1941
Builder	Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland
Cost	$1,086,055
Yard number	2042
Way number	6
Laid down	6 June 1942
Launched	29 July 1942
Sponsored by	Mrs. C.E. Walsh Jr.
Completed	8 August 1942
Identification	Call sign: KGFB
Fate	Laid up in the James River Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, Virginia, 1 June 1946 Sold for scrapping, 18 September 1958, withdrawn from fleet, 27 January 1960
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 Worthington Pump & Machinery Corp, Harrison, New Jersey) 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

Bernard Carter was laid down on 6 June 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 55, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; she was sponsored by Mrs. C.E. Walsh Jr., the wife of the chief of the procurement division of MARCOM in Washington DC, and was launched on 29 July 1942.

History

She was allocated to American South African Line, on 8 August 1942. On 1 June 1946, she was laid up in the James River Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, Virginia, with approximately $100,000 in damage to her bottom. She was sold for scrapping on 18 September 1958, to Bethlehem Steel Co., for $76,191. She was withdrawn from the fleet on 27 January 1960.

Bibliography

• "Bethlehem-Fairfield, Baltimore MD". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "Bernard Carter". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
• "SS Bernard Carter". Retrieved 2 March 2020.