SS John Owen

History
United States
NameJohn Owen
NamesakeJohn Owen
BuilderNorth Carolina Shipbuilding Company, Wilmington, North Carolina
Laid down15 April 1943
Launched10 May 1943
FateScrapped 1964
General characteristics
TypeLiberty ship
Tonnage7,000 long tons deadweight (DWT)
Length441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
Draft27 ft 9 in (8.46 m)
Propulsion
  • Two oil-fired boilers
  • Triple expansion steam engine
  • Single screw
  • 2,500 hp (1,864 kW)
Speed11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph)
Capacity9,140 tons cargo
Complement41
Armament

SS John Owen (MC contract 1970) was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after John Owen, Governor of North Carolina from 1828 to 1830.

The ship was laid down by North Carolina Shipbuilding Company in their Cape Fear River yard on April 15, 1943, and launched on May 10, 1943.[1] Owen was chartered to the William J. Rountree Company most of World War II. First stored at the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet, she was transferred to the Astoria Reserve Fleet in 1949. While there, Owen was part of the United States Department of Agriculture grain storage program, holding 7000 tons of grain[2] from 1954 to 1957.[3] It was sold for scrap in 1964.

On March 10, 1944, somewhere in the vicinity of Midway, SS John Owen's master, Robert Ogg, "drowned accidentally at sea."[4] A certified master, A. H. Hammet, was sent to Midway to take command of the ship.

References

  1. ^ "North Carolina Shipbuilding". shipbuildinghistory.com. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
  2. ^ Van Horn, W.H.; Freund, D. (1963). Civil Defense Utilization of Ships and Boats (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 6, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2006.
  3. ^ "John Owen". MARAD Vessel History Database. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
  4. ^ "ROBERT R. OGG, CAPT, USMS". USNA Virtual Memorial Hall. Run To Honor, Inc. Retrieved 27 April 2020.


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