SS Roy James Cole

SS Roy James Cole was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Roy James Cole, who was lost at sea while he was the Chief engineer on SS Expositor, after she was torpedoed by German submarine U-606, on 22 February 1943, in the North Atlantic.

History
United States
Name	Roy James Cole
Namesake	Roy James Cole
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2403
Builder	J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia
Cost	$931,476[1]
Yard number	188
Way number	6
Laid down	23 January 1945
Launched	28 February 1945
Sponsored by	Mrs. Kenneth H. Cole
Completed	17 March 1945
Identification	Call Signal: ANMX [1]
Fate	Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, Texas, 3 August 1949 Sold for commercial use, 2 March 1951
United States
Name	North Heaven
Operator	Merchants Steamship Corp.
Acquired	3 August 1949
Fate	Sold, 4 February 1954
United States
Operator	Delphi Steamship Co.
Acquired	4 February 1954
Fate	Sold, September 1954
Liberia
Acquired	September 1954
Fate	Scrapped, 1970
General characteristics [2]
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 General Machinery Corp., Hamilton, Ohio) 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

Roy James Cole was laid down on 23 January 1945, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2403, by J.A. Jones Construction, Brunswick, Georgia; she was sponsored by Mrs. Kenneth H. Cole, sister-in-law namesake, and launched on 28 February 1945.^[3][1]

History

She was allocated to the Blidberg & Rothchild Co. Inc., on 17 March 1945. On 3 August 1949, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in Beaumont, Texas. On 2 March 1951, she was sold to Merchants Steamship Corp., for commercial use and renamed North Heaven. On 4 February 1954, she was sold to Delphi Steamship Co. In September 1954, she was sold to a Liberian shipping company. She was scrapped in 1970.^[4][5]

References

1. MARCOM.
2. Davies 2004, p. 23.
3. J.A. Brunswick 2010.
4. Liberty Ships.
5. MARAD.

Bibliography

• "Jones Construction, Brunswick GA". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
• "Liberty Ships – World War II". Retrieved 19 November 2017.
• Maritime Administration. "Roy James Cole". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
• "SS Roy James Cole". Retrieved 19 November 2017.