SS Christopher Newport

History
United States
Name	Christopher Newport
Namesake	Christopher Newport
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Calmar Steamship Corporation
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 21
Awarded	14 March 1941
Builder	Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland
Cost	$1,267,658
Yard number	2008
Way number	8
Laid down	25 August 1941
Launched	15 February 1942
Completed	30 March 1942
Fate	Sunk by German submarine U-457, 4 July 1942
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 Clark Bros. Co., Cleveland, 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

SS Christopher Newport was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Christopher Newport, who was an English seaman and privateer. He is best known as the captain of Susan Constant, the largest of three ships which carried settlers for the Virginia Company, in 1607, on the way to found the settlement at Jamestown, in the Virginia Colony, which became the first permanent English settlement in North America. He was also in overall command of the other two ships on that initial voyage, in order of their size, Godspeed and Discovery.

He made several voyages of supply between England and Jamestown; in 1609, he became Captain of the Virginia Company's new supply ship, Sea Venture, which met a hurricane during the Third Supply mission, and was shipwrecked on the archipelago of Bermuda.

Construction

Christopher Newport was laid down on 25 August 1941, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 21, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; and was launched on 15 February 1942.

History

She was allocated to Calmar Steamship Corporation, on 30 March 1942.

Sinking

Main article: Convoy PQ 17

Christopher Newport had set out from Baltimore, on her maiden voyage, in June 1942. She sailed from Hvalfjordur, Iceland, on the afternoon of 27 June 1942, with 8,200 LT (8,300 t) of war materials aboard, for Arkhangelsk, in Convoy PQ-17. On the morning of 4 July 1942, a German Heinkel He 115, from Küstenfliegergruppe 906 released a torpedo about one-half mi (0.80 km) from Christopher Newport that passed between the merchant ship SS Carlton and the Liberty ship SS Samuel Chase before striking her starboard side amidship. A large hole was torn in the hull which completely flooded the engine room. One officer and two crewmen were killed and the steering gear destroyed. The rest of the crew abandoned ship. One of her escorts, submarine HMS P614, attempted to scuttle her, but she remained afloat. At 08:08, she was discovered abandoned and sunk by torpedoes from German submarine U-457, at 75°49′N 25°15′E, northeast of Bear Island.

Bibliography

• "Bethlehem-Fairfield, Baltimore MD". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "Christopher Newport". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
• "SS Christopher Newport". Retrieved 17 February 2020.
• "Christopher Newport". Retrieved 17 February 2020.