SS Richard Bassett

SS Richard Bassett was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Founding Father Richard Bassett, a Delaware attorney and politician, veteran of the American Revolutionary War, delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, signer of the United States Constitution, United States Senator from Delaware, Chief Justice of the Delaware Court of Common Pleas, Governor of Delaware and a United States circuit judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Third Circuit. He holds the overall seniority position of #1 in the history of the United States Senate.

History
United States
Name	Richard Bassett
Namesake	Richard Bassett
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	A. H. Bull Steamship Company
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 41
Awarded	14 March 1941
Builder	Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland
Cost	$1,056,089
Yard number	2028
Way number	3
Laid down	18 March 1942
Launched	22 May 1942
Sponsored by	Mrs. J.F. McInnis
Completed	13 June 1942
Identification	Call sign: KFOG
Fate	Sold for commercial use, 26 March 1947
United States
Name	Carolyn
Owner	Baltimore Insular Line
Operator	A.H. Bull & Co., Inc.
Fate	Exchanged to Maritime Administration (MARAD), 29 August 1961
United States
Name	Carolyn
Owner	Maritime Administration
Fate	Laid up in the Hudson River Reserve Fleet, Jones Point, New York, 15 October 1948 Sold for scrapping, 29 October 1962
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

Richard Bassett was laid down on 18 March 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 41, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; sponsored by Mrs. J.F. McInnis, the wife of the MARCOM Eastcoast Regional Director, and was launched on 22 May 1942.

History

She was allocated to A. H. Bull Steamship Company, on 13 June 1942. On 26 March 1947, she was sold for commercial use to the Baltimore Insular Line, for $544,506. On 29 August 1961, she was used for an exchange with the Maritime Administration (MARAD). On 5 September 1961, she was laid up in the Hudson River Reserve Fleet, Jones Point, New York. She was sold for scrapping on 29 October 1962, to Union Minerals & Alloys Corp.

Bibliography

• "Bethlehem-Fairfield, Baltimore MD". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 14 August 2008. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "Richard Bassett". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
• "SS Richard Bassett". Retrieved 25 February 2020.