SS Robert Mills

SS Robert Mills was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Robert Mills, a South Carolina architect known for designing both the first Washington Monument, located in Baltimore, Maryland, as well as the better known Washington Monument in the nation's capital, Washington, D.C.

History
United States
Name	Robert Mills
Namesake	Robert Mills
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Alcoa Steamship Co., Inc.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2498
Awarded	April 23, 1943
Builder	St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida
Cost	$964,345
Yard number	62
Way number	2
Laid down	August 30, 1944
Launched	October 5, 1944
Sponsored by	Mrs. Cecil L. McCall
Completed	October 14, 1944
Identification	Call sign: KTEY
Fate	Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama, 16 October 1948 Sold for artificial reef program, 21 May 1975, withdrawn from fleet, 28 May 1975
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 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

Robert Mills was laid down on August 30, 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2498, by the St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida; she was sponsored by Mrs. Cecil L. McCall, the wife of St. Johns River SBC's leaderman, and was launched on 5 October 1944.

History

She was allocated to the Alcoa Steamship Co., Inc. on October 14, 1944. On October 21, 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet in Mobile, Alabama. She was transferred for use as an artificial reef, May 21, 1975, to the state of Alabama. She was removed from the fleet, 28 May 1975. She was sunk 24 October 1975, at 30°04′6″N 88°06′45″W.

Bibliography

• "St. John's River Shipbuilding, Jacksonville FL". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. October 16, 2010. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "Robert Mills". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
• "SS Robert Mills". Retrieved January 30, 2020.