Northland Transportation Company operated

cargo In transportation, cargo refers to goods transported by land, water or air, while freight refers to its conveyance. In economics, freight refers to goods transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. The term cargo is also used in cas ...

and

passenger ship A passenger ship is a merchant ship whose primary function is to carry passengers on the sea. The category does not include cargo vessels which have accommodations for limited numbers of passengers, such as the ubiquitous twelve-passenger freig ...

s from

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

Southeast Alaska Southeast Alaska, often abbreviated to southeast or southeastern, and sometimes called the Alaska(n) panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian provi ...

starting in 1923. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Northland Transportation Company was active in charter shipping with the

Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 1950. The c ...

and

War Shipping Administration The War Shipping Administration (WSA) was a World War II emergency war agency of the US government, tasked to purchase and operate the civilian shipping tonnage the United States needed for fighting the war. Both shipbuilding under the Maritime C ...

. Northland Transportation Company, proposed a loan from

United States Shipping Board The United States Shipping Board (USSB) was a corporation established as an emergency agency by the 1916 Shipping Act (39 Stat. 729), on September 7, 1916. The United States Shipping Board's task was to increase the number of US ships supporting ...

to build a ship for

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

trade in 1933. In 1934, the company was granted a $350,000 loan to build a new ship. The 1,400 tons passenger ship, was built at Lake Washington Shipyard in

Houghton, Washington Houghton is one of the lakeside neighborhoods of the city of Kirkland, Washington. Consisting mostly of upscale, single-family homes, Houghton overlooks Lake Washington and is one of the wealthier districts of the Eastside suburbs of Seattle ...

. Northland Transportation Company Seattle dock and warehouse were at Pier 56 (originally called Pier 5), now Ainsworth and Dunn Wharf. Alaska ports served:

Ketchikan Ketchikan ( ; ) is a city in and the borough seat of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough on Revillagigedo Island of Alaska. It is the state's southeasternmost major settlement. Downtown Ketchikan is a National Historic Landmark District. With a po ...

, Wrangell,

Petersburg Petersburg, or Petersburgh, may refer to: Places Australia *Petersburg, former name of Peterborough, South Australia Canada * Petersburg, Ontario Russia *Saint Petersburg, sometimes referred to as Petersburg United States * Peterborg, U.S. Vir ...

Juneau Juneau ( ; ), officially the City and Borough of Juneau, is the capital of the U.S. state of Alaska, located along the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle. Juneau was named the capital of Alaska in 1906, when the government of wha ...

, Haines,

Skagway The Municipality and Borough of Skagway is a borough in Alaska on the Alaska Panhandle. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,240, up from 968 in 2010. The population doubles in the summer tourist season in order to deal with the large ...

and

Sitka Sitka (; ) is a unified city-borough in the southeast portion of the U.S. state of Alaska. It was under Russian rule from 1799 to 1867. The city is situated on the west side of Baranof Island and the south half of Chichagof Island in the Al ...

. There was also some service to

Quinhagak, Alaska Quinhagak (; ) is a city in Bethel Census Area, Alaska, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city is 776, up from 669 in 2010. The Yupik name for the village is ''Kuinerraq'', meaning "new river channel." It has been d ...

and

Kuskokwim Bay Kuskokwim Bay is a bay in southwestern Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside ...

starting in 1944. Northland Transportation Company opened a terminal at pier 42 in South Seattle.

Skinner and Eddy Corporation The Skinner & Eddy Corporation, commonly known as Skinner & Eddy, was a Seattle, Washington-based shipbuilding corporation that existed from 1916 to 1923. The yard is notable for completing more ships for the United States war effort during World ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

purchased the only two major Alaska shipping companies to survive the after the war: Northland Transportation Company in 1942 and

Alaska Steamship Company The Alaska Steamship Company was formed on August 3, 1894. While it originally set out to ship passengers and fishing products, the Alaska Steamship Company began shipping mining equipment, dog sleds, and cattle at the outbreak of the Klondike G ...

in 1944. The other Alaska Steamship Companies did not survive due to rising labor costs, the end of federal subsidies and from new competition from

trucking Road transport or road transportation is a type of transport using roads. Transport on roads can be roughly grouped into the transportation of goods and transportation of people. In many countries licensing requirements and safety regulations ...

and

air carriers An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...

. At the time of purchase, Northland Transportation Company had six ships. Skinner and Eddy Corporation closed the Northland Transportation Company in 1948.

Northland Transportation ships

SS ''Norco'', was General Miles

Northland Transportation ships: * ''Northland'', a 1,262 ton passenger steamer built in 1929 at Lake Washington Shipyard as the ''W. B. Foshhay''. Sold in 1947 and on November 1, 1955, sank as the ''Titika'' wrecked on rocks south of Fiskiðjuna, off Keflavik,

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

. *''North Sea'' was the ''Mary Weems'', built in 1918, sold in 1934 to Northland Transportation Company, She met her demise when she was stranded on the coast of

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

in 1947. Built in 1918 at 3,133 tons by

Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corp Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

. On August 10, 1936 the ''Northsea'' struck a submerged object off Taku Point on the receding tide, she was refloated. She was taken

Todd Shipyard Vigor Shipyards is the current entity operating the former Todd Shipyards after its acquisition in 2011. Todd Shipyards was founded in 1916, which owned and operated shipyards on the West Coast of the United States, East Coast of the United St ...

into

dry dock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...

and repaired. On February 13, 1947, on a voyage from Ketchikan to Seattle sank on Porter Reef,

Shearwater, British Columbia Shearwater is a community in coastal British Columbia. It is located three miles from Old Bella Bella on Denny Island. It is in the territory of the Heiltsuk Nation. History Shearwater was originally built as an antisubmarine bomber reconnaissa ...

, in

Seaforth Channel Seaforth Channel is a channel in the Central Coast region of the Canadian province of British Columbia which is part of the Inside Passage - the passage between Seattle, Washington and Juneau, Alaska. The marine highway goes through Seaforth Ch ...

. * SS ''North Wind'' a 2,448 ton passenger steamer, was stranded and was lost December 14, 1944 near Simeonof Island under used by the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

. Built in 1918 by the New York Shipbuilding Company. Was SS ''Mincola'' with the Atlantic Transport Company and Grace Line. The SS ''Nosa Duke'' with the American Steamship Company. In 1932 she became the North Wind of the Northland Transportation Company *''North Haven'' used by

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

in World War 2. 6,700-ton cargo ship. Northland Transportation Company used the ship to take cannery workers to Alaska. The lower deck a dormitory and it had large refrigerators. She was used by the Navy to move six months’ worth of food to Midway and

Wake Island Wake Island (), also known as Wake Atoll, is a coral atoll in the Micronesia subregion of the Pacific Ocean. The atoll is composed of three islets – Wake, Wilkes, and Peale Islands – surrounding a lagoon encircled by a coral reef. The neare ...

. She also took supplies and

Seabee United States Naval Construction Battalions, better known as the Navy Seabees, form the U.S. Naval Construction Forces (NCF). The Seabee nickname is a heterograph of the initial letters "CB" from the words "Construction Battalion". Dependi ...

s to

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

and

Guam Guam ( ; ) is an island that is an Territories of the United States, organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. Guam's capital is Hagåtña, Guam, Hagåtña, and the most ...

. * SS ''Norco'', built in 1882 was ''

General Miles ''General Miles'' was a steamship constructed in 1882 which served in various coastal areas of the states of Oregon and Washington, as well as British Columbia and the territory of Alaska. It was apparently named after US General Nelson A. Mile ...

''. Built as a sailing ship and converted to power. *''North Coast'' was ''SS Mayon'' was built as the ''Carabobo'' in 1923 by the

New York Shipbuilding The New York Shipbuilding Corporation (or New York Ship for short) was an American shipbuilding company that operated from 1899 to 1968, ultimately completing more than 500 vessels for the U.S. Navy, the United States Merchant Marine, the United ...

Camden, New Jersey Camden is a City (New Jersey), city in Camden County, New Jersey, Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan region. The city was incorporated on February 13, 1828.Snyder, John P''The Story of ...

, for the Atlantic and Caribbean Shipping and Navigation of Delaware. In 1938, she was sold to the Northland Transportation Company in 1938 by the

Grace Line Grace is an American chemical business based in Columbia, Maryland. It produces specialty chemicals and specialty materials in two divisions: Grace Catalysts Technologies, which makes polyethylene and polypropylene catalysts and related products ...

. Used by US Army in World War II. Sold off in 1947, and on February 18, 1955, an explosion and fire hit the ship off the western coast of

Borneo Island Borneo () is the third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda Islands, located north o ...

. *SS ''Chief Washakie'' war surplus was purchased in 1947, a 1942

Liberty ship Liberty ships were a ship class, class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Although British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost cons ...

type EC-S-C1 built in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

in 1942. Sold off with the other ships when the company closed in 1948. (Ship was later scrapped in 1971).

World War II Merchant Marine

SS Skidmore Victory, later became USNS Range Tracker SS John Burke

Ships operated by Northland Transportation Company for World War II under the

United States Merchant Marine The United States Merchant Marine is an organization composed of United States civilian sailor, mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of ...

. The ships were owned by the

and operated by Northland Transportation Company. The ship was run by its Northland Transportation Company crew and the

supplied

United States Navy Armed Guard The United States Navy Armed Guard was a force of United States Navy gunners and related personnel established during World War II to protect U.S. merchant shipping from enemy attack.World War II U.S. Navy Armed Guard and World War II U.S. Merc ...

s to man the deck guns and radio. The most common armament mounted on these merchant ships were the MK II 20mm Oerlikon autocannon and the 3"/50, 4"/50, and

5"/38 The Mark 12 5"/38-caliber gun was a United States dual-purpose naval gun, but also installed in single-purpose mounts on a handful of ships. The 38-caliber barrel was a mid-length compromise between the previous United States standard 5"/51 low ...

deck guns.World War II U.S. Navy Armed Guard and World War II U.S. Merchant Marine, 2007-2014 Project Liberty Ship, Project Liberty Ship, P.O. Box 25846 Highlandtown Station, Baltimore, M

/ref> **

Victory ship The Victory ship was a class of cargo ship produced in large numbers by American shipyards during World War II. They were a more modern design compared to the earlier Liberty ship, were slightly larger and had more powerful steam turbine engin ...

s, 7,200 tons: * SS ''Skidmore Victory'' later became the USNS Range Tracker. *''Macalester Victory'' *''Midland Victory'' *''Adrian Victory'' * SS ''Furman Victory'', later became the USNS Furman (T-AK-280). *''Northwestern Victory'' *''Dothan Victory'' **

Liberty Ship Liberty ships were a ship class, class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Although British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost cons ...

s, 10,856 tons: *''Chief Washakie'', Northland Transportation purshased in 1948, built in Portland, Oregon, in 1942. Named after

Chief Washakie Washakie (1804/1810 – February 20, 1900) was a prominent leader of the Shoshone people during the mid-19th century. He was first mentioned in 1840 in the written record of the American fur trapper, Osborne Russell. In 1851, at the urging o ...

* ''John Burke'', Ammunition Ship built at Kaiser Shipbuilding Company's Oregon Shipbuilding yard in Portland, Oregon in 1942. Sank in a blast after

kamikaze , officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...

attack on December 28, 1944, off

Negros island Negros (, , ) is the fourth largest and third most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of . The coastal zone of the southern part of Negros is identified as a site of highest marine biodiversity importance in the Coral T ...

, and Siquijor island, all aboard her were lost. *''Henderson Luelling'', named after

Henderson Luelling Henderson William Luelling (April 23, 1809 – December 28, 1878) was an American horticulturist, Quaker, abolitionist and early settler of what is today Oakland, California. He introduced varietal fruits to the Pacific coast, first to Oregon and ...

*''John W.Weeks'',

Troop Ship A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable to land troops directly on shore, typic ...

, named after John W. Weeks *''William H. Ashley'', named after William H. Ashley *''Henderson Luelling'', named after

*''Charlotte Cushman'', named after

Charlotte Cushman Charlotte Saunders Cushman (July 23, 1816 – February 18, 1876) was an American stage actress. Her voice was noted for its full contralto register, and she was able to play both male and female parts. She lived intermittently in Rome, in an expa ...

, built by Permanente Metals Corporation in Richmond, California in 1944, shot down five enemy planes off

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has been ...

. * ''John P. Gaines'' November 24, 1943 she broke in two and sank with the loss of 10 lives off the

Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands ( ; ; , "land of the Aleuts"; possibly from the Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', or "island")—also called the Aleut Islands, Aleutic Islands, or, before Alaska Purchase, 1867, the Catherine Archipelago—are a chain ...

. *''Floyd W. Spencer'', built in 1944 at Delta Shipbuilding, New Orleans,NavSource Floyd W. Spencer
/ref>

Northland Transportation ships

World War II Merchant Marine

See also