SS ''Theodore Foster'' was a

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. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost constr ...

built in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. She was named after Theodore Foster, an American lawyer and politician from

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but i ...

. He was a member of the

Federalist Party The Federalist Party was a conservative political party which was the first political party in the United States. As such, under Alexander Hamilton, it dominated the national government from 1789 to 1801. Defeated by the Jeffersonian Repub ...

and later the

National Republican Party The National Republican Party, also known as the Anti-Jacksonian Party or simply Republicans, was a political party in the United States that evolved from a conservative-leaning faction of the Democratic-Republican Party that supported John ...

. He served as one of the first two

United States senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and p ...

s from Rhode Island and served as Dean of the United States Senate.

Construction

''Theodore Foster'' was laid down on 31 March 1942, under a

Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) 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, 19 ...

(MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 43, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard,

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, Maryland; she was sponsored by Miss Barbara W. Vickery, the daughter of Vice Admiral

Howard L. Vickery Howard Leroy Vickery (April 20, 1892 – March 21, 1946) was a decorated U.S. naval officer with the rank of Vice admiral. He was renowned merchant shipbuilder and served as Vice Chairman, U.S. Maritime Commission during World War II. Early li ...

, and was launched on 14 June 1942.

History

''Theodore Foster'' was allocated to

Shepard Steamship Company Shepard Steamship Company of Boston, Massachusetts was founded in 1930 by Otis N Shepard, and H B, Shepard with service from Pacific Coast to Philadelphia, New York City, Albany and Boston. Service was called the Shepard Line Shepard Steamship ...

, on 29 June 1942. On 9 August 1949, she was laid up in the

Hudson River Reserve Fleet The Hudson River Reserve Fleet, formally the Hudson River National Defense Reserve Fleet and popularly the Mothball Fleet, was established by act of Congress in 1946 as a component of the National Defense Reserve Fleet. It was first located off Ta ...

, Jones Point, New York. On 12 August 1953, she was withdrawn from the fleet to be loaded with grain under the "Grain Program 1953", she returned loaded on 24 August 1953. On 5 March 1956, ''Theodore Foster'' was withdrawn to be unload, she then returned empty 22 March 1956. On 24 July 1956, she was withdrawn from the fleet to be loaded with grain under the "Grain Program 1956", after which she returned loaded on 8 August 1956. On 17 June 1963, ''Theodore Foster'' was withdrawn to be unload, she returned empty 20 June 1963. She was sold for scrapping on 24 March 1970, to Hierros Ardes, SA., for $105,700. She was removed from the fleet, 26 June 1970.

References

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Theodore Foster Liberty ships 1942 ships Ships built in Baltimore Hudson River Reserve Fleet Hudson River Reserve Fleet Grain Program