The SS ''Wheaton Victory'' was a class of

Victory ship The Victory ship was a class of cargo ship produced in large numbers by North American shipyards during World War II to replace losses caused by German submarines. They were a more modern design compared to the earlier Liberty ship, were slight ...

built 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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

under the

Emergency Shipbuilding program The Emergency Shipbuilding Program (late 1940 – September 1945) was a United States government effort to quickly build simple cargo ships to carry troops and materiel to allies and foreign theatres during World War II. Run by the U.S. Maritime ...

. She was launched by the

California Shipbuilding Company __NOTOC__ California Shipbuilding Corporation built 467 Liberty and Victory ships during World War II, including ''Haskell''-class attack transports. California Shipbuilding Corporation was often referred to as Calship. The ''Dictionary of Ame ...

on 22 March 1945. The ship was completed and delivered to the wartime operator of all United States oceangoing shipping, the

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 Co ...

(WSA), on 14 April 1945. ''Wheaton Victory'' was assigned to

Marine Transport Line Marine Transport Line (MTL) of New York, New York was a commercial steamship service started to support the needs of support charter shipping for the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration during World War 2. During wartime the Marin ...

, under a standard WSA operating agreement at that time. That agreement continued until the ship's sale in 1947. The ship's

United States 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, 195 ...

designation was VC2-S-AP3, hull number 776. ''Wheaton Victory'' was converted from a

cargo ship A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

to a

troopship 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 land troops directly on shore, typicall ...

to bring troops home after the war as part of

Operation Magic Carpet Operation Magic Carpet was the post-World War II operation by the War Shipping Administration to repatriate over eight million American military personnel from the European, Pacific, and Asian theaters. Hundreds of Liberty ships, Victory ships ...

. ''Wheaton Victory'' was one of the new 10,500-ton class ship to be known as Victory ships. Victory ships were designed to replace the earlier

Liberty Ship Liberty ships were a 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 construction. Mass ...

s. Liberty ships were designed to be used just for World War II. Victory ships were designed to last longer and serve the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

after the war. The Victory ship differed from a Liberty ship in that they were: faster, longer and wider, taller, had a thinner stack set farther toward the

superstructure A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships. Aboard ships and large boats On water craft, the superstruct ...

and had a long raised

forecastle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " be ...

. The ship's namesake is for Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. The SS Wheaton Victory was a Victory ship laid down on 27 January 1945 and one of a series of ships named for American colleges and universities. RedOakVictory-2013-07-20

World War II

''Wheaton Victory'' served as a troopship take troops to and from

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. ''Wheaton Victory'' and 96 other Victory ships were converted to troopships take troops to Europe. Later she was used to bring the US soldiers home as part of

from port cities known as

Cigarette Camp A Cigarette Camp was one of a number of temporary U.S. Army "tent cities" situated principally around the French ports of Le Havre and Marseilles following their captures by Allied Forces in the wake of the Allied D-Day invasion in June 1944 and ...

s. She was able to transport up to 1,500 troops to and from Europe. Her cargo holds were converted to

bunk bed A bunk bed is a type of bed in which one bed frame is stacked on top of another, allowing two or more beds to occupy the floor space usually required by just one. They are commonly seen on ships, in the military, and in hostels, Dormitory, dor ...

s and

hammock A hammock (from Spanish , borrowed from Taíno and Arawak ) is a sling made of fabric, rope, or netting, suspended between two or more points, used for swing (seat), swinging, sleeping, or Human relaxation, resting. It normally consists of one ...

s stack three high for

hot bunking Hot racking (also known as hot bunking or hot bedding) is the sanctioned practice within military organizations of assigning more than one crew member to a bed or "rack" to reduce berthing (sleeping) space. History The practice dates back at lea ...

. In the cargo hold

Mess hall The mess (also called a mess deck aboard ships) is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and (in some cases) live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the o ...

s and

exercise Exercise is a body activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. It is performed for various reasons, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardiovascular system, hone athletic ...

places were also added. Trips: On July 22, 1945 ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. On November 25, 1945 ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...

with 1,915 troops with the 75th Infantry Division; 2nd battalion, 289th infantry; 3rd battalion, and 289th infantry. On December 27, 1945, the ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

from

Antwerp, Belgium Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

with 1,544 troops including the 539th Field Artillery Observation Battalion with medics, 8th field artillery observation battalion with medics, and the 759th tank battalion with medics. On January 26, 1946, the ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at New York from Le Havre, France with 1,518 troops including 602nd antiaircraft artillery battalion and the 196th general hospital. On March 8, 1946, the ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at New York from Antwerp with 1,501 troops, including 559th anti-arcraft artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion and the 825th Medical Detachment. On April 10, 1946, the ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at New York from Antwerp with 931 troops, including 465th and 958th Quarter Masters companies. On May 16, 1946, the ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at New York from Le Havre with 710 troops. On June 25, 1946, the ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at New York from

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

. On August 3, 1946, the ''Wheaton Victory'' arrived at New York from

Bremerhaven Bremerhaven (, , Low German: ''Bremerhoben'') is a city at the seaport of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms a semi-enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the Riv ...

with 1,372 army troops. On August 15, 1946, the ''Wheaton Victory'' departed New York bound for the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...

Post war

In 1947 the ''Wheaton Victory'' was sold to the Van Nievelt, Goudriaan & Company of

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

and renamed the SS ''Alpherat''. In 1963 she was sold to China Merchants S.N. Company of Keelung and renamed the SS Hai Fu. On 26 October 1963 she ran aground at the entrance to Honolulu Harbour. She was refloated, the damage made her not worth repairing. In 1964 she was towed to

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

and scrapped.

References

Sources

*Sawyer, L.A. and W.H. Mitchell. ''Victory ships and tankers: The history of the ‘Victory’ type cargo ships and of the tankers built in the United States of America during World War II'', Cornell Maritime Press, 1974, 0-87033-182-5. *United States Maritime Commission
Victory Ships alphabetical list War II
*Victory Cargo Ship

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wheaton Victory, SS Victory ships Ships built in Los Angeles Merchant ships of the United States 1945 ships Troop ships of the United States World War II merchant ships of the United States

World War II

Post war

See also

References

Sources