SS John W. Griffiths

SS John W. Griffiths was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after John W. Griffiths, a naval architect who was influential in his design of clipper ships.

History
United States
Name	John W. Griffiths
Namesake	John W. Griffiths
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Blidberg & Rothchild Co., Inc.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 1548
Builder	J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida
Cost	$1,384,690[1]
Yard number	30
Way number	5
Laid down	13 December 1943
Launched	9 February 1944
Completed	25 March 1944
Identification	Call Signal: KWBN [1]
Fate	Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group, Lee Hall, Virginia, 19 May 1946 Sold to Italy, 7 January 1947
Italy
Name	Dino
Owner	Corrado Societe di Navigazione, Genoa, Italy
Acquired	7 January 1947
Fate	Sold, 1963
Italy
Name	Imera
Owner	Sicilarma Societe di Navigazione per Azioni, Genoa, Italy
Acquired	1963
Fate	Scrapped, 1965
General characteristics [2]
Class & 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 Iron Fireman Manufacturing Co., Portland, Oregon) 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

John W. Griffiths was laid down on 13 December 1943, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1548, by J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida; she was launched on 9 February 1944.^[3][1]

History

She was allocated to Blidberg & Rothchild Co., Inc., on 25 March 1944. On 19 May 1946, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in the James River Group, in Lee Hall, Virginia. On 7 January 1947, she was transferred to the Italian Government, which in turn sold her to Corrado Socite di Navigazione, Genoa, Italy, for $544,506, on 10 January 1947. She was renamed Dino. In 1963, she was sold to Sicilarma Societe di Navigazione per Azioni, Genoa, and renamed Imera. She was scrapped in Spezia in 1965.^[4][5]

See also

• Convoy UGS-40