SS Sidney Lanier

SS Sidney Lanier was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Sidney Lanier, an American musician, poet and author.

History
United States
Name	Sidney Lanier
Namesake	Sidney Lanier
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Seas Shipping Co., Inc.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 1197
Builder	St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida[1]
Cost	$2,229,005[2]
Yard number	5
Way number	5
Laid down	22 October 1942
Launched	22 May 1943
Sponsored by	Mrs. Thomas W. Ryan, Jr.
Completed	7 July 1943
Identification	Call sign: KIVG [2]
Fate	Placed in National Defense Reserve Fleet, Astoria, Oregon, 6 December 1946 Sold for scrapping, 14 March 1961, withdrawn from fleet, 25 May 1961
General characteristics [3]
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 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

Sidney Lanier was laid down on 22 October 1942, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 1197, by the St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida; she was sponsored by Mrs. Thomas W. Ryan, Jr., the wife of the corporate director of the St. John's River SB Co., she was launched on 22 May 1943.^[1][2]

History

She was allocated to Seas Shipping Co., Inc., on 7 July 1943. On 6 December 1946, she was placed in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Astoria, Oregon. On 22 April 1955, she was withdrawn from the fleet to be prepared for loading with grain under the "Grain Program 1955", she returned unloaded on 2 May 1955. She was sold for scrapping, on 14 March 1961, to Schnitzer Brothers, for $56,785.21. She was withdrawn from the fleet, 25 May 1961.^[4]