EFC Design 1029 ("535" type): Notes & Illustrations
Click here for larger and more complete plans from the 1920 USSB ship register: Sheet 1, Sheet 2. (Download for full size)
Click here for similar plans from Int'l Marine Engineering, April 1920: Sheet 1, Sheet 2
Click on the photographs below to prompt larger views of the same images.
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Notes: The first wartime announcement by the Shipping Board and the military on the troopships to be built by the EFC was that they would be limited to two specific designs: a big, fast 13,000 tonner able to carry 3,500 troops at 18 knots and an 8,500 tonner that could carry about 2,300 men at 15 knots. The smaller one became the Design 1024 Hog Island Type B (q.v.), the larger became the 535-foot long (overall) Design 1029. Only the nation's most important shipbuilders were thought capable of building the 535-foot type (the "535"): New York Shipbuilding at Camden, N.J., Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co. at Newport News, Va., and the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Co.'s yards at Sparrows Point (Baltimore), Md., and Alameda (San Francisco), Cal. The type had been conceived jointly by the Shipping Board and the War Department but current thinking was to have them operated under allocation to the Navy's Transport Force, which was already operating seized German and requisitioned American transports. The design for these ships began with a specification book and some plans prepared by Theodore E. Ferris, the EFC's naval architect and consulting engineer from April 1917 to January 1918, and a final design for big transports was ready for approval by December 1917. On 14 December 1917 the EFC ordered three 535' transports (EFC Hulls 1012-1014) from New York Ship, and on 31 December 1917 it ordered two more (EFC Hulls 1164-1165) from Bethlehem, Sparrows Point. However once the plans were reviewed by USSB, EFC, and War and Navy Department officials, all parties requested extensive changes, most of which were implemented by the design staff at the New York Shipbuilding Co. Unfortunately plans of the original troopship design were not published as they were in April 1919 for Design 1095 (q.v.). The basic characteristics appear to have been 20600t disp, 10000 or 13000 dwt, 535.0'oa, 518.0'pp x 72.0' x 50.0' dph, 30.5' allowable draft, 12000 shp, 17 knots, 3000 or 3500 troops. As of May 1919 NYSB hulls 240-242 were to accommodate 3500 troops including officers, equipment and stores as postwar Army transports. The first of the five initial ships was laid down at Camden on 15 June 1918. As related by Edward N. Hurley, Chairman of the U.S. Shipping Board, the German all-out spring offensive begun at Cambrai on 21 March 1918 caused Wilson to direct the Shipping Board to "go the limit" in its ship construction effort. Doing likewise, in around July 1918 the Army adopted an 80-division plan that included a total American troop strength in Europe of 3,350,000 men by 31 July 1919, up from the current plan of one million by the end of 1918. On 1 July 1918 New York Ship contracted for seven transports (EFC Hulls 2585-2591) to be built in its new "Middle Yard", two twin 600-foot ways (4 slips) that had begun producing ships in December 1917. These seven ships ended up being built to Design 1095 (q.v.). Otherwise a necessary step for the large transport program was to increase shipyard capacity. At the Bethlehem, Sparrows Point yard the EFC funded an expansion consisting of three new building ways and on 15 July 1918 it filled them with a contract for six Design 1029 ships (EFC Hulls 2505-2510), to be built in two successive groups of three. At New York Shipbuilding the EFC funded an entirely new "South Yard" with four shipways, each 103 x 750’, begun in June 1918 in the city of Gloucester south of Newton Creek, and on 5 August 1918 it filled these with a contract for four new 535' transports (EFC Hulls 2579-2582). The first keel was laid down here in early May 1919. Four more ships were squeezed into existing yards: on 7 August 1918 Newport News contracted for two ships (EFC Hulls 2564-2565) and on 10 August 1918 New York Ship contracted to add two ships (EFC 2583-2584) to ways in its original "North" yard. The most ambitious expansion was at Alameda, California, where the EFC bought a large plot of land near the Bethlehem Steel Alameda yard and on 21 June 1918 awarded a contract (signed on 5 July 1918) with Bethlehem to build a new "Liberty Plant" there and superintend construction of 20 ships (EFC Hulls 1985-2004) to the 535' plans. The Liberty Plant at Alameda proved to be an overreach. EFC Hulls 1995-2004 were reportedly suspended or even cancelled on 22 June 1918, a day after the contract was awarded but before it was signed. Very little construction work was completed above ground before it became clear that the war was approaching sudden termination. The main contract for the shipyard was cancelled by the EFC on 10 October 1918 and any ships not already cancelled were cancelled on either 10 or 15 October 1918. The project left a wake of lawsuits, and a sale of the land was only negotiated in 1922/23. Without the Alameda ships, the program for 535' troopships consisted of 19 vessels then on order. By October 1918 these clearly exceeded any conceivable postwar military requirement, and as early as 16 October 1918 the Shipping Board asked the president of the International Mercantile Marine (IMM), Philip A.S. Franklin, to rearrange the 535s from transports to passenger and cargo ships (P&Cs) at EFC expense. (One of Franklin's naval architects was a young William Francis Gibbs.) In December 1918 New York Ship's design staff turned in plans approved by their chief naval architect, E.H. Rigg, for the completion of the 535s as commercial vessels with 278 1st class and 236 2nd class passengers. On 8 March 1919 USSB naval architect H.C. Sadler, USSB Director of Operations J.H. Rosseter, New York Ship's Rigg, and others met to consider the conversions of the three transport types. The 535's did not appeal to the USSB operations division as potentially profitable until Sadler suggested their use as “Intermediate” type ships on Atlantic routes. After further conferences involving the three shipyards a modified plan for the 535's based on New York Ship's most recent drawings was adopted. It allowed 247 1st class and 226 2nd class passengers and 194 crew. This soon became 259 1st class, 300 3rd class (steerage), and 215 crew. On 9 April 1919 it was decided to split the design work for the 535's between the three builders, and each was assigned drafting work for different portions of the design. (Each designed its own utilitarian items including sidelights, scuttles, rails, boats, and davits.) The accommodations were based on suggestions by naval architect W.F. Gibbs, the International Merchant Marine, and the USSB. By 26 May 1919 the detail design work by the three builders was proceeding very rapidly. Up to this point the first five 535's (EFC 1012-1014 and 1164-1165) had been excluded from this planning because the Army claimed them as troopships, but it gave up this claim in late May and on 27 May 1919 a memo from Hurley to New York Ship and Bethlehem authorized completion of these 535's as P&Cs using the plans being prepared for the others. On 2 June 1919 receipt was acknowledged of general arrangement plans sent by Sadler on 10 May 1919 for the conversion to P&Cs of EFC 2564-5 at Newport News and EFC 2505-10 at Bethleham Sparrows Point, effectively completing the redesign effort. All 19 ships had earlier names replaced with state names on 25 November 1919 but the first three had already been launched and reverted to their launch names on 15 December 1919. On 12 November 1919 P.J. McAuliffe, manager of the EFC's Construction Division, wrote that the change from troop transports to P&Cs was extensive and was not covered in any clause in existing contracts. This issue was addressed with Newport News in a new contract concluded on 25 May 1920 which cancelled the original 8 July 1918 contract, changed the EFC numbers of the two ships from 2564-5 to 2872-3, and addressed outstanding matters relating to the P&C conversion, the supply of engines, and the form of payment. On 24 August 1920 the second batch of three ships (EFC 2508-2510) to be built in the expanded part of the Bethlehem Sparrows Point yard was cancelled, probably because the first batch was running well behind schedule. Ultimately sixteen 535-foot P&C's emerged from this convoluted birth process. Eleven of them served in the Navy in World War II: the relevent pages are here and here. Names: The first three ships (EFC 1012-14) were initially named Canonicut, Manmasco, and Koda on 10 April 1918 and after some turmoil in 1919 were given the names Wenatchee, Sea Girt, and American Legion shortly before they were launched. Like the others they received state names on 25 November 1919 (Beaver State, Gopher State, and Badger State respectively) but reverted to their launch names on 15 December 1919. Sea Girt was renamed Southern Cross on 13 April 1921 on the urging of her operator, the Munson Line, and Wenatchee became President Jefferson in May 1922. The others with a few exceptions all had three names: the one initially assigned by Mrs. Wilson in 1918-19, a state name assigned on 25 November 1919, and the final President name assigned in May 1922 after a few adjustments. These were: New York Ship (see also EFC 1012-14 above) EFC 2579: Hypatia, Keystone State, President McKinley EFC 2580: Hyperea, Empire State, President Wilson EFC 2581: Hypsa, Lone Star State, President Harding EFC 2582: Hyrcania, Hoosier State, President Lincoln EFC 2583: Janiculum, Bay State, President Madison EFC 2584: Isleta, Peninsula State, President Roosevelt Bethlehem, Sparrows Point EFC 1164: Berrien, Hawkeye State, President Pierce EFC 1165: Bertice, Buckeye State, President Taft EFC 2505: Leominster, Pine Tree State, President Grant EFC 2506: Willowbrook, Palmetto State, Pan America EFC 2507: Stillwater, Nutmeg State, Western World EFC 2508: Willane, Sunflower State, (cancelled) EFC 2509: Rancocas, Blue Grass State, (cancelled) EFC 2510: (none), Cotton State, (cancelled) Newport News EFC 2564: Eagle Rock/Litchfield, Golden State, President Cleveland EFC 2565: Bayonne, Silver State, President Jackson For the record, Mrs. Wilson on 24 September 1918 assigned the following names to the 20 ships on order at Alameda (EFC 1985-2004) which were cancelled soon afterwards: Ischua, Iskoot, Isleta, Izalar, Jadwin, Jakin, Jalapa, Janelew, Jenara, Jeptha, Jolley, Joplin, Justice, Kalama, Kaltag, Kalvesta, Kamela, Kanaga, Kansada, and Kashuga. Sources: Most of the information above was found in pages 12-48 of Mark H. Goldberg, The "Stately President" Liners: American Passenger Liners of the Interwar Years; Part I, The "502"s (Kings Point, 1996), with some citations to NARA RG-32, although it is presented differently here. The information on contracts and names is from Shipscribe's research in NARA RG-32. Sadly Part II of Goldberg's work on the "535"s never appeared. The journal International Marine Engineering also provided critical information. Specifications: Design 1029 (S.S. Wenatchee, EFC Hull 1012): Steel Transport. Deadweight tons: 13000 designed. Dimensions: 535' length oa, 518' pp x 72' beam mld. x 50' depth mld., 30.5' draft loaded. Propulsion: 2 screws, 2 turbines, 8 Babcock & Wilcox water tube boilers, 12000 SHP, 17 kts. Configuration: 4 decks, 9 holds, 9 hatches. |
| S.S. Hawkeye State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 1012) photographed by her builder, the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corp., Ltd., Sparrows Point, MD, on 18 December 1920. Her funnel marking is the Shipping Board shield. (NARA: RG-32-UB) (Click photo to enlarge) |
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Unidentified (Design 1029) The ship in this very early photo displays the same funnel marking as in the view of Hawkeye State, above, and is probably the same ship. Photo No. None Source: NARA RG-32-UB Box 34 |
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S.S. Golden State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2564/2872) Probably shown around the time of her delivery on 2 January 1921 with the Shipping Board's shield on the funnel, probably before allocation to an operator. She was renamed President Cleveland in 1923. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. Wenatchee (Design 1029, EFC Hull 1012) Photographed on trials on 2 March 1921. She was the first of five ships allocated by the Shipping Board to the Pacific Steamship Co.'s Admiral Oriental Line for operation, the others being Keystone State, Bay State, Pine Tree State, and Silver State. The Admiral Oriental Line funnel marking consists of a flag with a diamond and four stars superimposed on a circle. Photo No. None Source: NARA RG-32-UB |
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S.S. Keystone State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2579) Photographed by the New York Shipbuilding Corp., Camden, N.J. on a trial trip on 27 May 1921, with the same funnel markings as in Wenatchee, above. The bridge wings of both ships display the USSB shield. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. American Legion, ex Koda (Design 1029, EFC Hull 1014) Photographed by the New York Shipbuilding Co. on 9 July 1921. She was one of four ships allocated by the Shipping Board to the Munson Line for operation, the others being Southern Cross, Pan America, and Western World. Munson probably was responsible for the raised funnel and the deletion of the kingposts and their hatch between the bridge and the funnel. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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Launch of Washington, BB-47 Photographed on 1 September 1921. This battleship was cancelled under the Washington Naval Treaty of 8 February 1922 and sunk as a target at sea on 26 November 1924. Her sister Colorado is fitting out in the wet basin. Off to the side are Southern Cross (EFC Hull 1013) and Hoosier State (EFC Hull 2582), which were delivered on 24 and 20 September 1921 respectively. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. Golden State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2564/2872) This was one of five ships allocated by the USSB to the Pacific Mail Line for operation and acquired from them in 1925 by the Dollar Line. The others were Buckeye State/President Taft, Hawkeye State/President Pierce, Empire State/President Wilson, and Hoosier State/President Lincoln. Golden State was renamed President Cleveland in 1923. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. Hawkeye State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 1164) Operated by the Pacific Mail Line and then by the Dollar Line, this ship was renamed President Pierce in 1923. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. Empire State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2580) Operated by the Pacific Mail Line and then by the Dollar Line, this ship was renamed President Wilson in 1923. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. President Cleveland, ex Golden State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2564/2872) Probably photographed while being operated by the Pacific Mail Line under U. S. Shipping Board ownership between 1922 and 1925. One of the Pacific Mail Line's markings at this time was a plain black funnel. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. President Cleveland, ex Golden State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2564/2872) With Dollar Line funnel markings after that line took over the ships of the Pacific Mail Line in 1925. The Dollar Line markings were a red band bearing the white dollar sign on a black stack. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. President Roosevelt, ex Peninsula State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2584) Only two "535"s worked in the Atlantic before World War II, this one and President Harding, ex Lone Star State. Both were allocated to the Shipping Board's United States Lines in 1922 and were included in the sale of that line to a commercial operator in 1929. In 1940 President Roosevelt was taken over by the Army while President Harding was sold to the Societe Maritime Anversoise and quickly succumbed to German bombers in the Scheldt. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. President McKinley, ex Keystone State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2579) One of five ships allocated by the Shipping Board to the Pacific Steamship Co.'s Admiral Oriental Line and now operated by Dollar's American Mail Line, the others now being named President Jefferson, President Madison, President Grant, and President Jackson. The funnel marking here is the flag of the American Mail Line with five horizontal stripes superimposed on a circle. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. President Madison, ex Bay State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2583) One of the five ships operated by Dollar's American Mail Line. She had capsized on 24 March 1933 while under repair at the Todd Dry Docks in Seattle and is shown here at Seattle after being raised in a snapshot that was printed on 22 May 1933. After lying idle for more than six years she was transferred to the Philippine flag and soon capsized again. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. Pan America, ex Palmetto State (Design 1029, EFC Hull 2506) One of Munson's four "535"s passing the Morro Castle. The kingposts and the hatch between the bridge and the funnel were removed in the Munson ships. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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