EFC Design 1037 (Federal type): Notes & Illustrations
Click here for larger and more complete plans: Sheet 1, Sheet 2, Data. (Download for full size)
Click here for a similar plan from International Marine Engineering, April 1919: Sheet 1
Click on the photographs below to prompt larger views of the same images.
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Notes: The United States Steel Corporation entered the shipbuilding industry on 24 May 1917, buying 60 acres on Newark Bay through its subsidiary the American Bridge Co. which had proven, in collaboration with Charles P. M. Jack at Chester Shipbuilding, the viability of fabricating parts for ships in distant locations. The Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company was chartered July 24, 1917, as a subsidiary of the U.S. Steel Corp. to supply ships for the United States Shipping Board's Emergency Fleet Corporation. It received two EFC contracts, one on 15 October 1917 for ten ships (EFC Hulls 955-964) and one on 28 March 1918 for twenty ships (EFC Hulls 1422-1441). The first keels were laid by November 1917 and Federal completed its first 9,600-ton ship of Design 1037 around six weeks before World War I ended as well as two other ships before the close of 1918. The other 27 ships, all with turbines and oil-fired boilers, were delivered to the Emergency Fleet Corporation in 1919. The fifteenth ship was launched on 24 May 1919 and named Ambridge to honor the work done by that Pennsylvania borough's American Bridge Co. in supplying fabricated parts to the Kearny yard. The Kearny shipyard was also fully equipped with shops, including a large plate shop. Design 1037 was not called a "fabricated" design, and it allowed more curved features, including deck sheer, than did Chester's Design 1025. Ships of Design 1037 were also built with turbines and coal-fired boilers by Doullut & Williams S.B. at New Orleans and with reciprocating engines and coal-fired boilers by the Carolina Shipbuilding Co. (later Geo. A. Fuller Co.) at Wilmington, N.C. On 17 August 1917 U.S. Steel announced that it would build a second shipyard at Mobile, Ala., to be called the Chickasaw yard and to be supplied with fabricated steel from the Fairfield plant of Tennessee Coal and Iron Co., a U.S. Steel southern subsidiary. This yard never received the orders expected from the government, as the war had ended before they were able to begin production. On 1 December 1919 it began production of its first vessel, S.S. Chickasaw City, the first in an order from U.S. Steel. Its vessels, based on EFC Design 1037, were constructed to a special design primarily for the carrying of odd shaped steel products, with heavy booms capable of lifting 30 tons. The Keary yard also built more cargo ships after the war to a variant of Design 1037 beginning with S.S. Steel Age. Design 1037 was a shelter deck 9600-ton freighter with two continuous decks (shelter and upper) running the length of the ship, one 'tween deck between them, and three hull islands above them. As such it differed from both Design 1025, a full scantling ship with two decks (upper and lower) and three islands, and Design 1079, a shelter deck ship with three decks (shelter, upper, and second) and no islands (flush decked). In a two deck ship the top continuous deck (upper or shelter) was the "tonnage deck" while in a three deck ship the tonnage deck was the middle one. This ruled out in a two deck shelter deck ship the exemption from tonnage calculations of the entire 'tween deck above the tonnage deck as in a three decker, but it still allowed the exemption of cargo space in the islands (in Design 1037, 19,935 cubic feet in the space in the bridge island labeled "coal or cargo") if that space was left "open." If that space was "closed," the exemption was lost but freeboard requirements were relaxed, allowing the ship to sail at a greater draft and thus carry heavier cargo while still taking advantage of the lighter scantlings allowed in a shelter deck ship. In 1939 Lloyd's classified Federlock (ex Federal) as a ship of the closed shelter deck type having poop, bridge, and forecastle islands on the shelter deck. The poop and bridge islands were closed by Class I closing appliances (although the forecastle lacked such appliances) and the shelter deck was the "freeboard deck" (below which the ship was watertight). For more on shelter deck and full scantling ship types see also the page Contract Steel Ships by Category. The USSB Diesel Program, Phase II (1927-29): A 6 June 1924 amendment to the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 authorized the Shipping Board to install internal combustion (Diesel) engines in vessels of the Government, both to find an acceptable type for use in the American merchant marine and to create competition in the development of the various types and promote the manufacture of such engines in the U.S. Starting with a Shipping Board resolution of 2 December 1924 the conversion of four Design 1013 and eight Design 1027 ships was undertaken, all of which were completed by 1928. With Phase I of the program approaching completion, the Board by resolution of 15 September 1927 began a second phase by authorizing the conversion of eight additional vessels (all of the Design 1037 ships built by Doullut & Williams S.B., EFC 1907-1914), and contracted for six double acting engines (2 of 3900 bhp from McIntosh & Seymour, 2 of 3625 bhp from Worthington Pump, and 2 of 4000 bhp from Hooven, Owens, Rentschler) and two single acting engines of 3950 bhp from Busch-Sulzer. The vessels with their conversion yards, contract dates, diesel models, and commissioning dates) were New Orleans (Federal S.B., 22 October 1928, Hooven, 26 June 1929), Wichita (Federal S.B., 23 October 1928, Hooven, 25 July 1929), Ward (Newport News, 20 October 1928, Busch-Sulzer, 2 August 1929), City of Elwood (Newport News, 20 October 1928, Busch-Sulzer, 11 June 1929), Potter (Maryland D.D., 30 October 1928, Worthington, 13 September 1929), Jeff Davis (Maryland D.D., 19 November 1929, Worthington, 18 October 1929), Oldham (Maryland D.D., 26 September 1928, McIntosh, 10 July 1929), and Galveston (Maryland D.D., 24 September 1928, McIntosh, 13 April 1929). See Design 1032 for the rest of Phase II of this program, which involved three diesel-electric conversions. Specifications: Design 1037 (S.S. Liberty, EFC Hull 955): Steel Cargo. Deadweight tons: 9600 designed, 9669 actual. Dimensions: 410.25' length oa, 395.5' pp x 55' beam mld. x 34.9' depth mld., 26.5' draft loaded. Propulsion: 1 screw, 1 G.E. turbine, 3 Scotch boilers, 2500 SHP, 11 kts. Configuration: Shelter deck with 3 islands, 2 decks, 5 holds, 5 hatches. |
| S.S. Marne (Design 1037, EFC Hull 959) photographed on 3 February 1919, the date of her delivery to the EFC, by her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J. (NARA: RG-32-S) (Click photo to enlarge) |
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S.S. Liberty (Design 1037, EFC Hull 955) Photographed on 28 September 1918 completing fitting out beneath the sheer legs at the yard of her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J. She was delivered on 5 October 1918. She and the yard's next ship, Federal, were the only two ships in the class to be delivered in camouflage paint. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-S |
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S.S. Piave (Design 1037, EFC Hull 957) Photographed on 17 December 1918 by her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J., a day before her delivery. She was wrecked near Dover, England, just over a month later, on 29 January 1919. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-S |
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S.S. Mercer (Design 1037, EFC Hull 958) Photographed on 29 December 1918 by her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J. She was delivered on 6 January 1919. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-S |
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USS Mercer (Design 1037, EFC Hull 958) In drydock, probably at Antwerp in April 1919, showing details of her bridge island. Photo No. NH 85404 Source: U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command |
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S.S. Clairton (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1427) Probably shown at the yard of her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J., around the time of her delivery to the EFC on 11 July 1919. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-S |
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S.S. Clairton (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1427) Probably shown at the yard of her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J., around the time of her delivery to the EFC on 11 July 1919. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-S |
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S.S. Inoco (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1428) Probably shown at the yard of her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J., around the time of her delivery to the EFC on 15 August 1919. Note her name on her bow, which was sometimes misspelled. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-UB |
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S.S. Wytheville (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1429) Probably shown at the yard of her builder, the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J., around the time of her delivery to the EFC on 30 August 1919. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-UB |
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S.S. Bellflower (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1440) Probably shown soon after completion. This ship, the second to last of her class built at Federal, was delivered to the EFC on 20 December 1919. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. Federal (Design 1037, EFC Hull 956) Her main propulsion turbine set photographed on 10 November 1918. The large part of the turbine, marked "General Electric," is on the far right, the reduction gear is in the center, and the connection to the thrust bearing and propeller shaft on the other side of the after engine room bulkhead is on the left. Machinery of this type was used in all of the Design 1037 ships built by the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-S |
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S.S. Clairton (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1427) The main propulsion turbine set in the ships built by the Federal Shipbuilding Co. at Kearny, N.J. seen from a different angle, this time in Clairton. The main steam line that delivered steam to the large part of the turbine is in the center of the photo, and the rest of the turbine is in the lower right. To the upper left are the reduction gear and the connection to the propeller shaft. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-S |
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S.S. Westmoreland (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1431) The ships's three single-ended oil-fired Scotch marine boilers in a row in a fireroom just forward of the engine room. Each of these boilers had three circular combustion chambers in the boiler face, here fitted with oil burners but often configured for coal firing. Note the oil drip pans on the deck below the burners. Photo No. None Source: U.S. National Archives, RG-32-UB |
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S.S. Ward (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1913) This ship, one of eight built by the Doullut & Williams Shipbuilding Co. of New Orleans, La., returned to service on 2 August 1929 after being converted to a motor ship with a Busch-Sulzer 4-cylinder 2-cycle single acting marine type diesel engine of 3950 brake horsepower. She was allocated to the American Pioneer Line which was operated by the Roosevelt Steamship Co. between New York and Australian ports and is shown here with that line's markings. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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S.S. City of Elwood (Design 1037, EFC Hull 1910) This ship, one of eight built by the Doullut & Williams Shipbuilding Co. of New Orleans, La., returned to service on 11 June 1929 after being converted to a motor ship with an engine like the one in Ward, above. She was also allocated to the American Pioneer Line, for operation between New York, Baltimore, and oriental ports. She is shown here on 20 June 1943 in wartime civilian service. She was acquired by the Navy on 16 February 1944 as USS Fortune (IX-146, later AVS-2). Photo No. 80-G-71311 Source: NARA: RG-80-G |
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S.S. Pina Onorato, ex Mercer (Design 1037, EFC Hull 958) In her last role as an Italian cargo ship between 1951 and 1958, when she was scrapped. Photo No. NH 105651 Source: U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command |
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S.S. Akademik Pavlov, ex The Lambs (Design 1037, EFC Hull 960) Probably after postwar modifications as a cargo ship by the Soviets. A very similar view was taken by Mike Lennon arriving at Gibraltar on 12 July 1969. She was broken up in the Soviet Union during 1974. Photo No. None Source: Shipscribe |
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