Restored Liberty Ship Sails the Great Lakes — Spring 2000
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The Great Lakes… 84% of the continent’s fresh water… a different story in every drop.
By John B. Maisch
As World War II, between September 1941 and October 1945, over 2,700 Liberty ships were built in shipyards from coast to coast. More than 200 were lost during the war, but many continued to provide cargo transport for years after the war ended. All were finally decommissioned and none are in active commercial service today. Liberty ships were initially mass produced as part of the Lend Lease program prior to the United States entering the war. They were designed to provide shipping for the military equipment, supplies and other goods President Franklin D. Roosevelt agreed to provide Great Britain. Liberties were relatively uncomplicated to build and, because most parts were prefabricated, they could be quickly produced and transported to shipyards for final assembly. When the United States entered the war, production was increased. The Bethlehem-Fairfield shipyard in Baltimore, just one of several United States shipyards building Liberties, had 16 shipways, allowing 16 Liberties, in various stages, to be under construction at the same time. Although outdated in 1941, the triple expansion steam engine used to power the Liberty ships was relatively easy to manufacture and maintain. At full power, the engine developed 2,500 horsepower and could move the ship at ten to eleven knots. Liberty ships carried about 13,000 barrels of Bunker C oil and could cruise from 60 to 100 days without refueling, depending on speed, cargo, weight and weather conditions.
The Crew
During the War, Liberties carried a Merchant Marine crew and the US Navy Armed Guard crew. The Merchant Marine crew numbered around forty and operated the ship under supervision of the master or captain. In addition to three mates, the deck personnel consisted of a boatswain, six able bodied seamen and three ordinary seamen. The Chief Engineer had three assistant engineers to oversee the engine crew of oilers, firemen/watertenders and wipers. The Chief Steward, although not licensed, was considered one of the ship’s officers. His staff included two cooks, an assistant cook, two utilitymen, and three messmen.
A radio operator and a clerk/typist completed the roster on the typical Liberty Ship during voyages when cargo was being carried.
The John W. Brown
The 𝘑𝘰𝘩𝘯 𝘞. 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 on the Great Lakes in 2000. Photo courtesy of Project Liberty Ship.
Liberty ship John W. Brown was launched on 7 September 1942 at the Bethlehem-Fairfield shipyard in Baltimore, as hull number 312. Liberty ships’ overall length was 441 feet, 6 inches, with a beam of 57 feet. When fully loaded, they drew about 28 feet, leaving a freeboard of about ten feet. They could carry 10,000 tons of cargo, stored in three forward holds and two holds aft of the deckhouse.
During the War, the Brown was converted to carry troops and additional crew was added to include two additional radio operators and several more in the steward’s department, another chief cook, two second cooks, a night baker and four messmen.
The job of the Navy Armed Guard crew was to defend the ship from enemy attacks from the air and sea. This crew varied, depending on the armament installed on board to defend the ship. On the Brown first voyage, she was armed with a 5″ gun, a 3″ gun, and four 20mm guns. A lieutenant, junior grade, was in command of twenty enlisted men who operated these weapons. In later voyages, additional armament was installed when the Brown mission included transporting troops. The Navy crew reached as high as 41 during such voyages, and the Brown was armed with one 5″ gun, three 3″ guns, and eight 20mm guns.
The Brown came though the war without any bomb or torpedo hits and following the war, she continued steaming for five more voyages until November 1946. During these postwar voyages, the John W. Brown steamed about 39,000 miles, carrying needed supplies and grain to Europe and bringing more than 1,200 military troops back home. During her eight wartime voyages, she carried over 52,000 tons of cargo and more than a thousand troops from the United States to the war zones. In addition, while steaming between various Mediterranean ports, she carried more than 15,000 tons of cargo, 5,000 troops and 336 POWs. She also transported a thousand POWs back to the United States during the war years. After her last voyage, the John W. Brown returned to New York where the New York City Board of Education accepted her for use as a vocational high school. She remained in this service for 36 years until 1982.
Rebirth
In 1983, the Brown was towed to the Reserve Fleet in the James River near Williamsburg, where she began to deteriorate until 1985, when members of Project Liberty Ship successfully petitioned to have her named to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1988, when the Maryland Port Administration offered the use of a pier in Baltimore, the “Project” arranged to move the Brown from the Reserve Fleet to Baltimore. Hundreds of volunteers began the intense project of restoration. By September 1991, the Brown was able to steam with six hundred guests aboard for a six-hour cruise on the Chesapeake Bay. Among ports she has visited are Philadelphia, Camden, New Jersey, Wilmington, Delaware, and voyages to New York, Boston, Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Wilmington, North Carolina. Project Liberty Ship aspired to steam her across the Atlantic for the June 1994 50th-anniversary commemoration of the Normandy Invasion, but time and money ran out before her hull could be restored sufficiently to allow her to cross the ocean safely. Plans are underway to sail the John W. Brown with an all volunteer crew to the Great Lakes in the year 2000, making several port calls along the way. One of the purposes of the trip is to dry dock the ship in Toledo to replace several thousand rivets, required by the U.S. Coast Guard. Plans are to leave Baltimore mid-May, arrive Toledo May 27 for repairs, and begin her Great Lakes cruise July 20, 2000.
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