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SS Rutgers Victory

pele78

Freshman
Jan 4, 2009
118
82
28
MCV Hull # 82
SS Rutgers Victory

VC2-S-AP2
California Shipbuilding (CalShip) Los Angeles, CA
Keel : December 12, 1944
Launched: February 2, 1945
Delivered: March 5, 1945

Named for Rutgers University.

The Victory ship was a class of cargo ship produced in large numbers by North American shipyards during World War II to replace losses caused by German submarines. They were a more modern design compared to the earlier Liberty ship, were slightly larger and had more powerful steam turbine engines giving higher speed to allow participation in high speed convoys and make them more difficult targets for German U-boats. A total of 531 Victory ships were built. The first vessel was SS United Victory. After United Victory, the next 34 vessels were named after allied countries, the following 218 after American cities, the next 150 after educational institutions (Rutgers Victory the first in series) and the remainder given miscellaneous names.

The design was an enhancement of the Liberty ship, which had been successfully produced in extraordinary numbers. Victory ships were slightly larger than Liberty ships, 14 feet (4.3 m) longer at 455 feet (139 m), 6 feet (1.8 m) wider at 62 ft (19 m), and drawing one foot more at 28 feet (8.5 m) loaded. Displacement was up just under 1,000 tons, to 15,200.

The VC2-S-AP2, VC2-S-AP3, and VC2-M-AP4 were armed with a 5-inch (127 mm)/38 caliber stern gun for use against submarines and surface ships, and a bow-mounted 3-inch (76 mm)/50 caliber gun and eight 20 mm cannon for use against aircraft. These were manned by United States Navy Armed Guard personnel.

Have not been able to find out anything on its wartime convoy duty or its fate.
 
It doesn't show up in the Naval History under its own label, but it was talked about in the Theodore E. Chandler's entry.

https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/t/theodore-e-chandler-i.html

"By early November [of 1966], the warship had returned to Vietnamese waters. Halfway through the forenoon watch on the 13th, she responded to a call for help from SS Rutgers Victory, on fire and burning furiously in Nha Trang harbor-about 200 miles northeast of Saigon. Within two hours, the destroyer entered the harbor, the first Navy ship to answer the call. Shortly after her arrival, Prime (MSO-446) joined the battle against the flames. Chandler's damage control party led the struggle against the flames burning deep in the stricken ship. Two Army tugs, which also joined the fray, concentrated on cooling the victory ship's hull while Chandler and Prime crewmen fought the fires themselves. The combined efforts of two Navy ships, two Army tugs, an Air Force firefighting team, and Rutgers Victory's own crew eventually conquered the blaze in a fine display of inter-sevice cooperation, and the warship cleared Nha Trang to resume a heavy schedule of shore bombardment missions."

http://www.mariners-l.co.uk/vicshipsR.html

1949 Laid up Astoria, later transferred to James River.
1985 Scrapped Castellon.

https://books.google.com/books?id=8...kFB7w4ChDoAQgvMAI#v=snippet&q=rutgers&f=false

In Korean Waters Five times between 26 February 1951 and 5 November 1952. Scrapped in 1985.
 
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Somebody posted about the ship today on the Facebook group. Thought it was awesome and Google turned up this thread.
 
Pele,after every Rutgers win, you have to post that photo! Very very cool !!!
 
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