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SS Stepas Darius

Coordinates: 49°34′58″N 6°12′05″W / 49.5827°N 06.2015°W / 49.5827; -06.2015
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History
United States
NameStepas Darius
NamesakeSteponas Darius
OwnerWar Shipping Administration (WSA)
OperatorWilliam J. Rountree Company
Orderedas type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2320
BuilderJ.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida
Cost$989,881[1]
Yard number61
Way number6
Laid down14 August 1944
Launched25 September 1944
Sponsored byMrs. Harley Ferguson
Completed10 October 1944
Identification
Fate
  • Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in James River Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, Virginia, 27 June 1946
  • Sold for commercial use, 10 January 1947, withdrawn from fleet, 24 January 1947
Panama
NameMANDO
OwnerCompania de Navegacion Phoceana de Panama
FateGrounded, 21 January 1955
General characteristics [2]
Class and type
Tonnage
Displacement
Length
  • 441 feet 6 inches (135 m) oa
  • 416 feet (127 m) pp
  • 427 feet (130 m) lwl
Beam57 feet (17 m)
Draft27 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
Speed11.5 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
Armament

SS Stepas Darius was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Steponas Darius, a Lithuanian American pilot, who died in a non-stop flight attempt with Lituanica from New York City to Kaunas, Lithuania, in 1933.

Construction

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Stepas Darius was laid down on 14 August 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2320, by J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida; sponsored by Mrs. Harley Ferguson, wife of assistant general manager JAJCC; and launched on 25 September 1944.[3][1]

History

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She was allocated to William J. Rountree Company, 9 October 1944. On 27 June 1946, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in James River Reserve Fleet, Lee Hall, Virginia.[4]

She was sold, on 10 January 1947, to Compania de Navegacion Phocena de Panama, for $562,854.89 and commercial use, she was renamed Mando. She was withdrawn from the fleet on 15 January 1947.[4]

On 21 January 1955, while sailing from Hampton Roads to Rotterdam, with 9,000 st (130,000 lb; 57,000 kg) of coal, she ran aground off the Round Island, Scilly Islands, when her engines failed. She was declared a total loss.[5]

Wreck located at: 49°34′58″N 6°12′05″W / 49.5827°N 06.2015°W / 49.5827; -06.2015

References

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  1. ^ a b c MARCOM.
  2. ^ Davies 2004, p. 23.
  3. ^ J.A. Panama City 2010.
  4. ^ a b MARAD.
  5. ^ Historic England. "MANDO (1519482)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 9 December 2019.

Bibliography

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