SS William Paca

History
United States
Name	William Paca
Namesake	William Paca
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Calmar Steamship Corp.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MCE hull 302
Awarded	1 May 1941
Builder	Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland[2]
Cost	$1,065,198[1]
Yard number	2052
Way number	15
Laid down	13 December 1941
Launched	30 May 1942
Sponsored by	Mrs. Carl Abel
Completed	19 June 1942
Identification	Call sign: KFUZ [1]
Fate	Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama, 17 November 1948 Sold for scrapping, 29 August 1969, withdrawn from fleet, 23 September 1969
General characteristics [3]
Class and type	Liberty ship type EC2-S-C1, standard
Tonnage	10,865 LT DWT 7,176 GRT
Displacement	3,380 long tons (3,434 t) (light) 14,245 long tons (14,474 t) (max)
Length	441 feet 6 inches (135 m) oa 416 feet (127 m) pp 427 feet (130 m) lwl
Beam	57 feet (17 m)
Draft	27 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	1 × triple-expansion steam engine,  (manufactured by Worthington Pump & Machinery Corp, Harrison, New Jersey) 1 × screw propeller
Speed	11.5 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	38–62 USMM 21–40 USNAG
Armament	Varied by ship Bow-mounted 3 inches (76 mm)/50 caliber gun Stern-mounted 4 inches (102 mm)/50 caliber gun 2–8 × single 20 millimeters (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft (AA) cannons and/or, 2–8 × 37 millimeters (1.46 in) M1 AA guns

SS William Paca was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after William Paca, a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence from Maryland, a delegate to the First Continental Congress and the Second Continental Congress from Maryland, Governor of Maryland and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland.

Construction[edit]

William Paca was laid down on 13 December 1941, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 302, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Baltimore, Maryland; she was sponsored by Mrs. Carl Abel, the wife of the Captain of the Port of Baltimore, and was launched on 30 May 1942.^[2][1]

History[edit]

She was allocated to Calmar Steamship Corp., on 19 June 1942. On 17 November 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama. On 29 August 1969, she was sold for scrapping to Pinto Island Metals Co., for $40,600. She was removed from the fleet on 23 September 1969.^[4]

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