Page 2
THE
NORTH CAROLINA SHIPBUILDER
August IV 1943
Ite North Carolina Shipbuilder
Published by the North Caro
lina Shipbuilding Company, Wil
mington, North Carolina, in the
interest of the employees.
Editor (Pro Tem)
S. P. WARE
Assistant Editors
AL. G. DICKSON
C. T. LEWIS
Sports Editor
TOMMY DAVIS
Vol. 1 AUGUST, 1943 No. 12
The Liberty Ship
Editor's Note: Now that
the yard is nearing comple
tion of its contracts for 126
Liberty ships, we believe it
would be interesting to re
view the history and virtues
of this famous vessel. An
excellent appraisal was
given in a recent issue of
"Ships". It follows:
She is American designed,
originally built for the British
on Lend-Lease account. Altered
slightly to meet our specific re
quirements, the first contract for
construction was let in March
of 1941 and the first Liberty ship
was delivered exactly three
weeks after Pearl Harbor.
She is no beauty. She is built
for utility. She lacks the rakish
or streamlined appearance of
the Maritime Commission's C
ships. But she is a very prac
tical craft, sound and seaworthy.
She's a sea-going truck of 10,500
deadweight tons.
The frame of the Liberty ship
is based on sound quality. She
was designed to meet a pressing
and urgent transportation need.
They have been built in greater
numbers than any ship of a
similar tonnage. Their perform
ance has been uniformly excel
lent the service hard and
exacting.
Standardized to the last
small gasket, to the final door
hinge, a contract can be shifted
from one shipyard to another,
should the necessity arise, and
no time would be lost. Repairs
can be made readily at almost
any place, and replacement of
parts offers no serious prob
lem, occasions no delay.
The American habit of stand
ardization of design greatly
stimulated production potentials
and realities. It also meant
that either an American or a
British crew, in case . of an
emergency, could board any Lib
erty ship, arid be ready to sail
within the hour, as they would
be working on premises entire
ly familiar and performing du
ties to which they had been ac
customed. Training of Liberty
ship crews was likewise simpli
fied by this standardization.
To speed production the deck
machinery is of somewhat sim
pler design than used on the
more costly C-type ships.
She's about 441 feet in leneth
and her beam is 57 feet. She is
designed to carry a pay load
any place and she does it.
Superlatively!
The five big cargo holds are
divided by seven water-tight
bulkheads and are equipped with
fire protection devices the equal
of any cargo ship afloat.
Number 1 hold includes the
tank3 for water ballast her
double-bottom tanks have a
capacity of 4,000 barrels. At
times these tanks have been
filled with fuel oil and thus a
shortage in some remote but
important port has been re
lieved.
Deck machinery and the cen
tral power plant are steam
driven. Liberty engines are not
modern. The selection of reci
procating steam engines, how
ever, was from necessity they
could be secured in a satisfactory
volume. Gears and turbines have
been thus made available for
other types , of essential craft.
Engine beds are so standard
ized that the nearest engine, re
eardless of where it has been
made, will fit easily and snugly
THANKS!
To the Editor:
Please excuse my procrastina
tion in not writing sooner to
thank you for sending copies of
The North Carolina Shipbuilder
to me. This is an extremely
generous gesture and I do ap
preciate the thought immensely.
It s really quite nice to be
able to keep up with the men,
and ladies, who I have worked
with and without your paper
this would be a difficult task.
I find great diversion in looking
over and reading the paper when
mv dav's work is over.
The yard our yard is really
"going to town" putting snips
into service. These ships mean
the difference between life and
death to us soldiers in many
cases, and I'm proud of the part
that I had in their production
while working in the yard.
There seems to be no limit on
the War bond situation in the
yard. You people are doing
wonders. At times, some may
think that they've pfiven lots, but
never can they give too much
we're giving everything every
thing! Everyone here is happy and in
the best of spirits. Morale is
high very high, so let's keep
giving "Bills for Bonds for
Bombs for Bums!"
Yours for Victory,
PFC. Eugene N. Blake,
ASN 34666130,
Formerly 42027.
in that bed. That shaft horse
power is 2,500. The Liberty isnt
a fast vessel but she is economi
cal on fuel. New Victory ships
are now planned which will have
greatly increased speeds.
Cargo ship longevity is con
trolled somewhat by the severity
of the service in which the ship
:s engaged.
Every ship has five mam elec
trical systems lighting power,
communications, fire control
and radio. Propellers are of
manganese-bronze, weight 20,-
000 pounds and are delicately
and accurately machined and
balanced. Almost 50,000 differ
ent bronze and brass castings
and pipings of various sizes and
types go into the construction
of each ship.
When she s launched, the rig
erers and other craftsmen go to
work she is only partly finish
ed. There's a trial run under
the keen and critical eyes of
Maritime commission inspect
ors. The ship must be complete
down to the last piece of china,
to the last pot even the store
rooms must be filled with food,
the water tanks filled with fresh
water.
The trial cruise for six pun
ishing hours includes full speed
ahead and sudden reverse to full
speed astern a tactic which the
ship may be called upon to car
ry out when attacked by sub
marines. She zigzags at full
speed and is then put into tight
circles. It's a rough and tough
test a weak ship or poor equip
ment couldn't stand it. Every
thing i3 checked by men who
are qualified to pass on the fit
ness of ship and equipment.
Thev are hard to satisfy, too.
When she passes the tests,
she is ready for delivery, ready
for instant service. The opera
tor enjoys the certainty of
knowing he will have a sound
and dependable craft, built of
honest materials and with good
workmanship, another vital link
in the bridee of ships between
here, our Allies and the fighting
fronts A Liberty ship, built in
the privately owned shipyards
of America.
In the gravest emergency
ever faced by this nation, the
Liberty ship has delivered a
superlative type of service.
When the final victory comes,
the Liberty' ship will be given
credit for its true accomplish
ments. It took 47 years to build the
original U. S. S. Alabama at the
Portsmouth, N. H., navy yard.
Launched in 1867, the old ship
was already obsolete.
TABULATING Shown here is the Accounting Machine section of the Tabulating depart
ment. V. Hickman, section suDervisor. This section is responsible for distributing rtmorts nn lahot
and material and tabulations for
D.H. Dixon Tops
Yard Suggestion
Contest In July
Two Others Receive
Bonds For Their
Good Ideas
Suggesting a new type of jaw
assembly for Unionmelt type
"S" machines, D. H. Dixon,
85409, of the Electrical depart
ment, won a $50 War bond and
led the list of award winners in
the Suggestion contest during
the past month.
There were two other bond
winners and six employees
received War stamps for their
ideas in July.
Awards made during the pe
riod brought the total amount
of prizes since establishment of
the system here early this year
to almost $2,000.
Suggesting a device for put
ting up headers, Duke Amerson,
64381, of the Fitters, was
awarded a $25 bond and Frank
Darby, 73355, of the Welders,
received one of the same de
nomination for his suggestion,
No. 5525, for a concave fillet
wheel for "S" head Unionmelt
machines.
Other award winners were:
J. H. Mercy, 68518, Ship
wrights, $10 in stamps, No.
4280, Smokestack ladder.
R. C. Leonard, 61296, Welding,
$10 in stamps, No. 4158, Addi
tional lights for skid 11-A.
T. H. Shields, 68525, Ship
wrights, $10 in stamps, No.
4009, Clip for setting leg stag
ing inside the ship, eliminating
the use of chains.
G. J. Bumby, 85651. Electri
cal, $5 in stamps, No. 6602, Sug
gested 110 volt plug outlets in
center of each shipway.
G. J. Bumby, 85651, Electri
cal, $5 in stamps, No. 4574, Sue
gested 60 volt welding outlet
boxes at new locations around
platens.
E. J. Pickler. Jr.. fi12S1 . WpW.
ing, $5 in stamps, No. 4784,
Suggested training procedure in
connection with Lincoln welding
machine.
W. M. DumoM, 50041, Plant
Engineers, $5 in stamps, No.
5437, Schedule of procedure to
be followed in case of air raids.
To be posted at Propane pump
house.
statistics and taxes.
HAVE YOU
The slump in the Erectors
softball team since the start of
the second half?
The C-2 foundations on No. 2
and No. 6 Platens? Those boys
waste no time.
How the men and women em
ployees of the yard dress up .on
Sundays?
The progressive trend of the
Recreation committee lately? It
has really out-stepped the old
Shipyard Athletic association.
quires about his dinner engage
ment in ho Shinwriorhc fffoa
sometime ago ?
How few hulls ar tied nn nt.
the Outfitting piers lately?
mose ooys are doing a tine job
on the launchmg-to-delivery
record.
The crreatlv increased force of
Piece Work Counters?
The softball diamonds in
front of Legion stadium ?
George Whitted has kept them
in fine condition for the clubs,
and deserves a vote of thanks
from all concerned.
The increased attendance at
Julv lo.
dear tlrS:
In reply two yours of
THa 14th II utsar to UlnE
of THa 11th: referring to
TOORS of Tha 10th i I ti
noW Writ In' two yoU oM thJ
ww. . t j av-w-v-w-w
JUit Sant 2 Jar Kin
aLrat.
v.By Tuly TouRS,
t:H4
WA
WHO IS HE?; Maybe he's you. If you recognize this draw
ing as yourself , come to the Editor's off ice in the Administration
building and if you are the subject you will receive the original
drawing.
a
NOTICED?
the Lunch-Time Jamboree ses
sions. More and more workers
are enjoying this respite every
day.
The pigs hanging around the
outer fences since J. Weaver
Kirkpatrick called 'em on the
Lunch-Time Jamboree? Weaver
is a hog caller from way back.
Construction Of. C-2
Vessels Under Way
(Continued from page 1) -
to 63 feet and the depth to
shelter deck is 40 feet and six
inches. Our parent yard, the
Newport News Shipbuilding and
Dry Dock company, built sev
eral of these vessels before the
war.
In preparing for theSnew con
struction program, the yard has
met and solved numerous prob
lems. Undoubtedly, we will face
many more as we go along but
if we all go about our work in
the same cooperative spirit as
we have in the building of the
Liberty ships, there is no doubt
that we can also be proud of our
record on the C-2 vessels.
Bomb the Bums With Bonds!
w III lllll