| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | SS David H. Atwater |
| Owner | Atwacoal Transportation Co., Fall River, MA |
| Builder | Great Lakes Engineering Works, Ashtabula, Ohio |
| Yard number | 505A |
| Launched | June 1919 |
| Sponsored by | U.S. Shipping Board |
| Fate | Sunk by German submarine U-552, 2 April 1942, between Cape Charles and Cape Henlopen |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Steam cargo ship |
| Tonnage | |
| Length | 253.33 ft (77.21 m) |
| Beam | 43.5 ft (13.3 m) |
| Depth | 25 ft (7.6 m) |
| Crew | 8 officers, 19 men |
The SS David H. Atwater was a United States Merchant Marine coastal steamer which was sunk on 2 April 1942 by gunfire from German submarine U-552, commanded by Erich Topp, during World War II. The circumstances of the destruction of the vessel along with almost all of its crew fueled persistent rumours at the time of war crimes being perpetrated by Nazi Germany's U-boat fleets on the high seas against shipwrecked allied sailors.[1]
- ^ Bridgland, Tony (2002). Waves of Hate: Naval Atrocities of the Second World War. Leo Cooper. p. 216. ISBN 0-85052-822-4.