SS Empire Ballad

History
Name	Empire Ballad (1941-46); Bibury (1946-51); Stad Maassluis (1951-62); Jaguar (1962-66); Goldfield (1966-68); Poseidon (1968-69);
Owner	Ministry of War Transport (1941-46); Alexander Shipping Co Ltd (1946-51); Halcyon Lijn NV, Rotterdam (1951-62); Compagnia Navigazione Jaguar, Panama (1962-66); Olamar SA, Panama (1966-68); Compagnia de Navigazione Sulemar, Panama (1968-69);
Operator	Allan, Black & Co (1942-43); Capper, Alexander & Co (1943-46); Houlder Bros Ltd (1946-51); Halcyon Lijn NV, Rotterdam (1951-62); Palomba & Salvatori, Italy (1962-68); V Coccoli, Italy (1968-69);
Port of registry	Sunderland (1941-46); UK (1946-51); Rotterdam (1951-62); Panama (1962-69);
Builder	Bartram & Sons Ltd, Sunderland
Yard number	286
Launched	17 December 1941
Completed	13 March 1942
Identification	Official Number 169013 (1941-51); Code Letters BCXB (1941-46); ; Code Letters PHRL (1951-62); ; IMO number 5167815 ( -1969);
Fate	Scrapped 1969
General characteristics
Tonnage	6,700 GRT; 4,484 NRT; 9,730 DWT;
Length	416 ft 6 in (126.95 m)
Beam	56 ft 6 in (17.22 m)
Depth	34 ft (10.36 m)
Propulsion	1 x triple expansion steam engine (North East Marine Engine Co (1938) Ltd, Sunderland) 506 hp (377 kW)
Speed	10.5 knots (19.4 km/h)
Armament	1 x 4" gun, 2 x 3" guns, 8 x machine guns, smoke generating apparatus (Empire Ballad)

Empire Ballad was a 6,640 ton cargo ship which was built by Bartram & Sons Ltd, Sunderland in 1941 for the Ministry of War Transport (MoWT). She was sold to Alexander Shipping Co Ltd in 1946 and renamed Bibury. In 1951 she was sold to Halcyon Lijn NV, Rotterdam, Netherlands and renamed Stad Maassluis. In 1962 she was sold to Compagnia Navigazione Jaguar, Panama and renamed Jaguar. In 1966 she was sold to Olamar SA, Panama and renamed Goldfield. In 1968 she was sold to Compagnia de Navigazione Sulemar, Panama and renamed Poseidon,^[1] serving until 1969 when she ran aground and was subsequently scrapped.

^ Often reported as Poseidone, but photographs show she carried the name Poseidon

[Poseidon-1] Often reported as Poseidone, but photographs show she carried the name Poseidon

[1]

History

Name	Empire Ballad (1941-46) Bibury (1946-51) Stad Maassluis (1951-62) Jaguar (1962-66) Goldfield (1966-68) Poseidon (1968-69)
Owner	Ministry of War Transport (1941-46) Alexander Shipping Co Ltd (1946-51) Halcyon Lijn NV, Rotterdam (1951-62) Compagnia Navigazione Jaguar, Panama (1962-66) Olamar SA, Panama (1966-68) Compagnia de Navigazione Sulemar, Panama (1968-69)
Operator	Allan, Black & Co (1942-43) Capper, Alexander & Co (1943-46) Houlder Bros Ltd (1946-51) Halcyon Lijn NV, Rotterdam (1951-62) Palomba & Salvatori, Italy (1962-68) V Coccoli, Italy (1968-69)
Port of registry	Sunderland (1941-46) UK (1946-51) Rotterdam (1951-62) Panama (1962-69)
Builder	Bartram & Sons Ltd, Sunderland
Yard number	286
Launched	17 December 1941
Completed	13 March 1942
Identification	Official Number 169013 (1941-51) Code Letters BCXB (1941-46) Code Letters PHRL (1951-62) IMO number 5167815 ( -1969)
Fate	Scrapped 1969
General characteristics
Tonnage	6,700 GRT 4,484 NRT 9,730 DWT
Length	416 ft 6 in (126.95 m)
Beam	56 ft 6 in (17.22 m)
Depth	34 ft (10.36 m)
Propulsion	1 x triple expansion steam engine (North East Marine Engine Co (1938) Ltd, Sunderland) 506 hp (377 kW)
Speed	10.5 knots (19.4 km/h)
Armament	1 x 4" gun, 2 x 3" guns, 8 x machine guns, smoke generating apparatus (Empire Ballad)