SS John Harvey on fire
on 2 December 1943, at Bari | |
History | |
---|---|
United States | |
Name | John Harvey |
Namesake | John Harvey |
Operator | Agwilines Inc |
Builder | North Carolina Shipbuilding Company, Wilmington, North Carolina |
Yard number | 56 |
Way number | 2 |
Laid down | 6 December 1942 |
Launched | 9 January 1943 |
Completed | 19 January 1943 |
Fate | Bombed in Bari, 1943. Scrapped 1948. |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type EC2-S-C1 Liberty ship |
Displacement | 14,245 long tons (14,474 t)[1] |
Length | |
Beam | 57 ft (17 m)[1] |
Draft | 27 ft 9 in (8.46 m)[1] |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph)[1] |
Range | 20,000 nmi (37,000 km; 23,000 mi) |
Capacity | 10,856 t (10,685 long tons) deadweight (DWT)[1] |
Crew | 81[1] |
Armament | Stern-mounted 4 in (100 mm) deck gun for use against surfaced submarines, variety of anti-aircraft guns |
SS John Harvey was a U.S. World War II Liberty ship. This ship is best known for carrying a secret cargo of mustard gas and whose sinking by German aircraft in December 1943 at the port of Bari in south Italy caused an unintentional release of chemical weapons.
The John Harvey was built by the North Carolina Shipbuilding Company in Wilmington, North Carolina, and launched on 9 January 1943. Her Maritime Commission Hull Number was 878, and she was rated as capable of carrying 504 soldiers. She was operated by Agwilines Inc.[2]