Coastal Tanker

U.S. Maritime Commission type T1-M-A1

The T1 was a small “coastal” gasoline tanker designed to be used either by the military (mostly sub-type A2) or transferred to the British Ministry of War Transport as part of the Lend-Lease program (mostly sub-type A1). The two sub-types were very...

Escort Carrier

U.S. Maritime Commission type S4-S2-BB3

Before the United States even entered World War II, the U.S. Maritime Commission participated in the Allies’ desperate chase for aircraft carrier superiority. Planners were learning that military air cover was a crucial component of convoy...

USS CIMARRON (AO-22)

U.S. Maritime Commission type T3-S2-A1

From 1934-1942 the U.S. Maritime Commission focused on mainly building dry cargo carriers to replace the aging and slow World War I-era vessels that made up the majority of the U.S. cargo fleet. The commission refrained from constructing tankers...

Victory Ship

U.S. Maritime Commission design type VC2-S-AP2

The Victory ship was 445 feet long with a capacity of 10,850 deadweight tons, slightly more than its forerunner the Liberty ship. Most importantly, the vessel was capable of a speed of just over 15 knots, which put it in the same class as...

N3-S-A1 Type

The Maritime Commission designed this coastal cargo ship to be used by the British Ministry of War Transport and all 36 built were transferred to that country as part of the Lend-Lease program. The vessels were among the smallest self-propelled cargo ships produced by the U.S. Maritime...

Concrete Ship

U.S. Maritime Commission design type C1-S-D1

Thirty six of these concrete-hull ships were built for the U.S. Maritime Commission. Originally designed to carry sugar, the U.S. Army converted many into floating warehouses and intentionally sank several to form beachheads following the...

SS SCHUYLER OTIS BLAND

U.S. Maritime Commission design type C3-S-DX1

The only vessel of the C3-S-DX1 design, SS Schuyler Otis Bland was the final vessel ordered by the U.S. Maritime Commission, and the first vessel launched by the newly-created Maritime Administration. The vessel’s name honored the...

T2-SE-A1 Type

Although the early focus of the U.S. Maritime Commission’s shipbuilding efforts had been dry cargo ships, by early winter in 1941, German U-boats and commerce raiders were exacting a heavy toll on Allied tankers. These mounting losses lead the agency to commission a tanker, based on a standard...

SS PATRICK HENRY

U.S. Maritime Commission type EC2-S-C1 “Liberty Ship”

The driving force behind the Liberty ship design was speed of construction. The U.S. Maritime Commission initially designed and contracted its standardized “C” cargo ships at a relatively leisurely pace, but by the beginning of 1941...

Mariner-Class Cargo Vessel

Maritime Administration design type C4-S-1A

The final ships designed by the U.S. Maritime Commission, the Mariner-class, did not go into production until after the U.S. government had reorganized the agency as the Maritime Administration under the Department of Commerce....