SS Stephen Furdek

History
United States
Name	Stephen Furdek
Namesake	Stephen Furdek
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Merchants & Miners Transportation Company
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2299
Builder	J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida
Cost	$991,203
Yard number	40
Way number	1
Laid down	16 March 1944
Launched	28 April 1944
Sponsored by	Mrs. Virginia Dickerman
Completed	23 May 1944
Identification	Call Signal: KWBZ
Fate	Laid up in National Defense Reserve Fleet, Mobile, Alabama, 27 September 1948 Sold for scrapping, 13 May 1970
General characteristics
Class and type	Liberty ship type EC2-S-C1, standard
Tonnage	10,865 LT DWT 7,176 GRT
Displacement	3,380 long tons (3,434 t) (light) 14,245 long tons (14,474 t) (max)
Length	441 feet 6 inches (135 m) oa 416 feet (127 m) pp 427 feet (130 m) lwl
Beam	57 feet (17 m)
Draft	27 ft 9.25 in (8.4646 m)
Installed power	2 × Oil fired 450 °F (232 °C) boilers, operating at 220 psi (1,500 kPa) 2,500 hp (1,900 kW)
Propulsion	1 × triple-expansion steam engine,  (manufactured by Iron Fireman Manufacturing Co., Portland, Oregon) 1 × screw propeller
Speed	11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity	562,608 cubic feet (15,931 m3) (grain) 499,573 cubic feet (14,146 m3) (bale)
Complement	38–62 USMM 21–40 USNAG
Armament	Varied by ship Bow-mounted 3 inches (76 mm)/50 caliber gun Stern-mounted 4 inches (102 mm)/50 caliber gun 2–8 × single 20 millimeters (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft (AA) cannons and/or, 2–8 × 37 millimeters (1.46 in) M1 AA guns

SS Stephen Furdek was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Stephen Furdek, a Roman Catholic priest, co-founder of the First Catholic Slovak Union, commonly known as Jednota, and an ardent activist for Slovak identity and nationhood.

Construction

Stephen Furdek was laid down on 16 March 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2299, by J.A. Jones Construction, Panama City, Florida; she was launched on 28 April 1944.

History

She was allocated to Merchants & Miners Transportation Company, on 23 May 1944. On 27 September 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, in Mobile, Alabama. On 13 May 1970, she was sold, along with SS Isaac M. Singer, for $61,202.08 to Union Minerals and Alloys Corporation, for scrapping. She was withdrawn from the fleet on 1 June 1970.

Bibliography

• "Jones Construction, Panama City FL". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
• "Liberty Ships – World War II". Retrieved 12 December 2017.
• Maritime Administration. "Stephen Furdek". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
• "SS Stephen Furdek". Retrieved 31 January 2020.