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Put Idle Troop Ships to Five Work Hog Island Troopers Are Altered to Maintain First Express Cargo Service Between World’s Two Largest Cities HEN the armistice of Nov. 11, 1918 brought the war to an end, shipbuilding in the United States had swung into full stride. Pub- lic opinion had been thoroughly aroused - to the need of ships in great numbers. Plans laid, orders placed, work com- menced, the influence of the public state of mind, and the unprecedented in- crease in overseas trade which followed the war, all combined to give the na- tional shipbuilding program so tremen- dous a momentum, that it was carried on throughout 1919 and 1920. Though the greater part of this pro- gram consisted of freight ships, the government, recognizing the urgent need of troop transports, and unable to fore- see the sudden ending of the war, con- tracted for the building of 70 stand- ardized troop ships designated as Type B, to be constructed at Hog Island. Or- ders were also placed in several of the old established shipyards for a total of 23 larger and more elaborate troop ships. When the question of retrenchment of this great shipbuilding program finally came up for serious attention it was decided among other things to cancel all but 12 of the 70 type B troop ships 7s] . Za 41 Ail —“es 4 Z f 4 Poe Orcn Swacrem socal | | ! Pear i SSOSESSAN SOAS Table I Facts in Conversion of Hog Island Troop Ships New names ‘Shipyards awarded work Original names Marne American Trader Federal Shipbldg. Cor} Tours American Shipper Federal Shipbldg. ‘Co. t $1,004,650 ‘Cantigny American Banker Fed. Shipbldg. Co. J Aisne American Merchant Brooklyn N. Yard Shipbldg. ‘Co. Ourcq Amer. Farmer Staten Isl. Scheduled Actual = date of date of Sailing delivery delivery date Feb. 18 Feb. 14 Mar. Mar. 14 Mar. 19 Apr. DT UD. Tks yApr. Feb. 28 Mar. 7 Mar. Mar 217): Mars 17> Mar; Amount of bid $390,000: $389,500) *Not due for delivery at time of publication, 7 Scheduled. originally ordered. Plans and _ specifica- tions for the 23 troop transports or- dered from the old yards were revised so that the vessels would be suitable as cargo and passenger ships. All of these vessels were completed accord- ingly. A few of the type B were placed in commission and operated by the army for a short period of time. Most of them, however, were never used at. all and the remainder were soon returned to the shipping board and added to its laid up fleet. Of the. 23. cargo and passenger ships, 7 originally named Pan- HANDLE STATE, GRANITE STATE, OLp NortH STATE, WOLVERINE STATE, - CRE- chal 1g cee - : ian nine - = iw (gam “ “> “ INBOARD PROFILE OF HOG ISLAND TYPE B VESSELS, BUILT ORIGINALLY FOR 188 OLE STATE, BLuE Hen State and CEn- TENNIAL STATE are somewhat smaller (522 feet in length) and much slower (about 14 knots) than the remaining 16 which are 535 feet in length and 17 knots in speed. Five of these seven ships and two of the faster ships were placed in transatlantic service. Of the remaining 14 fast ships, 4 are now in operation from New York to South America, and 10 from the Pacific coast to the Orient. For a time, two of the slower ships were also in service on the West coast, first to the Orient and later to South America. After a considerable period of opera- tion in the transatlantic service it was 3 bos “ eH