SS West Nohno

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West Nohno had design and measurements similar to West Shore, a sister ship from the same shipyard seen here c. 1918.
West Nohno had design and measurements similar to West Shore, a sister ship from the same shipyard seen here c. 1918.
History
United States
NameWest Nohno
OwnerUSSB
Builder
Yard number24[2]
Launched12 February 1919[3]
CompletedMay 1919[2]
IdentificationOfficial number: 217936[1]
FateSunk as part of "gooseberry" breakwater off Normandy, 11 June 1944[4]
General characteristics
TypeDesign 1013 ship
Tonnage
Length
  • 409 ft 9 in (124.89 m) (LPP)[1]
  • 423 ft 10 in (129.18 m)[5]
Beam54 ft 2 in (16.51 m)[1]
Draft23 ft 11 in (7.29 m)[5]
Propulsion1 × steam turbine[1]
Speed11.5 knots (21.3 km/h)[1]

SS West Nohno was a

launched shortly after the end of World War I. The ship was inspected by the United States Navy for possible use as USS West Nohno (ID-4029) but was neither taken into the Navy nor ever commissioned
under that name.

West Nohno was built in 1919 for the USSB, as a part of the West ships, a series of steel-

American West African Line
.

In November 1941, West Nohno became the first American merchant ship to be armed prior to the United States' entry into

battle star
for the ship.

Design and construction

The West ships were

launched 12 February 1919 and completed in May 1919.[2][3]

West Nohno was 6,186 

screw propeller, which moved the ship at up to 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h).[1]

Early career

West Nohno was inspected by the United States Navy after completion for possible use and was assigned the identification number of 4029. Had she been commissioned, she would have been known as USS West Nohno (ID-4029), but the Navy neither took over the ship nor commissioned her.[7]

Information on West Nohno's early career is incomplete, but through the end of 1920 the cargo ship sailed on a New York –

Saint Vincent.[16] West Nohno was still on African routes as late as 1928, when the USSB began accepting bids for the purchase of the American West African Line.[10]

From 1928 to 1941, little is known about West Nohno's activities. At some point during this period, she was laid up as part of a

American Export Lines. In this Red Sea service, ships would carry materiel for the British to Red Sea and Gulf of Aden ports and carry strategic materials needed by the United States on return journeys.[17]

World War II

USS Wichita collides with West Nohno in Hvalfjörður, 15 January 1942, damaging the cruiser.

When amendments to the U.S.

wheelhouse and radio shack were reinforced with thick walls of concrete to protect against machine-gun bullets, and the ship was repainted "battleship gray".[18]

After her guns were installed, West Nohno had made her way to

Halifax eleven days later and arrived on 7 April.[20]

West Nohno had made her way to

St. Olav's medal with Oak Branch,[23] a medal awarded for personal courage and bravery by the Norwegian government.[24][Note 2]

In February 1943, the West Nohno completed her nine-month journey when she arrived at

deck manager for the National Maritime Union of the Congress of Industrial Organizations, was convicted and sentenced to a prison term of five years.[25]

West Nohno sailed in several transatlantic convoys, like this typical one, seen in 1942.

In late March, West Nohno began the first of three

Boston–Liverpool round trips.[20] On the Halifax–Liverpool leg of this first trip, she had some unspecified problem that required her return to Halifax,[26] but it must have been a minor problem since she sailed again for Liverpool a week later. The cargo ship returned to Boston on 3 June and began her second voyage to Liverpool on 30 June. While in the UK she called at Loch Ewe, Methil, and Oban in July and August before her 6 September return to Boston. Her third journey was an extended one that began by sailing from Boston on 3 October. She arrived at Liverpool three weeks later. During the next seven weeks, she made her way to Milford Haven, from which she began her last westbound transatlantic crossing on 13 December. West Nohno arrived in Boston on 5 January 1944.[20]

Final voyage

West Nohno had been selected to become one of the

Allied invasion of France, then in the planning stages. Though the specific modifications performed on West Nohno are not revealed in sources, modifications for other ships do appear. In November 1944, The Christian Science Monitor reported that blockships dispatched from Boston, like West Nohno, had been loaded with "tons of sand and cement" and had been rigged with explosive charges before departing the port. Further, existing antiaircraft weapons had been moved higher up on the ship and supplemented by additional guns.[27] An account by Cesar Poropat, chief engineer aboard West Honaker, another blockship dispatched from Boston, mentions that transverse bulkheads aboard that ship were cut open to facilitate sinking.[28]

scuttled to help form the "gooseberry" at Utah Beach shortly after the Normandy landings
in mid-June 1944.
Gooseberry line of ship used as artificial harbour breakwater in June 1944
Mulberry artificial harbour in Normandy in September 1944, used to block the incoming wave

West Nohno departed Boston on 24 February and arrived at Halifax two days later. Departing from that port on 29 February, she sailed in Convoy HX-281 and arrived at Milford Haven on 15 March. She departed there for Portsmouth the same day.[20] West Nohno's whereabouts and movements through early June are not recorded. Other ships that had been selected as blockships assembled in a "corncob" fleet at Oban,[28] though it's not clear if West Nohno did or not. The "corncob" fleet was the group of ships intended to be sunk to form the "gooseberries",[29] shallow-water artificial harbors for landing craft.[30] Poropat reports that once the ship crews were told of their mission while anchored at Oban, they were not permitted to leave the ships.[28]

Three "corncob" convoys, consisting of what one author called the "dregs of the North Atlantic shipping pool",

battle star for participation in the Normandy Landings.[7]

Awards

Harold T. Andrews was an ordinary seaman on the SS West Nohno on 15 September 1942 when the ship was in

Suez, Egypt, There an engineer officer had been overcome by gases in a forepeak tank. Andrews lost his life trying to rescue the engineer. He was given the Merchant Marine Distinguished Service Medal by The President of the United States. For the President the award was given by Admiral Emory S. Land.[36]

Notes

  1. ^ There is no record of any specific attack on West Nohno while at Murmansk, but Yaka, another American cargo ship, experienced 48 air attacks in a nine-day period in April. See: Morison, p. 372.
  2. St. Olav's medal with Oak Branch was awarded posthumously in 1989. See: Lawson, Siri (12 August 2008). "M/T Britannia"
    . Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939-1945. WarSailors.com. Retrieved 6 November 2008.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "West Nohno". Miramar Ship Index. R.B.Haworth. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  2. ^ a b c d e Colton, Tim. "Northwest Steel, Portland OR". Shipbuildinghistory.com. The Colton Company. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  3. ^
    OCLC 8414304
    .
  4. ^ a b Stanford, p. 149.
  5. ^ a b c d e Jordan, p. 433.
  6. ^ Crowell and Wilson, pp. 358–59.
  7. ^ a b c Naval Historical Center. "West Nohno". DANFS.
  8. ^ Naval Historical Center. "West Cheswald". DANFS.
  9. ^ See: "Shipping and mails" (PDF). The New York Times. 16 August 1919. p. 14. Retrieved 12 September 2008. Also: "Shipping". The Times. 17 March 1920. p. 2. "Mail and shipping intelligence". The Times. 26 April 1920. p. 24. "Mail and shipping intelligence". The Times. 17 December 1920. p. 17.
  10. ^ a b "African line bids to be opened today". The New York Times. 29 May 1928. p. 51.
  11. ^ "Shipping and mails" (PDF). The New York Times. 8 September 1922. p. 23. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  12. ^ "Shipping and mails" (PDF). The New York Times. 12 December 1922. p. 39. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  13. ^ "Shipping and mails". The New York Times. 3 January 1923. p. 14.
  14. ^ "Shipping and mails". The New York Times. 19 January 1923. p. 35.
  15. ^ "Shipping and mails". The New York Times. 9 March 1923. p. 19.
  16. ^ "Shipping and mails". The New York Times. 7 November 1923. p. 35.
  17. ^ "U.S. Gets 40 ships for defense pool". The New York Times. 14 May 1941. p. 8.
  18. ^ a b "First U.S. cargo ship is armed amid both secrecy and fanfare". The New York Times. 27 November 1941. p. 1.
  19. ^ Cressman, p. 69.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g "Port Arrivals/Departures: West Nohno". Arnold Hague's Ports Database. Convoy Web. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  21. ^ a b Morison, pp. 370–71.
  22. ^ a b c "CIO seamen plan a revolt, court is told". Chicago Daily Tribune. 5 August 1943. p. 1.
  23. ^ a b Lawson, Siri (12 August 2008). "M/T Britannia". Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939-1945. WarSailors.com. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  24. ^ Lawson, Siri (12 August 2008). "Norwegian War Medals". Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939-1945. WarSailors.com. Retrieved 6 November 2008.
  25. ^ "CIO aid gets 5-year term as seditionist". Chicago Daily Tribune. 7 August 1943. p. 1.
  26. ^ "Convoy SC.126". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. ConvoyWeb. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  27. ^ Stone, Leon (18 November 1944). "Bay State ship sacrificed to Normandy aid". The Christian Science Monitor. p. 5.
  28. ^ a b c d Poropat, Cesar (2000). "The Corncob Fleet on D-Day". Beyond the Palisades. Bruce Poropat. Retrieved 12 September 2008. This webpage consists of excerpts from Cesar Poropat's privately published 2000 book, Beyond the Palisades.
  29. ^ Richard, Glossary of U.S. Naval Code Words: C.
  30. ^ Richard, Glossary of U.S. Naval Code Words: G.
  31. ^ Howe, p. 1.
  32. ^ "Convoy CORNCOB.1", "Convoy CORNCOB.2", "Convoy CORNCOB.3". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. ConvoyWeb. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  33. ^ Howe, p. 3.
  34. ^ a b Askew, pp. 179–80.
  35. ^ Crichton, Tom (4 April 2004). T. Horodysky (ed.). "The Useful Death of the MV Galveston". American Merchant Marine at War. T. Horodysky. Retrieved 12 September 2008.
  36. ^ usmm.org Heroes

Bibliography

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