USS Floridian
.jpg) USS Floridian arriving at New York City from France in 1919 with her decks crowded with American troops returning to the United States after serving in World War I. The Statue of Liberty is in the distance at left.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USS Floridian |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Builder | Baltimore, Maryland |
| Launched | 16 October 1915 |
| Completed | 1915 |
| Acquired | 28 January 1919 |
| Commissioned | 28 January 1919 |
| Decommissioned | 4 August 1919 |
| Fate | Sank following collision 1 September 1928 |
| Notes | In commercial service as SS Floridian 1915–1919 and from 1919–1928 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Troop transport |
| Tonnage | 6,930 gross registger tons |
| Displacement | 14,500 tons |
| Length | 429 ft 2 in (130.81 m) |
| Beam | 53 ft 8 in (16.36 m) |
| Draft | 29 ft 6 in (8.99 m) |
| Propulsion | Steam engine |
| Speed | 14 knots |
| Armament |
|
USS Floridian (ID-3875) was a
troop transport
in commission in 1919.
SS Floridian was built as a commercial
Maryland Steel Company for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company of New York City. After the United States entered World War I in 1917, Floridian came under the control of the United States Shipping Board. Converted to a troop transport, she spent the rest of the war operating under a United States Army charter. The U.S. Navy acquired Floridian from the Shipping Board on 28 January 1919, assigned her the naval registry Identification Number (Id. No.) 3875, and commissioned
her on the same day as USS Floridian.
Floridian was assigned to the
St. Nazaire, France, where she arrived on 28 March 1919 with supplies for the Army of Occupation
.
She made three trips carrying U. S. Army troops to the
Seattle Times, "Headquarters and Medical Detachments and Companies A and B of 346th Machine Gun Battalion; 3rd Battalion Headquarters, Medical and Ordnance Detachments, Supply Company and Companies H, I, K, L and M of the 362nd Infantry; 620th Casual Company."[1]
The second trip came arrived in Hoboken on 14 June. This brought 1,791 troops home. Units aboard included, as described by the Seattle Times, 435 "men of the 148th Field Artillery, 41st Division... [with] Field and Staff, Medical Detachments, Headquarters Company and Battery E. Other troops on board were the 509th Engineers, Headquarters and Medical Detachments and Companies A to D inclusive; members of the 369th Service Park Unit."[2]
The final load of returning soldiers arrived in Hoboken on 16 July. The 1,829 men aboard included, per the Seattle Times, "... the 337th Field Remount Squadron and casuals for Camps Dodge and Bowie."[3]
After these voyages, Floridian was assigned to the
Washington, south of Umatilla lightship, then LV 67, with Floridian sinking and Admiral Fiske heavily damaged.[4][5][6]
References
- ^ "Thousands of Western Troups Land". Seattle Times. 14 April 1919. p. 1.
- ^ "Transport Floridian at New York with 1,791 Men". Seattle Times. 14 June 1919. p. 16.
- ^ "Seattle Soldiers Arrive in New York from France". Seattle Times. 17 July 1919. p. 31.
- ^ Pacific American Steamship Association; Shipowners Association of the Pacific Coast (1930). "The Floridian Affair". Pacific Marine Review. 27 (July). San Francisco: J.S. Hines: 320. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - LCCN 2006002088. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
- ^ "Vessel Designation: LV 67". U.S. Coast Guard Lightships. United States Coast Guard. 17 November 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
- Department of the Navy: Naval Historical Center Online Library of Selected Images: Civilian Ships: S.S. Floridian (American Freighter, 1915). Served as USS Floridian (ID # 3875) in 1919
- NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive: Floridian (ID 3875)
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1928 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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