A Brief History
On September 27, 1941, the first of 2,710 “Liberty” ships rolled off the assembly line, the SS Patrick Henry, built in Baltimore. While it may be naïve to think a single weapon or machine of war can be said to have “won the war,” items such as the Liberty and Victory ships made huge contributions to victory without being weapons.
Digging Deeper
Liberty ships were mass produced cargo vessels uniquely suited to moving many tons of war materiel across the oceans, especially the Atlantic, to keep Russia and the UK in the war, while also moving American supplies overseas where they were needed. Just over 441 feet long and 56 feet wide, Libertys displaced 14,000 tons and carried light armament.
Steaming at 11.5 knots, Liberty ships suffered 200 losses to enemy action and weather, mostly to German U-boats. The ability of the US to make so many Libertys so quickly outpaced the rate that U-boats could sink them, guaranteeing Allied victory.
Question for students (and subscribers) to ponder: What was the most important US made item in World War II?
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Elphick, Peter. Liberty: The Ships That Won the War. Naval Inst Press, 2001.
Williams, Greg. The Liberty Ships of World War II: A Record of the 2,710 Vessels and Their Builders, Operators and Namesakes, with a History of the Jeremiah O’Brien. McFarland, 2014.
