SS Edward W. Bok

SS Edward W. Bok was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after Edward W. Bok, a naval constructor a Dutch-born American editor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. He was editor of the Ladies' Home Journal for 30 years (1889-1919) and created Bok Tower Gardens in central Florida.

History
United States
Name	Edward W. Bok
Namesake	Edward W. Bok
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Luckenbach Steamship Co., Ltd.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2469
Awarded	23 April 1943
Builder	St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida
Cost	$1,228,217
Yard number	33
Way number	3
Laid down	14 January 1944
Launched	12 March 1944
Sponsored by	Mrs. H.M. Nornabell
Completed	27 March 1944
Identification	Call sign: KWKD
Fate	Laid up in the, National Defense Reserve Fleet, Wilmington, North Carolina, 19 August 1946 Sold for commercial use, 4 January 1947, removed from fleet, 16 January 1947
Italy
Name	Paolina
Owner	Imprese Nav. Commerciale
Fate	Sold, 1959
Italy
Name	Nando
Owner	Navigazione San Giorgio
Fate	Sold, 1960
Panama
Name	Kim
Owner	General Navigation, SA
Operator	Agemar, SA
Fate	Sold, 1965
Panama
Name	Sun
Owner	Sun Navigation Co
Operator	L. Ottaviani
Fate	Scrapped, 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 General Machinery Corp., Hamilton, Ohio) 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

Construction

Edward W. Bok was laid down on 14 January 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2469, by the St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida; she was sponsored by Mrs. H.M. Nornabell, the wife of Major Henry Marshall Nornabell, the director of Bok Tower Gardens, and was launched on 12 March 1944.

History

She was allocated to the Luckenbach Steamship Company, on 27 March 1944. On 18 May 1946, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Wilmington, North Carolina. She was sold for commercial use, 4 January 1947, to Italy, for $544,506. She was removed from the fleet on 16 January 1947. Edward W. Bok was renamed Paolina and flagged in Italy. She was renamed Nando in 1959. In 1960, she was sold and renamed Kim and flagged in Panama. In 1965, she was sold and renamed Sun. She was scrapped in Japan, in 1970.

Bibliography

• "St. John's River Shipbuilding, Jacksonville FL". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 16 October 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
• Maritime Administration. "Edward W. Bok". Ship History Database Vessel Status Card. U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
• Davies, James (May 2004). "Specifications (As-Built)" (PDF). p. 23. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
• "SS Edward W. Bok". Retrieved 20 January 2020.