SS Baylor Victory

	SS Baylor Victory, 1945
History
United States
Name	SS Baylor Victory
Namesake	Baylor University
Owner	War Shipping Administration
Operator	American-Hawaiian Steamship Company
Builder	California Shipbuilding Corporation, Los Angeles CA
Laid down	13 January 1945
Launched	6 March 1945
Completed	30 March 1945
Fate	Scrapped 1970, not repairable per cost
General characteristics
Class and type	VC2-S-AP3 Victory ship
Tonnage	7612 GRT, 4,553 NRT
Displacement	15,200 tons
Length	455 ft (139 m)
Beam	62 ft (19 m)
Draught	28 ft (8.5 m)
Installed power	8,500 shp (6,300 kW)
Propulsion	HP & LP turbines geared to a single 20.5-foot (6.2 m) propeller
Speed	16.5 knots
Boats & landing ; craft carried	4 Lifeboats
Complement	62 Merchant Marine and 28 US Naval Armed Guards
Armament	1 × 5 inch (127 mm)/38 caliber gun; 1 × 3 inch (76 mm)/50 caliber gun; 8 × 20 mm Oerlikon;
Notes

The SS Baylor Victory was a cargo Victory ship built during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding program. The Baylor Victory (MCV-772) was a type VC2-S-AP2 Victory ship built by California Shipbuilding Corporation in Los Angeles, California. The Maritime Administration cargo ship was the 772rd ship built. Her keel was laid on Jan. 13, 1945. She was launched on March 6, 1945 and completed on March 30, 1945. The 10,600-ton ship was constructed for the Maritime Commission. She operated her under the United States Merchant Marine act for the War Shipping Administration.^[2] She was named for Baylor University, a private Christian university in Waco, Texas. At her launching Baylor University was represented by 18 graduates and friends. University President Pat M. Neff gave a short speech at the launching and christening ceremony. Los Angeles District Judge Minor L. Moore, a Baylor graduate of 1900, also spoke. Baylor Victory was launched at 1:20 a.m. and was lit up by large floodlights.^[3]

Victory ships were designed to supersede the earlier Liberty Ships. Unlike Liberty ships, Victory ships were designed to serve the US Navy after the war and also last longer.^[4] The Victory ships differed from a Liberty ship in that they were faster, longer and wider, taller, and had a thinner stack set farther toward the superstructure. They also had a long raised forecastle.

World War II

Completed on March 30, 1945, the Baylor Victory did only a little operating during World War operations, as the surrender of Imperial Japan was announced on August 15, 1945. Baylor Victory worked delivering cargo across the Pacific Ocean. Normal runs were from Pier 24 in San Francisco and the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro, Los Angeles to the Far East. She was operated by the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company.^[5] After World War II, in 1949, she was laid up in Mobile, Alabama in the National Defense Reserve Fleet.^[6]

Korean War

In 1950 she was reactivated for the Korean War and operated by the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company again. She made trips to Korean between: first Sept 27, 1952 to Nov. 25, 1952, Second Dec. 2, 1952 to March 6, 1953, third June 19, 1953 to Jan. 7, 1954.^[7] She helped American forces engaged against Communist aggression in South Korea.^[8] About 75 percent of the personnel taken to Korea for the Korean War came by the merchant marine ships. SS Baylor Victory transported goods, mail, food and other supplies. About 90% of the cargo was moved by merchant marine ships to the war zone.^[9]^[10] After the Korean War she was laid up in 1958 at the reserve fleet at the James River.^[11]^[12]^[13]^[14]^[15]^[16]^[17]

Vietnam War

In July 1966 she was reactivated for Vietnam War and operated by Victory Carriers Inc. for Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS).^[18] In 1970 she reported in at the United States Japan Fleet Activities in Yokosuka in a damaged condition due to a Pacific storm and deemed not worth repairing. SS Baylor Victory was sold to the American Ship Dismantlers Inc. on June 8, 1970. She was scrapped in Taiwan in 1970.^[19]

References

^ Babcock & Wilcox (April 1944). "Victory Ships". Marine Engineering and Shipping Review.
^ shipbuildinghistory.com Victory ships
^ baylor.edu, Looking Back at Baylor: The Good Ship "Baylor Victory", December 7, 2012, Author Brian M. Simmons.
^ "Liberty Ships and Victory Ships—Setting the Stage". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
^ "American-Hawaiian Steamship Co". Archived from the original on 2013-12-14. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
^ Al Graves collection of West Coast vessel photographs, circa 1860s-1965, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
^ Small United States and United Nations Warships in the Korean War, By Paul M. Edwards
^ Small United States and United Nations Warships in the Korean War, page 172, By Paul M. Edwards, page 175
^ Korean War Educator, Merchant Marine, Accounts of the Korean War
^ Small United States and United Nations Warships in the Korean War, By Paul M. Edwards
^ Sea Lift Korea Merchant
^ The Merchant Marines in the Korean War
^ All Hands, “One Year of Korea,” June 1951, 10.
^ Cagle, Malcom W. and Frank A. Manson The Sea War in Korea (1957).
^ MSTS Magazine “Five Years of Service to the Services,” October 1954.
^ Seafarers Log “The Merchant Marine Goes to War in Korea,” September 1950.
^ THE SHIPS OF WILLIAM H. LINDSAY
^ mariners, SS Baylor Victory
^ marad.dot.gov, SS Baylor Victory

Sources

Sawyer, L.A. and W.H. Mitchell. Victory ships and tankers: The history of the ‘Victory’ type cargo ships and the tankers built in the United States of America during World War II, Cornell Maritime Press, 1974, 0-87033-182-5.
United States Maritime Commission: [1]
Victory Cargo Ships [2] Archived 2018-11-10 at the Wayback Machine