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MSWest Honaker

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MS West Honaker seen from the air shortly before arrival at Brisbane on 13 December 1940.
MSWest Honakerseen from the air shortly before arrival atBrisbaneon 13 December 1940.
History
United States
NameWest Honaker
OwnerUSSB
Builder
Yard number28[2]
CompletedDecember 1920[2]
IdentificationOfficial number: 220842[1]
FateSunk as part of "gooseberry"breakwateroffNormandy,8 June 1944[1]
General characteristics
TypeDesign 1013 ship
Tonnage5,376GRT[1]
Length
  • 410 ft 1 in (124.99 m) (LPP)[1]
  • 423 ft (129 m)[5]
Beam54 ft 2 in (16.51 m)[1]
Draft23 ft 11 in (7.29 m)[5]
Depth27 ft 2 in (8.28 m)[3]
Propulsion
Speed11.5 knots (21.3 km/h)[1]
Range
  • as built:
  • 7,300 nautical miles (13,500 km)[3]
  • 1926:
  • 17,600 nautical miles (32,600 km)[3]
Capacity

MSWest Honakerwas adiesel-poweredcargo shipof theUnited States Maritime Commission(USMC) that was part of the "Corncob Fleet" of old ships sunk as part of the "gooseberry"breakwateroffUtah Beachduring theNormandy invasion.The ship was originally built asSSWest Honaker,asteam-powered cargo ship built for theUnited States Shipping Board(USSB), a predecessor of the USMC. At the time of her completion in 1920, the ship was inspected by theUnited States Navyfor possible use asUSSWest Honaker(ID-4455)but was neither taken into the Navy nor evercommissionedunder that name.

West Honakerwas built in 1920 for the USSB, as a part of theWestboats, a series of steel-hulledcargo ships built on theWest Coast of the United Statesfor the World War I war effort, and was the 28th ship built atLos Angeles Shipbuilding & Dry Dock CompanyinSan Pedro, California.In 1926,West Honakerwas outfitted with diesel engines that replaced her original steam engines as part of a pilot program by the USSB. After her conversion, she sailed on aNew York–Australiaroute. On her second trip to Australia, from August 1927 to March 1928, she became the first diesel ship tocircumnavigatethe globe. In 1929, she began sailing for an around-the-world cargo service from thePacific coasttoSouth Africa

By the late 1930s, she had been laid up, but was reactivated for merchant service prior toWorld War II.She sailed to Australia andNew Zealanduntil after the United States' entry into World War II, and in transatlantic service to the United Kingdom for most of the time after that. In March 1944, she sailed from the United States for the final time, and was incorporated into the Corncob Fleet of old shipsscuttledin June to make the "gooseberry"breakwateroffUtah Beachduring theNormandy invasion.This last voyage earned the West Honaker abattle star.

Design and construction[edit]

TheWestships werecargo shipsof similar size and design built by several shipyards on theWest Coast of the United Statesfor the USSB for emergency use duringWorld War I.All were given names that began with the wordWest,likeWest Honaker,[6]the one of some 40Westships built by theLos Angeles Shipbuilding & Dry Dock CompanyofLos Angeles.West Honaker(Los Angeles Shipbuilding yard number 28) was completed in December 1920.[2]

West Honakerwas 5,376gross register tons(GRT), and was 410 feet 1 inch (124.99 m) long (between perpendiculars)[1]and 54 feet 2 inches (16.51 m)abeam.She had a steelhulland adeadweight tonnageof 8,006DWT.[5][7]Sources do not giveWest Honaker's other hull characteristics, butWest Grama,asister shipalso built at Los Angeles Shipbuilding had adisplacementof 12,225 t with ameandraftof 24 feet 2 inches (7.37 m), and ahold29 feet 9 inches (9.07 m) deep.[8]West Honaker's power plant was a singletriple-expansion steam enginethat drove a singlescrew propeller,which moved the ship at up to 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h).[1]

Early career[edit]

West Honakerwas inspected by theUnited States Navyafter completion for possible use as servicecollierand was assigned the identification number of 4455. Had she beencommissioned,she would have been known as USSWest Honaker(ID-4455), but the Navy neither took over the ship nor commissioned her.[7]

Destinations and cargo duringWest Honaker's first six years of service are largely unreported in sources. In 1926, however, she was the first ship in a USSB pilot program to replace steam engines of seven USSB-owned ships withdiesel engines.[9]West Honaker's 3,000-horsepower (2,200 kW) engine,[10]reported byThe Washington Postas the largest American-made diesel equipment to that time,[11]was built byMcIntosh & Seymourand installed at theFore River ShipyardnearBoston.[10]AnAssociated Pressnews item reported that the ship's $1,000,000 conversion,[12]which extended the ship's cruising radius from 7,300 nautical miles (13,500 km) to 17,600 nautical miles (32,600 km),[3]would lower her cost of operation by 15% annually.[9]After hersea trialswere complete,West Honakersailed toSavannah, Georgia,where she began carrying cotton from that port toBremen.[10]

In January 1927, the USSB established the Atlantic Australian Line, an all-dieselNew York– Australia service, and assignedWest Honakerto the company.[3]The eight ships in the service—operated by theRoosevelt Steamship Companyin conjunction with another USSB-line, the American India Line—sailed east from New York via theSuez Canalthrough theIndian Oceanand on to Australia and back via the same route.[13][Note 1]On 15 February,West Honakersailed on her maiden voyage for the new service forSydney,[14]where she arrived on 5 April.[15]

On 26 August, she began her second voyage to Sydney,[16]but instead of retracing her route on the return, she continued eastward around the world, becoming—according toThe New York Times—the first diesel ship to circumnavigate the globe.[4]Upon her return to New York on 2 March 1928, a reception was held at theTompkinsville, Staten Island,pier where she had docked. The Roosevelt Steamship Company announced plans forWest Honakerto continue in around-the-world service, making two voyages per year.[4]

South African service[edit]

In February 1929,West Honakerwasbareboat charteredby the USSB for the newPacific–South Africa Line,[Note 2]an around-the-world venture under the management ofJ. J. Moore & Company.[Note 3]The Pacific–South Africa Line service—the world's only all-diesel around-the-world service, as described by theLos Angeles Times—sailed fromLos Angelesto South Africa via theStraits of Magellan,across the Indian Ocean toJapanandChina,across the Pacific toSan Francisco,and back to Los Angeles.[17]West Honaker's first voyage in the South African service was planned for November,[18]but upon her arrival from New York to begin the service,[Note 4]it was discovered that she had cracks in her engine mountings and hercylinder head.West Honakermade her way to San Francisco, where parts were fabricated for the $100,000 repair. This kept her out of service until March 1930.[19]

West Honakerdeparted on her long-delayed maiden voyage for the Pacific–South Africa Line in mid March,[20]and began a second voyage for the line in late October.[21]West Honaker's service continued uneventfully until early 1932. On 2 March of that year,West Honakercollided with steamerErnest H. Meyerin asnowstormon the lowerColumbia River,nearAstoria, Oregon.Both ships suffered damage, but neither needed assistance to reachPortland.[22]West Honakerhad just finished undergoing general repairs in drydock in Portland prior to the collision, which caused about $30,000 in damages.[23]The USSB filed suit against the Portland Steamship Company for the cost of repairs, which were completed by mid March.[24]

In mid-June, the bareboat charters of the three USSB vessels still sailing for Pacific–South Africa—West Honaker,West Cusseta,andCrown City—were cancelled. At the end of each ship's voyage in progress, the ships were returned to the USSB. At the time of the announcement,West Honakerwas in South African waters. TheLos Angeles Timesreported that preferentialtariffsfor British-flagged ships for lumber fromBritish Columbia—a major cargo carried by the line—were responsible for the termination.[25]It's not known whenWest Honakercompleted her final trip, but in late June she was still shown in South Africa by a notice inThe New York Times.[26]After this mention,West Honakerdisappears from contemporary news accounts. By 1939,West Honakerhad been laid up in areserve fleetin theJames River.[5][27]

World War II[edit]

In June 1940, the USMC opened bidding for the reconditioning of ten laid up cargo ships, which includedWest Honaker.[27]According to theLos Angeles Times,the USMC, a successor to the USSB, was forced to act because of a "critical shortage" of U.S. Navyauxiliary ships.[28]TheMaryland Drydock CompanyofBaltimorewas the low bidder forWest Honaker,offering to recondition her for $77,777.[29]

West Honakercarried a load of wool(pictured)from Australia toNew Bedford, Massachusetts,in late 1940 for American military use.

On 3 November, with her reconditioning complete,West Honakersailed from New York. After transiting thePanama Canala week after her departure, she headed forBrisbane,Australia, where she arrived on 13 December. After then calling atSydney,Melbourne,Port Pirie,andAdelaidethrough 8 January 1941,West Honakercalled at Melbourne and Sydney before departing for the United States on 18 January.[30]Loaded with a cargo of wool intended for uniforms, blankets, and overcoats for the military,[31]West Honakerarrived atNew Bedford, Massachusetts,on 3 March.[30]

From late March to mid August,West Honakermade another, almost identical Australian circuit, adding a stop inFremantleto her Australian itinerary. Almost immediately after her return to Boston, she began a third trip to Australia. After she arrived in Brisbane on 29 October, she made stops in Sydney and Melbourne. From Sydney she made a round trip toNouméa,New Caledonia,and sailed from there toWellington,New Zealand, where she arrived on 11 December, four days after the JapaneseAttack on Pearl Harborthat propelled the United States intoWorld War II.[30]

West Honakerdeparted Wellington on 13 December and arrived at Boston on 28 February 1942. From Boston, she sailed to New York viaPhiladelphia.After sailing from New York on 29 April,West Honakerexperienced some unspecified trouble, and was towed into Baltimore on 4 June. After spending almost three weeks in that port, she headed forCape TownviaTrinidad.She departed Cape Town on 24 August and sailed toBushire,Abadan,Bandar Abbas,andColomboover the next three months. After making a round trip toCalcuttafrom late November to late December,West Honakerarrived at Wellington on 26 January, sailing for New York via thePanama Canalthree days later.[30]

West Honakertook on a load of grain and then proceeded in convoy from Boston toHalifaxin early May, and on toBelfast Lough.[32]After making a circuit toAvonmouthandMilford Haven,West Honakersailed from Belfast Lough for New York on 25 June. She made one additional transatlantic roundtrip beginning in late August,[30]carrying a cargo of explosives on her outbound trip,[33]and returning in late October.West Honakersailed 28 November from New York forNuevitas, Cuba,and returned viaKey West, Florida,in late December. Sailing again for theCaribbeanon 6 February, she visitedGuantánamo BayandAntillabefore her 28 February 1944 return to New York. At some point within the next month,West Honakerarrived at Boston.[30]

Final voyage[edit]

A view of the "gooseberry"breakwateratSword Beach,showing the partially submerged ships.West Honakerwasscuttledto help form the "gooseberry" atUtah Beachon 10 June 1944, two days after theNormandy Landings.
Gooseberry line of ship used as artificial harbour breakwater in June of 1944
Mulberry artificial harbour in Normandy on September 1944, used to block the incoming wave

Though her crew did not know it at the time,West Honakerhad been selected to be one of theblockshipsfor theAllied invasion of France,then in the planning stages.[34]Blockships dispatched from Boston, likeWest Honaker,were loaded with "tons of sand and cement" before their final U.S. departures.[35]West Honakersailed from Boston on 25 March 1944 as a part of Convoy BX-101 to Halifax and, from there, Convoy SC-156 toCardiff.[30]In his bookBeyond the Palisades,Cesar Poropat,West Honaker's chief engineer, reports that after the ship's cargo was discharged, the ship was suddenly boarded by shipyard workers who cut holes in "strategic places" and positioned "mysterious packs" around the hull. The crew suspected, correctly, that these packs were explosives and that the ship was being prepared for sinking.[34]Though there is no specific mention of this occurring onWest Honaker,other blockships selected for the Normandy beachhead had their existing antiaircraft weapons moved higher on the ship and supplemented by additional guns.[35]

Poropat recounts that after the shipyard workers departed, the crew were told to pack all their personal belongings—except fortoiletriesand one change of clothes—to be sent ashore. Each crewman was issued a backpack withK-rations,a special life preserver, and survival equipment.[34]West Honakerdeparted Cardiff on 24 April forObanwhere she arrived on 5 May.[30]She was now a part of the "Corncob Fleet,"[34]the group of ships to be sunk to form the "gooseberries,"[36]shallow-water artificial harbors forlanding craft.[37]Once at Oban, Poropat reports that the ship's crew was told of their mission, but to preserve secrecy, they were not permitted to leave the ships.[34]

After spending five weeks at Oban—Poropat called it "the longest and most tedious five weeks" of his life—West Honakerfinally moved out, sailing south through theIrish SeatoPoole.[30][34]West Honakerwas a part of the third "Corncob" convoy, which sailed from Poole on the night on 7 June, the day after theD-Day landings,[38]and consisted of what one author called the "dregs of the North Atlantic shipping pool."[39]Poropat relates that the Corncob ships crossed theEnglish Channelunder cover of darkness and, stripped of all unnecessary equipment, carried no radios, having only a signal lamp (with a spare bulb) for communication.[34]

Around midnight 7/8 June, during the slow voyage across the Channel,[34]aGermanairplane hitWest Honakerwith twoskip bombs.[40]Because the ship, already prepared for a fast sinking for the blockship duties, began taking on water, a large portion of the crew, including Chief Engineer Poropat, abandoned ship. After drifting in the Channel for most of the rest of the moonless night, they were picked up in the morning by a Britishtrawlerand returned to the UK. In the meantime, themasterof the ship was able to keepWest Honakerin the convoy headed to Utah beach.

Once at the designated location, the ships were positioned andscuttledover the next days, under heavy German artillery fire.[41]Naval Armed Guardsmen manned the guns on all the gooseberry ships to protect against frequent German air attacks.[42]All the while, harbor pilots—about half of the New York Bar Pilots Association, according to one source—carefully positioned the ships.[43]West Honakerwas sunk on 10 June about 400 yards (370 m) off the beach,[40]but continued to serve as an antiaircraft platform manned by Navy gun crews until 14 June, and by Army crews after that date.[40]West Honaker's naval gunners were awarded abattle starfor participation in the Normandy Landings.[7]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^The seven other ships wereSawokla,City of Rayville,City of Dalhart,Unicoi,Tampa,Crown City,andWest Cusseta,the latter two Los Angeles-built sister ships ofWest Honaker.
  2. ^In sources the service was referred to as both the Pacific–South Africa Line and the South African Dispatch Line.
  3. ^West Cusseta,Crown City,andWest Grama(another Los Angeles-built sister ship) were also assigned to the new service.
  4. ^West Honakerhad continued sailing from New York for the Roosevelt Company through October. See, for example:"Shipping and mails".The New York Times.25 March 1929. p. 51.

References[edit]

  1. ^abcdefghi"West Honaker".Miramar Ship Index.R.B.Haworth.Retrieved2008-09-16.
  2. ^abcColton, Tim."Todd Pacific Shipyards, San Pedro CA".Shipbuildinghistory.com.The Colton Company. Archived fromthe originalon 2008-09-22.Retrieved2008-09-16.Todd Pacific Shipyardsbought the Los Angeles Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company in 1945.
  3. ^abcdefgh"Local shipyard craft honored".Los Angeles Times.22 January 1927. p. 17.
  4. ^abc"West Honaker returns".The New York Times.3 March 1928. p. 21.
  5. ^abcdeJordan, p. 433.
  6. ^Crowell and Wilson, pp. 358–59.
  7. ^abcNaval Historical Center."West Honaker".DANFS.
  8. ^Naval Historical Center."West Grama".DANFS.
  9. ^ab"Shipping board craft dieselized".The Christian Science Monitor.Associated Press. 27 November 1926. p. 1.
  10. ^abc"Dieselized ship has trial trip".The Christian Science Monitor.29 November 1926. p. 5B.
  11. ^"Wall Street news briefs".The Washington Post.28 November 1926. p. M28.
  12. ^Cave, Wayne B. (11 August 1929). "South African service opens".Los Angeles Times.p. A12.
  13. ^"Australia-India & Return via Suez". Roosevelt Steamship Company. 1928.Summary of brochure available fromMaritime Timetable Images.Retrieved 15 September 2008.
  14. ^"Shipping and mails".The New York Times.15 February 1927. p. 50.
  15. ^"Shipping and mails".The New York Times.7 April 1927. p. 30.
  16. ^"Shipping and mails".The New York Times.26 August 1927. p. 35.
  17. ^"Shipping news and activities at Los Angeles Harbor".Los Angeles Times.6 March 1929. p. A14.
  18. ^"Shipping news and activities at Los Angeles Harbor".Los Angeles Times.18 October 1929. p. 21.
  19. ^Cave, Wayne B. (1 December 1929). "New cargo line gets bad start".Los Angeles Times.p. A12.
  20. ^Cave, Wayne B. (11 March 1930). "Shipping news and activities at Los Angeles Harbor".Los Angeles Times.p. 8.
  21. ^Drake, Waldo (22 October 1930). "Shipping news and activities at Los Angeles Harbor".Los Angeles Times.p. A12.
  22. ^"Marine casualties".The Times.3 March 1932. p. 23.
  23. ^"News of ships and sailings at Pacific ports".Los Angeles Times.7 March 1932. p. A9.
  24. ^"News of ships and sailings at Pacific ports".Los Angeles Times.19 March 1932. p. 7.
  25. ^Drake, Waldo (14 June 1932). "Shipping news and activities at Los Angeles Harbor".Los Angeles Times.p. 11.
  26. ^"Shipping and mails".The New York Times.25 June 1932. p. 29.
  27. ^ab"Laid-up cargo ships to be reconditioned".The New York Times.Associated Press. 7 June 1940. p. 14.
  28. ^Drake, Waldo (5 June 1940). "Shipping news and activities at Los Angeles Harbor".Los Angeles Times.p. A13.
  29. ^"Maritime Commission contracts".The Wall Street Journal.11 June 1940. p. 2.
  30. ^abcdefghi"Port Arrivals/Departures: West Honaker".Arnold Hague's Ports Database.Convoy Web.Retrieved2008-09-16.
  31. ^"Raw wool imports flood hub; defense demand a big factor".The Christian Science Monitor.15 February 1941. p. 12.
  32. ^"Convoy SC.130".Arnold Hague Convoy Database.ConvoyWeb.Retrieved2008-09-16.
  33. ^"Convoy SC.140".Arnold Hague Convoy Database.ConvoyWeb.Retrieved2008-09-16.
  34. ^abcdefghPoropat, Cesar (2000)."The Corncob Fleet on D-Day".Beyond the Palisades.Bruce Poropat.Retrieved2008-09-16.This webpage consists of excerpts from Cesar Poropat's privately published 2000 book,Beyond the Palisades.
  35. ^abStone, Leon (18 November 1944). "Bay State ship sacrificed to Normandy aid".The Christian Science Monitor.p. 5.
  36. ^Richard,Glossary of U.S. Naval Code Words: C.
  37. ^Richard,Glossary of U.S. Naval Code Words: G.
  38. ^"Convoy CORNCOB.3".Arnold Hague Convoy Database.ConvoyWeb. Retrieved 15 September 2008.
  39. ^Howe, p. 1.
  40. ^abcAskew, p. 180.
  41. ^Howe, p. 3.
  42. ^Askew, pp. 179–80.
  43. ^Crichton, Tom (4 April 2004). T. Horodysky (ed.)."The Useful Death of the MV Galveston".American Merchant Marine at War.T. Horodysky.Retrieved2008-09-16.

Bibliography[edit]


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