War Shipping Administration
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The War Shipping Administration (WSA) was a World War II emergency war agency of the US Government, tasked to purchase and operate the needed civilian shipping tonnage the US needed for fighting the war.
On February 7, 1942, WSA was established by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Executive Order No. 9054. February 7, 1942 as the US had entered the war. The WSA was administratively split off from the United States Maritime Commission, established in 1936, but on a practical level the two agencies worked closely together and shared many personnel and resources. The WSA oversaw the production of Liberty ships and Victory ships among other types. The US fleet expanded to some 3,500 dry cargo vessels and over 900 high speed tankers.
After the war, WSA vessels were used to carry home the huge number of armed personnel overseas, as part of Operation Magic Carpet. Over 3,500,000 men were brought home from overseas areas by December 1, 1945.
On September 1, 1946, the WSA functions were returned to the Maritime Commission[1].
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- United States Government Manual, 1945 War Shipping Administration section
- http://www.usmm.org/
- http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/ATO/USGM/MC.html
- http://www.us-maritime-commission.de
[edit] References
- Ships for Victory: A History of Shipbuilding under the U.S. Maritime Commission in World War II, by Frederic C. Lane. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-8018-6752-5
- ^ Maritime Administration (MARAD). Retrieved on 2006-09-23.
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