William Rockefeller (ship)

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Career

Name:	SS William Rockefeller
Owner:	Panama Transport Comp.
Builder:	Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Comp., Newport News, Va.
Christened:	1921
In service:	21 years
Fate:	sunk by U- 701
General characteristics
Class and type:	Tanker
Tonnage:	14,054
Length:	572 ft
Beam:	75 ft
Draft:	9.66
Depth:	14.27
Propulsion:	Steam reciprocating engine/2 props
Speed:	11.5 knots
Crew:	50 crew (44 crew members and 6 Naval Armed Guard)

SS William Rockefeller was built in 1921 and named after financier William Rockefeller. At the time of her sinking, the SS William Rockefeller was one of the largest tankers in the world and the largest to be lost off the North Carolina coast.

1 World War II
2 Final resting place
3 See also
4 References

[edit] World War II

The William Rockefeller was enroute from Aruba to New York carrying over 135,000 barrels of bunker C fuel oil when she crossed paths with the U-701. A torpedo struck amidships on the port side igniting a furious inferno. The ship was abandoned approximately 15 minutes after the torpedo hit. All 50 members of its crew (44 crew members and six Naval Armed Guard) survived the attack and were taken to the Ocracoke Coast Guard Station by CG-470. The ship continued to drift ablaze and sunk 11 hours after the initial attack by means of a second torpedo from the U-701. The U-boat successfully avoided by aerial and naval counter attacks.