USS Northern Pacific

USS "Northern Pacific" was a transport ship for the United States Navy during World War I. She was known as SS "Northern Pacific" before the war and, after her Navy service, as USAT "Northern Pacific" as a United States Army transport. She was destroyed by fire in 1922.

History

SS "Northern Pacific", a steamer laid down on 25 September 1913, was completed by William Cramp and Sons of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1914 as a sister ship to . She was acquired by the United States Shipping Board (USSB) from the Spokane, Portland, & Seattle Railway of Portland, Oregon, on 17 September 1917 and commissioned on 3 November 1917 at Bremerton, Washington, with Lieutenant Commander Alfred T. Hunter in command.

The passenger steamer was originally built to serve between Astoria, Oregon, and San Francisco, before World War I. The Navy operated the ship during the war. She departed San Francisco on 7 March for New York via the Panama Canal. Joining the Cruiser and Transport Squadron during the war, "Northern Pacific" operated between Hoboken, New Jersey and Brest, France, making a total of 13 trips taking 22,645 troops and passengers to France and returning 9,532 to the United States. The influenza epidemic hit the ship hard in September 1918 en route to Brest. Cots were set up in the brig and in the open corridors. There were 7 deaths. On 2 October, sister ship collided with the British ship "Brinkburn", which caused "Great Northern" to lose contact with the convoy. "Northern Pacific" searched and found her sister seaworthy enough to rejoin the convoy.

"Northern Pacific" ran aground off Fire Island, New York on 1 January 1919. Her troops were transferred to other ships. She was refloated on 18 January, and proceeded to Staten Island. She was decommissioned on 20 August 1919 and was subsequently transferred to the Army Transport Service.

Returned to the USSB on 22 November 1921, she was sold to the Pacific Steamship Company on 2 February 1922; while being towed to their yard at Chester, Pennsylvania, she was destroyed by fire.

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