SS El Oriente

SS "El Oriente" was a cargo ship built in 1910 for the Morgan Line, a subsidiary of the Southern Pacific Company. During World War I, she was known as USS "El Oriente" (ID-4504) in service with the United States Navy. At the end of war, she reverted to her original name of SS "El Oriente". During World War II she was chartered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as SS "Henri Dunant" (sometimes also spelled "Henry Dunant"), but reverted to her original name of SS "El Oriente" at the end of the charter.

SS "El Oriente" was one of four sister ships that carried cargo and a limited number of passengers for the Morgan Line. She was acquired by the U.S. Navy in July 1918, and converted to carry horses and mules to France, and after the Armistice, was converted again to carry American troops home from Europe.

"El Oriente" returned to the Morgan Line in 1919 and sailed with them until June 1941, when the entire Morgan Line fleet was purchased by the United States Maritime Commission. "El Oriente" served as a civilian-crewed cargo ship during World War II, sailing primarily between the United States and the United Kingdom. In September 1944, she was chartered by the ICRC and sailed under the Swiss flag carrying food parcels to American prisoners of war held in German camps. "Henri Dunant" continued to sail under Swiss charter until October 1945, when she was returned to the United States and reverted to her former name. "El Oriente" was placed in the James River Reserve Fleet in November 1945, and was sold for scrapping in July 1946.

Early career

SS "El Oriente" was a cargo and passenger steamship launched on 11 May 1910 by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. of Newport News, Virginia (yard no. 132), and delivered to the Atlantic division of the Morgan Line on 24 October 1910. She was the third of four sister ships; the other three being ] Also: ] and paid $4.7 million for the ships and a further $2.6 million for repairs and refits. [cite news | author = Associated Press | title = House group finds U.S. lost in ship deal | work = The Washington Post | date = 9 December 1944 | page = 5 ]

"El Oriente" was handed over to the USMC and assigned to United States Lines, Inc., for operation. The cargo ship was placed under Panamanian registry by U.S. Lines. Little is known of "El Oriente"'s movements over the next eight months, but on 17 February "El Oriente" sailed from Houston, Texas, to Philadelphia and on to Reykjavik. From Reykjavik, she sailed to the Clyde, arriving there at the end of July. Over the next 5 months, "El Oriente" sailed around the British Isles, calling at Kirkwall, Belfast Lough, Barrow-in-Furness, and Liverpool, and back to Clyde in late December. From there, she sailed on one trip to Murmansk where she arrived on 27 January 1943.cite web | title = Port Arrivals/Departures: El Oriente | url = http://convoyweb.org.uk/ports/index.html?search.php?vessel=EL+ORIENTE~armain | work = Arnold Hague's Ports Database | publisher = Convoy Web | date = | accessdate = 2008-08-07 ]

Murmansk had limited port facilities and slow unloading of cargo (often performed by Soviet women and political prisoners), which, coupled with inclement weather and long waits for convoy escorts, often required lengthy stays by Allied cargo ships. "El Oriente" was no exception, staying in Murmansk for nearly five weeks. To compound the lengthy wait (and, often, accompanying boredom) faced by cargo ships waiting to unload, the nearest German airfield was convert|35|mi|km away—about 7 to 10 minutes flying time—which gave almost no advance warning of air raids. German dive bombers would silently glide in below Soviet anti-aircraft fire, drop their payloads, and fly away. "El Oriente" was caught in one such attack on 27 February, with four of the ship's Naval Armed Guardsmen killed in the attack. [Morison, pp. 370–72.]

"El Oriente" departed Kola Inlet on 1 March and returned to Liverpool, from which she sailed in a convoy for New York on 6 April,"El Oriente"'s sister ship "El Mundo" sailed in the same convoy, Convoy ON 177. See: cite AHCD | convoytype = ON | convoynumber = 177 | accessdate = 2008-08-07 The two sailed together in three more convoys—HX 251, HX 286/WN 573, and EN 381/ON 236—throughout the rest of the war. See: cite web | title = Port Arrivals/Departures: El Oriente | url = http://convoyweb.org.uk/ports/index.html?search.php?vessel=EL+ORIENTE~armain | work = Arnold Hague's Ports Database | publisher = Convoy Web | date = | accessdate = 2008-08-07 ] and returned to Belfast Lough in late June. After calling at Barry and Milford Haven, "El Oriente" began two roundtrips to New York at the end of June. In October the ship visited Loch Ewe, Methil, and Immingham before returning to New York again in November. After another transatlantic crossing and circuit amongst British ports, "El Oriente" returned to New York in May 1944.

In June, the cargo vessel sailed to Cuba, calling at Havana and Puerto Tarafa before returning to New York. She next sailed to Guaíra, Brazil; Maracaibo, Venezuela; and Júcaro, Cuba, before returning to New York in mid August. "El Oriente" sailed to Philadelphia in mid September in preparation for a charter.

Red Cross ship

On 28 September 1944, "El Oriente" was chartered by the International Committee of the Red Cross, reflagged as a Swiss ship, and renamed SS "Henri Dunant" (sometimes spelled as "Henry Dunant"), after Red Cross movement founder Henry Dunant.cite journal | last = Walser | first = H. | title = History of the Swiss flag at sea | url = http://www.swiss-ships.ch/berichte-buecher/berichte/artikel_h-walser.htm | format = reprint | month = April | year = 1999 | journal = Ships Monthly | accessdate = 2008-08-07 ] She was last of 14 ships chartered by Swiss interests to sail under the Swiss flag during World War II. On 5 October, "Henry Dunant" departed Philadelphia with a cargo of mail and 900,000 food parcels intended for Allied prisoners of war interned in German camps. [cite news | title = More help to prisoners | work = The New York Times | date = 5 October 1944 | page = 8 ]

"Henri Dunant" continued sailing for the ICRC through 24 October 1945. The ship returned to Norfolk, resumed her former name of "El Oriente", and entered the , for $12,175.

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