SS Iowan

SS "Iowan" was a cargo ship built in 1914 for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company. During World War I she was taken over by the United States Navy and commissioned as USS "Iowan" (ID-3002). During World War II, the ship was transferred to the Soviet Union and renamed "Tashkent" (or "Ташкент" in Cyrillic).

"Iowan" was built by the Maryland Steel Company as one of eight sister ships for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company. In October 1914, five months after she was delivered to American-Hawaiian, "Iowan" rammed and sank the United Fruit Company steamer "Metapan" near the entrance to New York Harbor. After repairs, "Iowan" resumed inter-coastal service via the Panama Canal. When the canal was temporarily closed by landslides in late 1915, "Iowan" sailed via the Straits of Magellan until the canal reopened in mid 1916. During World War I, USS "Iowan" carried cargo, animals, and a limited number of passengers to France, and returned nearly 10,000 American troops after the Armistice.

After her Navy service ended in 1919, she was returned to her original owners, who, at least once, chartered her to another shipping company. In May 1922, "Iowan" rammed and sank the Furness-Prince Line steamer "Welsh Prince" in the Columbia River near Astoria, Oregon, killing seven men in the process. In June 1941, "Iowan" ran aground on a reef near Point Conception, California, and suffered $500,000 in damages while buffeted by waves on the reef. She was freed from the reef after two weeks, towed to Los Angeles, and repaired.

In 1942, the ship was requisitioned by the War Shipping Administration, which transferred her to the Soviet Union under the terms of Lend-Lease in December 1942. She was assigned to the Far East Shipping Company under her new name of SS "Tashkent", but sailed with the Soviet Pacific Fleet throughout the war. She delivered cargo and troops in support of Operation August Storm, the Soviet invasion of Japanese-held territories in August 1945. After the war, the ship remained a part of the Soviet merchant fleet until 1966. She was transferred to North Korea at that time to become a fish processing facility, and was scrapped in 1969.

Design and Construction

In May 1912, the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company placed an order with the Maryland Steel Company of Sparrows Point, Maryland, for two new cargo ships—"Iowan" and , in the earlier order, , and was ] In mid-September the same year, "Iowan" sailed from Boston for the West Coast. She arrived at Cristóbal, the Atlantic terminus of the Panama Canal, to find the canal closed by a major landslide—more than convert|1000000|cuyd of mud and dirt had collapsed into the Gaillard Cut. [ cite news | title = Slide in Gaillard Cut blocks waterway traffic and canal may be closed for months to come | format = photo caption | work = The Washington Post | date = 19 December 1915 | page = R9 ] [ cite news | url = http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=940CE5DE1239E333A25756C0A9669D946496D6CF | format = pdf | title = Must close canal for rest of month | work = The New York Times | date = 5 October 1915 | accessdate = 2008-08-25 | page = 4 ] Initially, American-Hawaiian had "Iowan" wait in case the canal would soon reopen, cite news | title = Ship's in port via Cape Horn | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 27 November 1915 | page = II-7 ] [cite news | title = Around the horn again | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 7 October 1915 | page = II-1 ] but when it became apparent that the closure would last some time, perhaps as long as ten months, [cite news | url = http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9A00E7DC1239E333A25757C1A9669D946496D6CF | format = pdf | title = Goethals tackles long canal fight | work = The New York Times | date = 14 October 1915 | accessdate = 2008-08-25 | page = 3 ] The canal finally reopened to shipping traffic on 15 April 1916. See: cite news | title = Panama Canal opens to ship traffic again | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 15 April 1916 | page = 18 ] "Iowan" was sent around South America to her destinations, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The "Los Angeles Times" reported that one portion of "Iowan"'s delayed cargo consisted of Christmas toys for Los Angeles merchants. The newspaper went on to predict that the delay would be "very disastrous" for the holiday season. [cite news | title = Toys delayed | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 17 October 1915 | page = I-10 ]

The balance of "Iowan"'s activities over the next two years are unclear. She may have been in the half of the American-Hawaiian fleet that was chartered for transatlantic service. She may also have been in the group of American-Hawaiian ships chartered for service to South America, delivering coal, gasoline, and steel in exchange for coffee, nitrates, cocoa, rubber, and manganese ore.Cochran and Ginger, p. 362.]

World War I

On 23 December 1917, some seven months after the United States declared war on Germany, the United States Navy acquired "Iowan" from American-Hawaiian. USS "Iowan" was commissioned the same day with Lieutenant Commander Frank L. Dow, USNRF, in command.

"Iowan" loaded a cargo of 800 horses,cite web | last = Krenzelok | first = Greg | title = Newport News Animal Transport ship List overseas to France during WW1 | url = http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gregkrenzelok/veterinary%20corp%20in%20ww1/newportnewsshiplist.html | accessdaymonth = 25 August | accessyear = 2008 ] along with flour, iron, and machinery at Newport News, Virginia and sailed for New York on 9 February 1918. There she joined a convoy that sailed for France on 11 February and arrived at its destination on 28 February; "Iowan" discharged her equine passengers—less seven that died or were destroyed during the voyage—at Remount Depot No. 3 on 5 March. "Iowan" continued carrying livestock and food products to France through the rest of the war. On 9 November, "Iowan" took on 72 officers and men, and headed for France with cargo ship USS|Charlton Hall|ID-1359|2 two days before the Armistice. [Crowell and Wilson, p. 563.]

With the fighting at an end, the task of bringing home American soldiers began almost immediately.Gleaves, p. 31.] "Iowan" was selected for conversion to a troop transport and transferred to the Cruiser and Transport Force, but before she could begin returning troops, "Iowan" had to undergo conversion from a cargo and animal ship. Though sources do not indicate the specific modifications "Iowan" underwent, typical conversions for other ships included the installation of berths for troops, and adding greatly expanded cooking and toilet facilities to handle the large numbers of men aboard. [Crowell and Wilson, p. 316.] Similar modifications on "Iowan"'s sister ship USS|Minnesotan|ID-4545|2 took three months,cite DANFS | author = Naval Historical Center | title = Minnesotan | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/m11/minnesotan.htm | short = on ] but it is not known how long "Iowan"'s refit took. By the time "Iowan" had completed her sixth and final trooping voyage on 29 August 1919, "Iowan" had carried home 9,876 healthy and wounded men. USS "Iowan" was decommissioned on 22 September 1919, and returned to American-Hawaiian.

Interwar years

"Iowan" resumed cargo service with American-Hawaiian after her return from World War I service. Though the company had abandoned its original Hawaiian sugar routes by this time, [Cochran and Ginger, p. 363] "Iowan" continued inter-coastal service through the Panama Canal. For a time in the early 1920s, "Iowan" was chartered to the United American Line. In May 1922, the Associated Press reported that "Iowan", sailing under the United American banner, was loading wheat, flour, and lumber at Tacoma, Washington, for England and European ports. [cite news | author = Associated Press | title = News of ships and sailings in Pacific ports | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 21 May 1922 | page = I-11 ] Later that same month, on 29 May, "Iowan" rammed and sank the Furness-Prince Line cargo ship "Welsh Prince" in the Columbia River near Astoria, Oregon. Seven men aboard "Welsh Prince" were killed and three were injured in the crash and subsequent fire.

On 11 June 1941, "Iowan" departed Los Angeles with a cargo of convert|4500|LT|t of steel and iron pipe destined for San Francisco; Portland, Oregon; and Seattle, on her last voyage before she was to be handed over to the United States Maritime Commission.cite news | last = Austin | first = Tom | title = Shipping news and activities at Los Angeles Harbor | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 29 June 1941 | page = 19 ] At 04:20 on 12 June, "Iowan" ran aground on a reef a few hundred yards (meters) off shore from Government Point,cite news | title = Defense cargo ship crashes on reef in foggy weather | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 13 June 1941 | page = A1 ] —convert|117|nmi|km northwest of Los Angeles,cite news | title = More help on way to vessel on reef off Government Point | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 14 June 1941 | page = A1 ] —near Point Conception. Salvage operations took some two weeks, but the ship was towed back to Los Angeles and placed in drydock at the Bethlehem Shipyard on Terminal Island. Approximately convert|100|ft|m of the ship's hull had been damaged while the ship was buffeted by waves on the reef, which had opened numerous holes in her hull. The ship's drive shaft had broken, and her boilers and engines had shifted. The "Los Angeles Times" reported that estimates for "Iowan"'s repair ranged up to $500,000.cite news | title = Grounded ship's damage estimated | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 1 July 1941 | page = A14 ] In an inquiry held by the Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation, "Iowan"'s captain, S. A. Gates, a Californian with 25 years of sailing experience along the coast, blamed unusual tides for the grounding. [cite news | title = Captain blames rare tide for grounding of freighter | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 2 July 1941 | page = A3 ]

World War II and later career

In 1942, after "Iowan" was repaired and after the United States had entered World War II, the ship was requisitioned by the War Shipping Administration (WSA). On 6 December 1942, "Iowan" was transferred to the Soviet Union under Lend-Lease, and renamed "Tashkent" ("Ташкент" IPA-ru|tɐʂˈkʲɛnt) after the capital of Uzbekistan. Near the end of World War II, the WSA offered a payment of $694,743 to American-Hawaiian for the former "Iowan" as part of a $7.2 million settlement for eleven American-Hawaiian ships that had been requisitioned by the WSA. [cite news | last = Stone | first = Leon | title = U.S. awards $7,247,637 to Hawaiian ship firm | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 31 March 1945 | page = 4 ]

"Tashkent" was assigned to the Far East Shipping Company (FESCO), but sailed with the Pacific Fleet of the Soviet Navy throughout the war. "Tashkent" was photographed at San Francisco at some point during the war,cite web | author = Naval Historical Center | title = Picture Data: Photo #NH 89976 | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h89000/h89976c.htm | work = Online Library of Selected Images | publisher = Navy Department, Naval Historical Center | date = 17 April 2005 | accessdaymonth = 25 August | accessyear = 2008 ] but most of her other movements are not known. However, in August 1945, "Tashkent" delivered troops and cargo in support of Operation August Storm, the Soviet invasions of Japanese-held Manchuria, Korea, Sakhalin, and the Kurile Islands. After the war's end, "Tashkent" returned to merchant operation with FESCO through 1966, when she was transferred to North Korea for use as a fish processing facility. The former "Tashkent" was scrapped in 1969.

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