History
United States
Name	John Ringling
Namesake	John Ringling
Owner	War Shipping Administration (WSA)
Operator	Luckenbach Steamship Co., Ltd.
Ordered	as type (EC2-S-C1) hull, MC hull 2494
Awarded	23 April 1943
Builder	St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida[1]
Cost	$1,001,188[2]
Yard number	58
Way number	4
Laid down	1 August 1944
Launched	10 September 1944
Sponsored by	Ida Loraina Wihelmina North
Completed	23 September 1944
Identification	Call sign: KSTC [2]
Fate	Laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, Texas, 3 September 1948 Sold for scrapping, 22 February 1972, withdrawn from fleet, 16 March 1972
General characteristics [3]
Class and type	Liberty ship type EC2-S-C1, standard
Tonnage	10,865 LT DWT 7,176 GRT
Displacement	3,380 long tons (3,434 t) (light) 14,245 long tons (14,474 t) (max)
Length	441 feet 6 inches (135 m) oa 416 feet (127 m) pp 427 feet (130 m) lwl
Beam	57 feet (17 m)
Draft	27 ft 9.25 in (8.4646 m)
Installed power	2 × Oil fired 450 °F (232 °C) boilers, operating at 220 psi (1,500 kPa) 2,500 hp (1,900 kW)
Propulsion	1 × triple-expansion steam engine,  (manufactured by General Machinery Corp., Hamilton, Ohio) 1 × screw propeller
Speed	11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity	562,608 cubic feet (15,931 m3) (grain) 499,573 cubic feet (14,146 m3) (bale)
Complement	38–62 USMM 21–40 USNAG
Armament	Varied by ship Bow-mounted 3 inches (76 mm)/50 caliber gun Stern-mounted 4 inches (102 mm)/50 caliber gun 2–8 × single 20 millimeters (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft (AA) cannons and/or, 2–8 × 37 millimeters (1.46 in) M1 AA guns

SS John Ringling was a Liberty ship built in the United States during World War II. She was named after John Ringling, an American entrepreneur who is the best known of the seven Ringling brothers, five of whom merged the Barnum & Bailey Circus with their own Ringling Bros World's Greatest Shows. In addition to owning and managing many of the largest circuses in the United States, he was also a rancher, a real estate developer and art collector.

Construction

John Ringling was laid down on 1 August 1944, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MC hull 2494, by the St. Johns River Shipbuilding Company, Jacksonville, Florida; she was sponsored by Ida Loraina Wihelmina North, the sister of the namesake, and was launched on 10 September 1944.^[1][2]

History

She was allocated to the Luckenbach Steamship Co., Ltd., on 23 September 1944. On 3 September 1948, she was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Beaumont, Texas. She was sold for scrapping, 22 February 1972, to Andy Equipment, Inc., for $39,333. She was removed from the fleet, 16 March 1972.^[4]

References

Bibliography