Shepard Steamship Company Explained

Shepard Steamship Company
Foundation:	in 31 Milk Street, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Area Served:	Intercoastal Service
Industry:	Shipping, transportation
Key People:	Otis N Shepard, H B, Shepard, Francis Parker Shepard, Charles L Stanton, David Dysart and E J Martin.

Shepard Steamship Company of Boston, Massachusetts was founded in 1930 by Otis N Shepard, and H B, Shepard with service from Pacific Coast to Philadelphia, New York City, Albany and Boston. Service was called the Shepard Line Shepard Steamship Company moved to 21 West Street, New York City in 1947. The Shepard Steamship Company's main cargo was lumber products. Otis N Shepard company, Otis Shepard & Co. partnered with George H. Morse in 1868 to form Shepard & Morse Lumber Company of Burlington, Vermont. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} During World War II the Shepard Steamship Company was active in charter shipping with the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration. During wartime, the Shepard Steamship Company operated Victory ships and Liberty shipss. The ship was run by its crew and the US Navy supplied United States Navy Armed Guards to man the deck guns and radio. The most common armament mounted on these merchant ships were the MK II 20mm Oerlikon autocannon and the 3"/50, 4"/50, and 5"/38 deck guns.^{[5] [6]}

Ships

• SS Harpoon, was SS Hopatcong built in 1920, became Empire Tarpon 1940 ^[7]
• SS Sea Thrush, built in 1920, sank by U-505 June 28, 1942 off Bahamas^{[8] [9] [10]}
• SS Timber Rush, was City of Eureka from 1925 to 1928, built in 1919, sank in 1940 off Acapulco ^[11]
• SS Sage Brush, sank as SS Keystone in 1943, a 1919 5,565 tons, cargo ship^[12]
• SS Exporter, was USS Hercules, a 1939 cargo ship
• SS Wind Rush, was SS Westbrook built in 1918 by Columbia River SB, ablaze in the Caribbean Dec. 21 1939, repaired, became Kavkaz in 1945, and scrapped 1977 ^{[13] [14]}
• SS Wind Rush (2), was SS Lloyd S. Carlson Liberty ship, built in 1945^[15]
• SS Exford built in 1919

World War II Ships

Ships operated under charter during and just after World War II:

• • Victory ships:
• La Grande Victory (troopship) ^[16]
• Binghampton Victory^[17]
• N. Y. U. Victory ^[18]
  • Liberty ships:
• Theodore Foster
  • Warren P. Marks Edwin Abbey^[19]
• Segundo Ruiz-Belvis^[20]
• John A. Dix^[21]
• John P. Harris^[21]
• George E. Waldo^[22]
• George H. Himes^[22]
• George M. Cohan^[22]
• Lot Whitcomb^[15]
• Charles H. Lanham (Mashal plan ship)^[23]
• Clarence F. Peck^[23]
• Robert D. Carey^[24]
  • For Korean War:
• Harpoon (1950 to 1954) (was Ward Hunt)^[25]

Notes and References

1. The New York Times, February 10, 1947, Retrieved February 17, 2020
2. San Pedro News Pilot, Volume 3, Number 291, 11 February 1931
3. New York Times, September 7, 1933, Section WEATHER REPORTS SHIPPING AND MAILS, Page 43
4. https://archive.org/stream/dictionaryoffore032255mbp/dictionaryoffore032255mbp_djvu.txt Stream dictionary
5. Web site: Sea Lane Vigilantes. www.armed-guard.com.
6. World War II U.S. Navy Armed Guard and World War II U.S. Merchant Marine, 2007-2014 Project Liberty Ship, Project Liberty Ship, P.O. Box 25846 Highlandtown Station, Baltimore, MD https://www.armed-guard.com/about-ag.html#:~:text=There%20were%20three%20basic%20training,California%3B%20and%20Gulfport%2C%20Mississippi.
7. Web site: Harpoon, a ship of the Shepard Line. January 24, 1938. Calisphere.
8. Web site: SS Sea Thrush sunk by U-505/Loewe 28 June 1942 off Bahamas, Antigua. Eric. Wiberg. April 26, 2014.
9. New York Times, June 1, 1938, Page 5
10. https://wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?17459 wrecksite SS Sea Thrush
11. https://wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?250059 wrecksite, SS Timber Rush
12. https://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?16692 wreck site, SS Keystone
13. Biloxi Daily Herald Newspaper, Dec. 21 1939, Page 13
14. http://shipbuildinghistory.com/shipyards/emergencylarge/columbiariver.htm shipbuildinghistory.com, SS Wind Rush
15. Web site: LibShipsL. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
16. Web site: LA GRANDE VICTORY. vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov.
17. Web site: vicshipsB. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
18. Web site: vicshipsN. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
19. Web site: LibShipsE. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
20. Web site: LibShipsSam. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
21. Web site: LibShipsJo. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
22. Web site: LibShipsG. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
23. Web site: LibShipsC. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
24. Web site: LibShipsR. www.mariners-l.co.uk.
25. Web site: LibShipsW. www.mariners-l.co.uk.