Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online:
Identification Numbered Vessel Photo Archive

Polar Sea (ID 3301)



Civilian call sign (1919):
Love - Mike - Cast - Boy
Refrigerated Freighter:

  • Built in 1918 as Warrenton by the Baltimore Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Co., Baltimore, MD
  • Launched 11 February 1918
  • Acquired by the Navy 23 October 1918 and commissioned USS Polar Sea (ID 3301) the same day at Hoboken, NJ
  • Decommissioned and struck from the Navy Register 12 June 1919 at New York and returned to the United States Shipping Board (USSB)
  • Scrapped in 1937.

    Specifications:

  • Displacement 8,835 t.
  • Length 353' 3"
  • Beam 49'
  • Draft 23' 1½"
  • Speed 10.5 kts.
  • Complement 86
  • Armament: One 6"/50 mount and one 6-pounder
  • Propulsion: Three single ended boilers, one 1,800shp Westinghouse steam turbine, one shaft.
    Click on thumbnail
    for full size image    		 Size Image Description Source
    Polar Sea 60k Naval Historical Center photo NH 65068 Naval Historical Center
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships: Polar Sea (ID 3301), formerly Warrenton, was built in 1918 by the Baltimore Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Co., Baltimore Md., for the Garland Steamship Corp., requisitioned by the USSB for use in the Naval Overseas Transportation Service as a refrigerated cargo ship 11 April 1918, and commissioned at Hoboken, N.J. 23 October 1918, Lt. Comdr. George Campbell, USNRF, in command.

    Polar Sea left New York 6 November 1918 on the first of three runs to St. Nazaire, France with provisions for the American Expeditionary Force. Her important cargo included 2,387 tons of frozen beef as well as Army trucks and general supplies.

    Polar Sea decommissioned 12 June 1919 at New York and returned to the USSB.

    Back to the Main Photo Index Back to the Identification Numbered Vessel (ID) Photo Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster
    This page created by Joseph M. Radigan and maintained by David Wright
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History