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Identification Numbered Vessel Photo Archive

Henry Gibbins (AE 7)
ex-AK-33
ex-USAT Major General Henry Gibbins
ex-USS West Elcasco (ID 3661)



Civilian call sign (1919):
Love - Nan - King - Vice


West Elcasco served both the U. S. Navy and Army


Sunk 23 June 1942
Freighter:

  • Laid down 8 July 1918 by the Skinner and Eddy Corp., Seattle, WA
  • Launched 21 September 1918
  • Acquired by the Navy 23 October 1918 and commissioned USS West Elcasco (ID 3661) the same day
  • Decommissioned 14 June 1919 at Boston, MA and returned to the United States Shipping Board
  • Sold in 1930 to the Mississippi Shipping Co.
  • Acquired by the Army 24 July 1941 and renamed USAT Major General Henry Gibbins
  • Reclassified AK-33 in December 1941 but canceled 30 March 1942 and listed as "not used"
  • Identified in Navy records as Henry Gibbins (AE 7), 11 August 1941 but remained in Army service
  • Torpedoed and sunk 23 June 1942 by the German submarine U-158, 375 miles west of Key West, FL.

    Specifications:

  • Displacement 12,225 t.
  • Length 423' 9"
  • Beam 54'
  • Depth of hold 29' 9"
  • Draft 24' 2"
  • Speed 11.25 kts.
  • Complement 60
  • Propulsion: Three single ended boilers, one 2,500shp Curtis steam turbine, one shaft.
    Click on thumbnail
    for full size image    		 Size Image Description Source
    West Elcasco
    West Elcasco 89k The Captain's quarters, September 1918
    Photo is part of an album titled "Mrs. David Rodgers. Sponsor for SS West Elcasco. Launched Sept. 21, 1918
    Collection of David Rodgers, University of Washington, Museum of History & Industry, Seattle. Photo ID # 2009.56.42    		 Robert Hurst
    Photos added 2 June 2022
    West Elcasco 136k SS West Elcasco hull under construction in scaffolding, Skinner & Eddy shipyard, Seattle, 26 July 1918
    From the collection of David Rodgers, University of Washington, Museum of History and Industry, Seattle. Photo ID # 2009.56.54
    West Elcasco 89k Preparing to launch at Skinner and Eddy shipyard, Seattle, 21 September 1918
    West Elcasco 96k Just after launching, at the Skinner and Eddy Corporation shipyard, Seattle, Washington, 21 September 1918
    Photographed by Frank H. Nowell, 1212 Fourth Avenue, Seattle
    U.S. Navy photo NH 65050-A    		 Naval Historical Center
    USS West Elcasco (ID 3661)
    West Elcasco 232k Arriving at Municipal Pier No. 78 at Philadelphia, Pa., on 7 March 1919
    Photo by J. F. A. La Tour, 229 East Upsal St., Germantown, Philadelphia, Pa.
    Courtesy Dr. Mark Kulikowski
    Naval History and Heritage Command photo    		 Tommy Trampp
    USAT Henry Gibbins
    West Elcasco/Henry Gibbons 108k At the Brooklyn, N.Y., Army Base, in August 1941. USAT Thomas H. Barry is astern. U.S. Navy would later designate her AP-45 but she would remain in Army use
    U.S. Army Signal Corps photo SC 126006 from the National Archives    		 Tommy Trampp
    West Elcasco/Henry Gibbons 52k Photographed circa late 1941. The ship is still wearing neutrality markings and the peacetime Army Transportation Service color scheme but has been armed
    U.S. Army Signal Corps photo SC 140994 from the National Archives
    Commanding Officers
    01LCDR Louis Tichenor Ward, USNRF23 October 1918 - 1919
    Courtesy of Joe Radigan
    View the West Elcasco (ID 3661)
    DANFS history entry located on the Naval History and Heritage Command website
    Back to the Main Photo Index Back to the Identification Numbered Vessel (ID) Photo Index Back to the U.S. Army Transport Photo Index
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    This page created by Joseph M. Radigan and maintained by David Wright
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