Missourian was an early American motor cargo ship which was built in 1921 in Chester, Pennsylvania, for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company. She was sold to the British Ministry of War Transport in 1940 and renamed Empire Swan. Transferred to the Belgian government in 1942, she was renamed Belgian Freighter. She was sold to the Compagnie Maritime Belge in 1946 and renamed Capitaine Potié.
She was sold to the Compagnia Genovese d'Armamento in 1948. Renamed Genova, she was rebuilt as a passenger ship. A further rebuild in 1955 and the fitting of new engines increased her service speed from . She was renamed Flaminia. In 1964, she was sold to Saudi Lines and renamed King Abdelaziz. She served until 1970 when she was scrapped in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Description
As built, the ship was long overall, between perpendiculars, with a beam of . She had a depth of , and a draught of . She was assessed at , , and had a displacement of 16,500 tons.
The ship was propelled by two Burmeister & Wain four-stroke single acting diesel engines, which had six cylinders of diameter by stroke driving twin screws, of diameter and having four blades each. The engines were built by William Cramp & Sons, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They were each rated at 2,250 ihp at 115 rpm and could propel her at .
The ship had five cargo holds, covered by seven hatches. The holds had a total capacity of . She had one 30-ton, one-10 ton, eleven-5 ton and eight-3 ton derricks. Hatches were wide, and up to long. Auxiliary power was provided by four generator sets, each driven by a two-cylinder diesel engine. No funnel was provided, two of her masts carried exhaust from her engines.
History
Missourian
Missourian was built as yard number 386 by the Merchant Shipbuilding Corporation, Chester, Pennsylvania, for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company. Her keel was laid down on 10 February 1921. Originally scheduled for launching on 28 November 1921, she was launched on 14 December and delivered to William Cramp & Sons in June 1922 for the installation of her engines. The port engine was started for the first time on 1 July, and the starboard engine the next day. The engines had not been previously run before installation, a change to established practice. At the time of her launch, she was the largest motor vessel afloat. The United States Official Number 222236 and code letters MDQP were allocated. Her port of registry was New York. Her sea trials took place on 6 July after which final completion work was done. On 10 July Missourian left the shipyard for New York.
Initially operated between ports on the west coast of the United States, Europe and New York, Missourian made her maiden voyage, from New York to California, on 23 July 1922. Her first round trip was completed in December and was pronounced a success. The ship had sailed for more than , consuming between 112 and 114 barrels of oil a day. On the last leg, from Hamburg, Germany, to New York, her average speed was in excess of . In 1923, she was withdrawn from the San Pedro – New York –- Hamburg route to operate between ports on the west coast and the east coast of the United States. In November 1923, Missourian was drydocked at San Francisco for minor repairs. On 3 June 1928, Missourian hosted a luncheon for officers and members of the Associated Traffic Clubs of America at San Pedro.
In May 1932, Missourian sprang a leak whilst on a voyage from San Francisco to Portland, Oregon. She put back to San Francisco and was drydocked for repairs. Her code letters were changed to WACM in 1934. On 1 November 1935, the steamship lost her propeller south east of San Francisco. She was subsequently taken in tow by Missourian, which later handed over the tow to the tug Peacock.
Empire Swan
In summer 1940, Missourian was one of 90 American ships sold to the British Ministry of War Transport. Sailing under the British flag, she reached the United Kingdom as part of Convoy HX 59, which departed from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on 19 July and arrived at Liverpool, Lancashire, on 3 August. Missourian was carrying a cargo of ammunition and scrap metal. She was renamed Empire Swan and placed under the management of Runciman (London) Ltd. Her port of registry was London. The United Kingdom Official Number 167635 and code letters GMQC were allocated.