South Portland in Cumberland County, Maine — The American Northeast (New England)
South Portland's Ships for Liberty
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., September 18, 2011
1. South Portland's Ships for Liberty Marker
In the bow of the Liberty Ship Memorial
1940-1942
South Portland Shipbuilding Corp.,
1941-1943
New England Shipbuilding Corp.,
1943-1945
This is a complete list of the ships built by the emergency shipyards at South Portland, Maine, between 1941-1945. These companies were joint ventures between Bath Iron Works and Todd Shipbuilding.
Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuilding (TBI) was established in 1940 to build 30 Ocean class freighters for Great Britain. The yard has three construction basins: #1 and #2 each accommodated two ships; #3 accommodated three ships.
South Portland Shipbuilding Corp. (SPSC) was established in 1941 to build emergency cargo vessels - Liberty Ships - for the U.S. Maritime Commission. The yard had six conventional shipways, numbered one through six. This yard was known as the West Yard, because it was located just west of the original TBI facility, the East Yard.
In 1942, Todd-Bath completed the Ocean class contract and started building Liberty ships. In November of 1942, TBI was reorganized as the East Yard of SPSC.
On April 11, 1943 South Portland Shipbuilding Corp. was renamed New England Shipbuilding Corp. (NESC). The original Todd-Bath Iron and South Portland Shipbuilding facilities retained their identities as the East and West yards of
this page online
In the list of ships, the first line identifies the name of the vessel. The second line lists the Hull number and the yard in which it was built. The third line notes the date the ship was delivered. The final line notes the ship's sponsor, the woman who carried out the ceremonial christening. In 1943, U.S. Maritime Commission (MC) hull numbers were used in place of yard-assigned hull numbers.
This list was compiled by Andrew Toppan and reprinted with his permission.
[List of Ships Built - not transcribed]
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • War, World II • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1789.
Location. 43° 39.21′ N, 70° 14.007′ W. Marker is in South Portland, Maine, in Cumberland County. Marker is at the Liberty Ship Memorial in Bug Light Park, on Cushings Point, off Madison Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: South Portland ME 04106, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. The Ultimate Sacrifice (a few steps from this marker); Liberty Ship Memorial (a few steps from this marker); The Ugly Ducklings (a few steps from this marker); South Portland and Its Liberty Ships (a few steps from this marker); The Yard (a few steps from this marker);
Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., September 18, 2011
2. South Portland Liberty Ship Memorial
Also see . . .
1. South Portland's Wartime Shipbuilding. Maine History Online website entry (Submitted on December 11, 2011, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
2. S.S. John W. Brown: Project Liberty Ship. Website homepage (Submitted on December 11, 2011, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
Credits. This page was last revised on July 8, 2022. It was originally submitted on December 11, 2011, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 903 times since then and 39 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 11, 2011, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
