Series of shipping lines
From 1938 Moore-McCormack ran the "
Good Neighbor Fleet
" liners
Uruguay
,
Brazil
and
Argentina
between New York and the east coast of South America
The
Moore-McCormack Lines
was a series of companies operating as
shipping lines
, operated by the
Moore-McCormack Company, Incorporated
, later
Moore-McCormack Lines, Incorporated
, and simply
Mooremack
, founded in 1913 in
New York City
. It ceased trading on its buy-out in 1982. The founders were
Albert V. Moore
(1880?1953) (director/president) and
Emmet J. McCormack
(director/treasurer), with Mr Molloy (director/secretary).
From a small start with one ship, SS
Montara
, inaugurating a run from the United States to
Brazil
,
[1]
the shipping line expanded to become a major US line operating around the world.
Moore-McCormack's original offices were at 29
Broadway
(now still a general office building), but were moved in 1919 to 5 Broadway (now
Berkshire Bank
) and to 2 Broadway, two floors, when the building opened.
History
[
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]
1913–1919 (World War I)
[
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]
Moore-McCormack Lines' first run was with
Montara
, intended to be a shipment of
dynamite
[1]
from
Wilmington, Delaware
, to
Rio de Janeiro
in Brazil, but, with the load not ready, the ship took coal from
Norfolk, Virginia
, to
Searsport, Maine
destined for
Aroostook County, Maine
, before returning for the dynamite.
[2]
It had been built in 1881 and was retired after this trip.
The company then acquired various small steamers, including a
Great Lakes
vessel renamed
Mooremack
, which were operated profitably during
World War I
. Additionally, chartered ships including passenger ships added to the
South American
runs that, by 1919, included
Recife
in
Pernambuco
,
Bahia
,
Santos
,
Montevideo
and
Buenos Aires
.
[2]
Inter-war years
[
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]
After the war, the US government offered surplus ships to US shipping companies. Mooremack received several ships, which expanded its fleet and opportunities for trade, including in 1920 and 1921 to the
Levant
and
India
. Runs were established, briefly, to Ireland, but ended by 1925. Ships also went into the
Mediterranean
and to
Black Sea
ports including
Russian
, the first American-flag ships to
Soviet Union
ports.
In 1928, Vice President
Robert C. Lee
negotiated for Mooremack to become
shipping agents
for the Soviet Union using the American Scantic Line, having bought the line from the US Government. He later negotiated with the government of
Poland
for Mooremack to be part of the establishment of
Gdynia
as Poland's sea port. This also led to the establishment of trade from Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Austria through Gdynia in competition with
German
ports, which was a factor in the German invasion of Czechoslovakia and Poland at the outbreak of World War II.
[2]
1938 consolidation
[
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]
On 8 September 1938, there was a consolidation of nine companies within the group to become Moore-McCormack Lines, Incorporated, capitalized at
US$
4.8m. On 4 October, Moore-McCormack contracted to operate ten cargo ships and three
ocean liners
[3]
belonging to the
United States Maritime Commission
between the US and South America as the
Good Neighbor Fleet
.
[2]
The passenger liners were the former
Panama Pacific Line
20,000-
gross register ton
(GRT)
turbo-electric
steamships
California
,
Virginia
and
Pennsylvania
, which were renamed
Uruguay
,
Brazil
and
Argentina
to reflect their new route between
New York
and
Buenos Aires
via
Rio de Janeiro
,
Santos
and
Montevideo
.
[4]
World War II
[
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]
From 1936, the US Government had supported the expansion of US flag shipping.
Mccormick Steamship Company
had begun a building program, but as the war began four of its
C-3-class
ships were requisitioned. These were Rio-class ships of 17,600 tons
displacement
and designed to carry 150 passengers. Thus
Rio Hudson
,
Rio Parana
,
Rio de la Plata
and
Rio de Janeiro
became
Royal Navy
Avenger
-class
escort carriers
HMS
Avenger
,
HMS
Biter
,
HMS
Charger
and
HMS
Dasher
. Trade increased after the outbreak of the European war and Mooremack shifted some 20 million tons of cargo destined for that theatre, including whole trains for Russia.
[2]
The United States's entry into
World War II
brought various opportunities for Mooremack, along with many of its ships being taken into US Navy service. The Good Neighbor liners
Uruguay
,
Brazil
and
Argentina
became
United States Army Transportation Corps
troop ships. The
Type C3-class
cargo ships
Mormacstar
,
Mormacsun
,
Mormactide
and
Mormacyork
became the
United States Navy
's
Elizabeth C. Stanton
-class
transport ships
Elizabeth C. Stanton
,
Florence Nightingale
,
Lyon
and
Anne Arundel
. The Type C3 ships
Mormacmail
and
Mormacland
became the
Long Island
-class
escort carriers
USS
Long Island
and
HMS
Archer
, and other Mooremack C3s became Navy transports.
Mccormick Steamship Company was active with
charter shipping
with the
Maritime Commission
and
War Shipping Administration
. During wartime, the Mccormick Steamship Company operated
Victory ships
and
Liberty ships
. The ship was run by its Mccormick Steamship Company 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]
[7]
Post-war
[
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]
The aftermath of the war had Mooremack owning 41 ships and, in 1946, 76 chartered ships from the US Maritime Commission. In 1949, Mooremack repaid a government loan subsidizing the South American services, and repaid its mortgages, thus essentially owning its fleet.
Mooremack was involved in the
Korean War
. Notably, its cargo ship
SS
Meredith Victory
rescued some 14,000 refugees from
Hungnam
in December 1950.
[8]
In 1954, Mooremack withdrew the liner
Uruguay
from its New York ? River Plate route, leaving
Brazil
and
Argentina
to continue a reduced service.
Uruguay
was laid up in the
National Defense Reserve Fleet
in the
James River
, Virginia. In 1958, Mooremack introduced a new
SS
Brasil
and
SS
Argentina
to the route, while the old
Brazil
and
Argentina
joined
Uruguay
in the Reserve Fleet on the James River. The new pair of liners worked the route until 1969, when declining passenger numbers made them unprofitable and Mooremack laid them up.
In 1964?1965, Mooremack placed its Constellation-class freight liners in service,
Mormacargo
,
Mormaclynx
,
Mormacvega
,
Mormacdraco
,
Mormacaltair
and
Mormacrigel
. The fast, state of the art vessels completed Mooremack's modernization program begun in 1956. On 11 February 1966,
Mormacaltair
set sail from New York for Europe, establishing the first regularly scheduled transatlantic container service. Within weeks, Mooremack was joined by
United States Lines
and
Sea-Land Service
, but Mooremack failed to exploit its first-off-the-mark lead and make the investment in fully cellular
container ships
necessary to realize the maximum efficiencies and cost savings that containerization promised. Left behind by U.S., British and European ship lines and container line consortia, Mooremack abandoned the North Atlantic trade in 1970 to concentrate on its cargo routes to South America and Africa, and sold four brand new combination break-bulk, container, roll-on/roll-off ships to
American Export-Isbrandtsen Lines
to offset losses. The idled 1958 liners
Argentina
and
Brasil
were sold to
Holland America Line
in 1972.
Mooremack had two of its newest freight liners,
Mormacaltair
and
Mormadraco
of 1965, lengthened and converted into partial cellular container ships in 1975?1976. The four other "Connies" of 1964?1965 were similarly converted in 1982. Diversification into the natural resources and energy fields proved not to be as profitable as the company had hoped, and the energy crisis of the late 1970s and business recession of the early 1980s made operating costs unsustainable.
Malcom McLean
's United States Lines bought out Moore-McCormack in December 1982, and its remaining ships were absorbed into the US Lines fleet and later sold off or turned over to the
Maritime Administration
(MARAD). (Subsequently,
Mormacaltair
in 1990 was converted into a crane ship, USS
Green Mountain State
(T-ACS-9) for MSC, and in 1991
Mormacdraco
also into USS
Beaver State
(T-ACS-10).
Mormacdraco
/
Beaver State
then underwent a further conversion in 2009 into USS
Pacific Tracker
(XTR-1) for the Missile Defense Agency. The ex-States Steamship acquired ship,
Mormactide
, was converted in 1988 into the school ship,
Empire State VI
(TAP 1001) for the New York State Maritime College.
Operating companies
[
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]
Mooremack's operating
subsidiaries
included
American Republics Line
,
American Scantic Line
and
Pacific Republics Line
.
[2]
Notable people
[
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]
Notable officials and people associated with Mooremack include:
Passenger fleet
[
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]
|
Ship
|
Year Built
|
Years In Service for Line
|
Specifications
|
Current Status
|
Notes
|
|
SS
Uruguay
|
1928
|
1938-1942
1948-1954
|
Length - 601 feet; Breadth - 80 feet; Displacement - 32,450 tons; Turbine - Electric; Twin Screw
Passengers: 750
|
Scrapped 1964
|
- Built as the
California
at Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Ltd., in Virginia in 1928
|
|
SS
Brazil
|
1928
|
1938-1942
1948-1957
|
Length - 613 feet; Breadth - 80 feet; Displacement - 32,816 tons; Turbine - Electric; Twin Screw; Speed - 17.0 to 18.5 knots. First Class Passengers - 184; Tourist Class - 365; Crew - 350
|
Scrapped 1964
|
- Built as the
Virginia
at Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Ltd., in Virginia in 1928
|
|
SS
Argentina
|
1929
|
1938-1942
1948-1957
|
Length - 613 feet; Breadth - 80.4 feet; Displacement - 32,816 tons; Turbine - Electric; Twin Screw; Speed - 17.0 to 18.5 knots. First Class Passengers - 184; Tourist Class - 365; Crew - 350
|
Scrapped 1964
|
- Built as the
Pennsylvania
at Newport News Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Ltd., in Virginia in 1929
|
|
SS
Brasil
|
1958
|
1958-1969
|
Length - 617'6"
Beam - 84'
Draft - 27'3"
Passengers - 557
|
Scrapped 2005
|
- Built at Ingalls Shipyards, Pascagoula, Mississippi
|
|
SS
Argentina
|
1958
|
1958-1969
|
Length - 617'6"
Beam - 84'
Draft - 27'3"
Passengers - 557
|
Scrapped 2004
|
- Built at Ingalls Shipyards, Pascagoula, Mississippi
|
War ship lost
[
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]
- George Thatcher Nov. 1, 1942 torpedoed
- Mark Hanna March 9, 1943 torpedoed, but repaired
- Henry Miller Jan. 3, 1945 torpedoed
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
- ^
a
b
"The Story of Moore-McCormack"
,
The Mooremack News
, June 1951. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
"Mr Moore, Mr McCormack, and the Seven Seas"
, 15th
Newcomen Society
Lecture at the
United States Coast Guard Academy
, Adm
Robert C. Lee
, 16 October 1956. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
- ^
"Panama Pacific Lines finished"
.
Time
. 9 May 1938
. Retrieved
21 May
2013
.
- ^
Vinson, Bill; Casey, Ginger Quering.
"S.S. Uruguay"
.
Welcome Aboard Moore-McCormack Lines
. Retrieved
21 May
2013
.
- ^
"Sea Lane Vigilantes"
.
www.armed-guard.com
.
- ^
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
[1]
- ^
Mccormick Steamship Company History
- ^
"The Hungnam Evacuation, 10-24 December 1950"
.
United States Navy
. Retrieved
24 December
2009
.
External links
[
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]