Hannibal Victory
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SS Hannibal Victory's maiden voyage
can be seen in a wartime documentary film (they didn't call them videos
back then!) transporting eight 55 ton railroad steam locomotives from
San Francisco to the Philippines. The voyage begins in February 1945 with a merchant marine crew augmented by US Navy gunners sailing for an undisclosed destination. Upon reaching Enewetak Atoll Hannibal Victory and other vessels are assembled into a convoy, later encountering a enemy submarine and hostile aircraft. Named for Mark Twain's hometown, Hannibal Victory (a VC2-S-AP2) was built at Kaiser's Permanente Metals shipyard in Richmond, California. After service during WW II the ship repatriated American citizens interned in the Philippines. Two steamship companies, American President Lines and States Lines, operated the vessel before it was finally laid up at Suisun Bay in 1973 and scrapped in 2007. While this video may be dismissed as wartime propaganda, it's an excellent color film record of American merchant marine history. |
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