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Josiah Macy : FIVE CREW CHANGES
MS Josiah Macy
The Panama Transport Company tanker Josiah Macy - whose German crew had been replaced by Americans at New York on August25, 1939 - arrived at Aruba on September 1, 1939, two days before Great Britain and France declared war. On September 19 she took departure from the windswept Caribbean island with 66,633 barrels of Brazilian Diesel oil in her tanks. Under the command of Captain Peder A. Johnson, with Chief Engineer William F. Kronisch in charge of her engineroom, the Josiah Macy was bound for Rio de Janeiro and Santos with orders to split this cargo between the two ports, which she accomplished on October 6 and 10. Proceeding to Trinidad on October 24, she loaded 61,527 barrels of crude oil for New York and on December 10 and 11 picked up another cargo of Diesel oil at Aruba for Rio de Janeiro and Santos.
In the year 1940 the tanker was operated by crews of three nationalities. After transporting a third cargo from Aruba to Rio de Janeiro and Santos and loading again at Aruba, she was ordered to Halifax, where, on April 27, her American crew was replaced by Canadians.
This Canadian crew took her on her first Atlantic crossing, to Southampton, with her Aruba cargo 66,564 barrels of Pool Diesel oil.
During the latter part of 1940 and early 1941, five ships of the tied-up fleet were at Prall's Island anchorage, on the Staten Is-land side of Arthur Kill. One of these was the Josiah Macy; the others were the Ampetco, Hanseat, Esso Belgium, and Persephone.
It was while the Josiah Macy was tied up at Prall's Island that another crew change took place; on July 15, 1940 the Canadians were replaced by a Danish crew. The vessel was manned by Danes until November 19, 1940, when an American crew took over. However, there was to be another crew change on April 11I, 1942, from Americans to Danes.
In the year 1941 the Josiah Macy established her wartime delivery record, despite the fact that she did not leave New York until February 26. She transported eighteen cargoes of crude, Diesel, fuel, and bunker "C" oils and traveled 41,335 nautical miles to discharge 11,198,538 barrels.
On a trip from Aruba to Recife in April and May of 1941 an incident occurred which was described by Chief Mate John VV. Bozarth:
"While we were traveling from Aruba to Recife a British cruiser fired a shot across our bow. We stopped and, after being questioned by the British officers, were allowed to proceed. This happened on Sunday morning, May 4, while I was on the bridge. The weather was foggy and no one had seen the cruiser until she fired to halt us."
Returning from Recife, the Josiah Macy arrived at New York on June 6, 1941 and after discharging 59,366 barrels of fuel oil departed on June 9 for Las Piedras. At that time she was under the command of Captain Kenneth Wing and Chief Engineer Victor C. Gage was in charge of her engineroom. She returned to Baltimore on June 26 with 61,662 barrels of Venezuelan crude oil and on the 29th sailed for Aruba. The tanker then made three round trips to Cuba with fuel oil and on August 28 delivered 65,167 barrels of Colombian crude oil to New York.
Departure was recorded on September 10 while the vessel was still under the command of Captain Wing; Chief Engineer Gustave H. Johnson was in charge of the engine department. The Josiah Macy was dispatched to the west coast of Central America and after transiting the Panama Canal she sailed to Punta Arenas, Costa Rica; Corinto, Nicaragua; and La Union, Salvador. On October 13 the vessel reached Cartagena, via the Panama Canal, and loaded 65,611 barrels of Colombian crude oil for Aruba. Her next cargo was lifted at Curacao on October 19 and delivered to Cienfuegos and Guantanamo, Cuba. In November she again went through the Panama Canal and spent the rest of the year on the west coast of South Ame-rica. She loaded 67,959 barrels of bunker "C" at Talara, discharged at San Antonio, Chile; and on November 23 departed for Cabo Blanco, Peru. This was the first of four loads of crude oil lifted at Cabo Blanco for delivery to Talara. Her last cargo of the year was picked up at Talara and on December 26 she arrived at Callao to discharge 69,035 barrels of Diesel and bunker "C" oils.
The Josiah Macy carried her first cargo of 1942 from Talara to Balboa, reaching the Canal Zone on January 26 with 74,777 barrels of naphtha tops. She then proceeded to Aruba to load 67,355 barrels of fuel and Diesel oils for St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. The rest of the year was taken up by loadings at Gulf, Caribbean, and South American ports, with discharges at Puerto Rico, Canal Zone, Cuba, and U.S. east coast terminals.
Nine cargoes were picked up at the Caribbean islands of Aruba and Curacao in 1943. These nine loads totaled 537,314 barrels of Navy fuel oil and bunker "C" and were all delivered to New York except one, which was transported to Halifax on June 24. The vessel ran coastwise most of the year 1944.
During 1945, the last year of the war, the Josiah Macy remained on coastwise voyages until February 13 when she arrived at Aruba to load 60,947 barrels of fuel oil. This was delivered to San Jose, Guatemala, on February 22 and on March 2 she took on 56,726 barrels of fuel oil for TocopilIa, Chile. On March 30 the tanker arrived at Aruba and a round trip was recorded to San Antonio after which followed four voyages from Aruba to the Canal, one to Valparaiso in July, and, after stops at Cristobal and Las Piedras, she reached New York on August 19. When V-J Day was declared the Josiah Macy was in the port of New York.
The wartime transportation record of the Josiah Macy was in summary as follows:
The MS Josiah Macy was built in 1917 by the Skinner & Eddy Corporation at Seattle, Washington. She was originally a sistership of the Svithiod but that vessel was lengthened and changed in 1934 when a new tank body was built in.
A single-screw vessel of 9,750 deadweight tons capacity on international summer draft of 26 feet, 1/2 inch, the Josiah Mary has an overall length of 435 feet, 10 inches, and a length between perpendiculars of 420 feet. Her moulded breadth is 57 feet and her depth moulded is 31 feet, 6 inches. She has a cargo carrying capacity of 75,810 barrels and an assigned pumping rate of 2,000 barrels an hour.
Her Diesel engine develops 2,400 brake horsepower and gives her a classification certified speed of 10 knots.
The wartime masters of the .Josiah Macy while she was manned by American crews were Captains Peder A. Johnson, Robert W. Overbeck, Gustave A. Eklund, and Kenneth Wing.
In charge of the engineroom during the same period were Chief Engineers Daniel C. McKay, William F. Kronisch, Cecil M. Guthrie, Walter H. Berg, Victor C. Gage, and Gustave H. Johnson.
The Scandinavian masters of the .Josiah Macy during the war were Captains Alfred Koed, Einar E. V. Brandt, Rasmus Christophersen, and Magnus Andersen.
Associated with them were Chief Engineers Jorgen Svarer, Christian Madsen, Carl H. Sorensen, Henry L. Lund, Andreas P. V. Scheuer, Poul Sterregaard, and Aage Schmidt.
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