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NAVY FUEL CARRIER
SS Esso Bayonne
The Esso Bayonne arrived at Baytown, Texas, on the first day of war, September 3, 1939, to load 104,331 barrels of gasoline for New York. Captain Wesley F. Besse was her master and Chief Engineer Patrick J. Breen was in charge of her engine-room.
Thereafter, except for one voyage from Baytown and Port Arthur to Puerto Rico, in January, 1941, she continued coastwise trade until 1942, transporting petroleum products of considerable variety from Texas and Louisiana loading ports to Atlantic seaboard terminals.
During 1942 the Esso Bayonne also made Caribbean voyages. She loaded crude and fuel oils at Aruba, N.W.I.; Cartagena, Colombia; Puerto La Cruz and Las Piedras, Venezuela - in addition to Smith's Bluff, Baytown, Aransas Pass, and Port Arthur, Texas. Her cargoes were delivered at Aruba, Kingston in Jamaica, Philadelphia, the Panama Canal Zone, and Paulsboro; one cargo of fuel oil, from Aruba, went to Montevideo.
Time chartered to the War Shipping Administration on April 21, 1942, at Puerto La Cruz, the Esso Bayonne entered a new phase of her war service.
On October 11, 1942 she left Curacao with 74,344 barrels of fuel oil, with which she arrived at Glasgow November 9. The vessel's next cargo was 71,145 barrels of Admiralty fuel, loaded at New York January 13, 1943, for Oran, North Africa. The Esso Bayonne was at Oran for 14 days, from February 6 to February 20. At the time of this visit to Oran German forces launched their strong offensive in Kasserine Pass.
Captain Frans G. M. Anderson, in command of the Esso Bayonne at that time, related the following experience: "At Oran a ship was sunk by German planes at the berth we had left a week before. While we were sailing in convoy off Tarifa Point, in the Strait of Gibraltar, one of our escorts was blown up, apparently by a mine. Six men were killed. Two other escort craft went alongside to rescue the survivors and then brought the damaged vessel to Gibraltar."
Following another voyage from New York to Oran with special Navy fuel - part of which was discharged at Mers El Kebir - the Esso Bayonne carried Navy fuel from New York to Londonderry and New York to Scapa Flow, then gas oil from New York to Liverpool. Returning briefly to coastwise trade, she brought two cargoes of heating oil from Corpus Christ! to New York.
Missions in the Pacific
Thereafter the Esso Bayonne was sent to carry out important fueling missions in the Pacific. Loading at Aruba 85,950 barrels of special Navy fuel and Diesel oil, she sailed on January 18, 1944. As Captain Anderson tells the story:
"We arrived at Milne Bay, New Guinea, February 23 and stayed until March 2, discharging part of our cargo. (It was on February 29 that American forces landed in the Admiralties.) Then we went through Hawk Channel to Buna Beach, dropping anchor March 3. To Buna we took Diesel oil for submarines and two tanks of U. S. Navy fuel, which were pumped into small Navy oilers and a large Navy tanker, the USS Trinity. We lay about a mile off Buna Beach for a week, fueling several worships, including the Roval Australian Navy destroyer Warramunga, which later supported the landings at Leyte and Lingayen Gulf, Philippine Islands. Finally, after discharging our last 600 barrels of Diesel oil into the Trinity, we went back to Milne Bay for orders and proceeded to Panama and Aruba." (While the tanker was at Buna, March 7, U. S. troops landed near Talasea, New Britain.)
Back to Milne Bay
The Esso Bayonne sailed-from Aruba April 18, 1944 with 87,139 barrels of special Navy fuel and Diesel oil, travel-ing once more to Milne Bay, where she discharged, May 28 to June 6, into Navy oilers and shore tanks. It was on May 27 that American forces began the invasion of Biak.
Returning to Aruba, the tanker loaded 81,223 barrels of special Navy fuel and sailed July 16. Quoting Captain Anderson again:
"We headed for Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides, but were diverted to Suva, Fiji Islands, where we pumped half our cargo ashore, August 13 to 15. Then we proceeded to Espiritu Santo and discharged the remainder, August 18 to 19." (August 10 saw7 the end of Japanese resistance on Guam and on August 20 the enemy withdrew from Halmahera Island.)
Going back to Curacao, the Esso Bayonne, with 80,478 barrels of fuel oil, departed for another long voyage to Espiritu Santo, where she arrived October 28. While she was at sea, General MacArthur's army landed on Leyte, October 20, and the Battle for Leyte Gulf was fought October 23 to 26.
The tanker's next cargoes of fuel oil were transported in the eastern Pacific. She made one voyage from San Pedro to Portland, Oregon, and three to Pearl Harbor - one from San Francisco and two from San Pedro.
The Esso Bayonne then resumed Atlantic service and during 1945, prior to V-J Day, made three transatlantic vo-yages - from Houston to Swansea, Wales, with Diesel oil in April; New York to Coryton, England, on the Thames estuary, with gas oil, in May; and Sabine Pass, Texas, to Antwerp, with gas oil, arriving at Antwerp July 15.
In addition to the foregoing voyages, the Esso Bayonne in 1945 carried fuel, Diesel, and crude oils from Caribbean and Texas ports to New York, Halifax, Cristobal, and Melville, Rhode Island.
The transportation record of the Esso Bayonne during World War II was in summary as follows:
The SS Esso Bayonne was built in 1937 by the Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company at Kearny, N.J. Her sisterships were the Esso Bayway, Esso Boston (lost April 12, 1942), Esso Houston (lost May 12, 1942), Esso Montpelier, and Esso Concord.
A single-screw vessel of 13,075 deadweight tons capacity on international summer draft of 28 feet, 1/2 inch, the Esso Bayonne has an overall length of 450 feet, a length between perpendiculars of 440 feet, a moulded breadth of 66 feet, 6 inches, and a depth moulded of 34 feet, 6 inches. With a cargo carrying capacity of 105,415 barrels, she has an assigned pumping rate of 6,000 barrels an hour.
Her turbine engine, supplied with steam by two water-tube boilers, develops 3,300 shaft horsepower and gives her a classification certified speed of 12.7 knots.
The wartime masters of the Esso Bayonne were Captains Wesley F. Besse, Ernest C. Rice, James W. Fraser, Albert J. Thomas, Weaker B. McCarthy, Maurice W. Carter, Herbert A. Nelson, Frans G. M. Anderson, Andrew W. Ray, and Alexander J. Zafiros.
In charge of her engineroom during the war years were Chief Engineers Patrick J. Breen, James L. Yent, Roy A. An-derson, Laughton D. Angel, George C. Brauner, Charles A. Hicks, Florence A. Daniels, Reginald E. Harris, William C. Wells, and Emoor S. Bordelon.
Captain Anderson was commended for his cooperation while in command of the Esso Bayonne in the following letter:
WAR SHIPPING ADMINISTRATION WASHINGTON
Jan. 7, 1944
Captain F. G. M. Anderson Master - Esso Bayonne c/o Standard Oil Company of New Jersey
30 Rockefeller Plaza New York,
New York
My dear Captain:
We have been advised by the Navy Department that you and your officers gave dullest cooperation at all times and proved to be good navigators during a recent Atlantic coastwise voyage.
It is indeed gratifying to receive reports such as this, showing the fine work that is being done by the men of the Mer-chant Marine, and it is with great admiration that I offer my heartiest congratulations.
Sincerely yours,
E. S. Land
Administrator
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