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FAST TANKER OPERATION
SS Esso New Haven
ON TWENTY-SEVEN of the thirty-two voyages made by the Esso New Haven during her wartime service, she tran-sported crude oil from Puerto La Cruz to New York; the other five voyages were from Aruba to New York, Aruba to Casablanca, Puerto La Cruz to Philadelphia twice, and Puerto La Cruz to Halifax.
A new vessel with a classification certified speed of 14.6 knots, she usually averaged between 15 and 16 knots at sea. Coupled with this speed, her assigned pumping rate was 7,000 barrels an hour, which often resulted in a port turnaround of less than two days. In seventeen wartime months the Esso New Haven loaded and delivered more than 4,000,000 barrels of petroleum products.
29 Cargoes in 14 Months
Captain Nils Borgeson, in an interview for this history concerning the various vessels on which he served during the war, paid the following tribute to the Esso New Haven:
"She is a splendid ship. On most of our voyages while I was master we loaded crude at Puerto La Cruz and dis-charged at New York. On one trip we left New York on March 26, 1945. at 9 a.m., and arrived at Puerto La Cruz on March 31, at 8 a.m. The vessel had made the passage in 4 days and 23 hours; the observed distance in knots was 1,939 and the average speed, 16.29 knots. The Esso New Haven carried 29 cargoes in 14 months."
Made One Atlantic Crossing
On her first voyage, the Esso New Haven, in command of Captain Ingvald Henriksen, with Chief Engineer Fred F. Newton in charge of her engine department, left Chester, Penna., on April 3, 1944, bound for Aruba, where she load-ed a cargo of 132,942 barrels of motor gasoline for New York. Returning to Aruba, she lifted a cargo of motor and aviation gasolines, left on April 27. and after a brief stop at Curacao for Navy orders, departed the same day for Casablanca. This was her only Atlantic crossing; there-after, she transported San Joaquin crude from Puerto La Cruz, discharging regularly at New York, except on three occasions - two cargoes were delivered at Philadelphia, and another at Halifax.
On June 21, 1944, the Esso New Haven, commanded by Captain Henrikson, while en route from Puerto La Cruz to New York, sighted a submarine at 1:30 p.m. The sub's position was reported as Latitude 36°49' North, Longitude 67°36' West, or about 403 nautical miles east of Cape Henry, Va.
That the Esso New Haven was not attacked is explained by the evaluation of the tanker's report by the Navy - namely, that the submarine was probably the USS R 1, on her way to Bermuda.
The wartime transportation record of the Esso New Haven was in summary as follows:
The SS Esso New Haven was built in 1944 by the Sun Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company at Chester, Penna. She Is a sistership of the Esso Camden, Esso Memphis, Esso Portland, Esso Roanoke, Esso Scranton, Esso Springfield, and Esso Utica.
A single-screw vessel of 16,608 deadweight tons capacity on international summer draft of 30 feet, 2 inches, the Esso New Haven has an overall length of 523 feet, 6 inches, a length between perpendiculars of 503 feet, a mould-ed breadth of 68 feet, and a depth moulded of 39 feet, 3 inches. With a cargo carrying capacity of 138,335 barrels, she has an assigned pumping rate of 7,000 barrels an hour.
Her turbo-electric engine, supplied with steam by two water-tube boilers, develops 7,240 shaft horsepower and giv-es her a classification certified speed of 14.6 knots.
When the Esso New Haven was launched, on March 8, 1944, her sponsor was Mrs. Fred Marcus, widow of Captain Marcus, who lost his life when the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey tanker R. P. Resor was sunk as a result of enemy action on February 26, 1942.
The master of the Esso New Haven in wartime were Captains Carl Svenson, Ingvald Henriksen, George Rasmussen, and Nils Borgeson.
During the same period her engine department was in charge of Chief Engineers Fred F. Newton, John V. F. Brown, Laughton D. Angel, John E. Bongard, and Clyde P. Williams.
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