page_title: SS American Legion
section_title: Commercial service
hierarchical_section_title: SS American Legion / Commercial service
caption_attribution_description: English: S.S. American Legion, ship, being towed up River Plate, Buenos Aires. 1926. Name of Expedition: 2nd Captain Marshall Field Paleontological Expedition Participants: Elmer S. Riggs (Leader and Photographer),Robert C. Thorne (Collector), Rudolf Stahlecker (Collector), Felipe Mendez Expedition Start Date: April 1926 Expedition End Date: November 1926 Purpose or Aims: Geology Fossil Collecting Location: South America, Argentina, River Plate Original material: album print Digital Identifier: CSGEO69181 Learn more about The Field Museum's http://www.fieldmuseum.org/research_collections/library/library_sites/photo_archives/default.htm.
context_page_description: American Legion was built for the United States Shipping Board, one of the planned World War I troop transports converted before construction into passenger and cargo vessels, the Emergency Fleet Corporation Design 1029 ships. The ship was laid down as Koda and perhaps assigned the name Badger State at one point, but renamed American Legion before launch and one of only a few of the design not taking a state nickname. Originally operated by the USSB's agents and the Munson Steamship Line the ship saw commercial service until laid up 13 March 1939.
  American Legion was formally transferred to the War Department for use as a United States Army transport on 19 December 1939 operating as USAT American Legion until transfer to the United States Navy 22 August 1941. The Navy commissioned the ship USS American Legion initially classifying the ship a transport with hull number AP-35. On 1 February 1943 the Navy reclassified the ship as an attack transport with hull number APA-17. American Legion decommissioned on 28 March 1946 and was sold for scrap 5 February 1948.
context_section_description: American Legion, flying the Munson Steamship Line's flag which had been allocated the ship for operation in fast passenger service to South American ports, left the Camden yards at five-thirty on the afternoon of 16 July 1921 for the one-day voyage to Hoboken, New Jersey with cabins filled with dignitaries. The line's founder and owner, Frank C. Munson, and his wife were hosts to a party composed of executives of New York Shipbuilding, USSB Commissioners, members of Congress and prominent members of the American Legion. Both National and regional officials of the American Legion had been guests at a dinner aboard prior to sailing and had passed a resolution expressing appreciation for the naming of the ship after the organization and resolved to present a plaque bearing the American Legion's emblem to the ship. The plaque, to hang in the ship's dining room, was presented in New York in 1922. At four-thirty on the afternoon of 17 July American Legion arrived at Pier 3, Hoboken. On 23 July 1921 the ship departed on her maiden voyage to South America.
  American Legion, along with sister ship Southern Cross and the seized Norddeutscher Lloyd ships Aeolus and Huron allocated to Munson by the USSB after the war, began operating as the Pan America Line serving a New York-to-Rio de Janeiro, Montevideo, and Buenos Aires route with Santos, added during return voyages. On 31 August 1922, American Legion suffered a mishap in which she rammed  several Argentine Navy ships; she split the despatch boats Azopardo in two and sank her and damaged the despatch boats Gaviota and La Pampa, the survey ship Alfarez Mackinlay, the troopship Patagonia, and the gunboat Patria.
  By 1924 Aeolus and Huron had dropped off the New York-Rio de Janeiro-Montevideo-Buenos Aires route to be replaced by sister "535's" Pan America and Western World. The addition of the relatively fast "535's" on the direct route between New York and South America resulted in the British Lamport and Holt Line cutting its first class rates to South America, from $415 to $315 New York-Rio de Janeiro fare, and the USSB then cutting its rates to $295 for the same route and offering a round trip to Rio de Janeiro at $450.
  As the USSB sold off its vessels the Munson Line bought the four vessels operating for its Pan America Line service in February 1926. Each ship, including American Legion, was purchased for a price of $1,026,000. For the next fourteen years, American Legion and her running-mates were familiar sights on that particular passenger-and-cargo route. By 1931 American Legion and her sister "535's" had been taken off the South American service and were running between New York and Bermuda.  Financial difficulties forced foreclosure of the Munson Line on 13 March 1939 and American Legion was then laid up in the Patuxent River.
caption: SS American Legion being towed up the River Plate transporting the 2nd Captain Marshall Field Paleontological Expedition in 1926
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