SS Samuel Huntington SS " Samuel Huntington " was an American liberty ship during World War II . She was the 248th liberty ship authorized by the United States Maritime Commission and was named in honor of Samuel Huntington , a signer of the American Declaration of Independence . SS " Samuel Huntington " was launched in 1942 and sailed to ports in the $ 3 , South America , Africa , and the United Kingdom . She was one of a select group of liberty ships that were outfitted to carry a limited number of either troops or prisoners of war . As part of a convoy to resupply the Allied troops at Anzio , she sank after a successful German bomb attack in January 1944 . Construction . " Samuel Huntington " was laid down on 20 January 1942 by Permanente Metals Corp . on ship way number four at their No . 2 Yard in Richmond , California . She was the 248th liberty ship authorized by the United States Maritime Commission and the 48th ship begun at the ship yard . The " Huntington " — a type EC2 - S - C1 , or standard , liberty ship — was launched on 26 April , and delivered on 18 May . She was completed in 118 days , spending 96 on the ways and 22 on the water before delivery . She was one of about 220 liberty ships , about one out of every 10 made , that were outfitted to carry a limited number of either troops or prisoners of war . Sources are not clear when the passenger capability was added to " Samuel Huntington " , but modifications of this sort were made after November 1942 . Service history . Ten days after her delivery , " Samuel Huntington " departed San Francisco for Los Angeles . Sailing from that port on 31 May 1942 , she arrived at Suva in the Fiji Islands on 19 June . After the " Huntington " made her way to Lautoka , she departed there on 6 July for Chile . After arriving at Antofagasta on 29 July , the cargo ship worked her way up and down the South American coast , calling at Iquique on 30 July , Valparaiso on 7 August , and Punta Arenas on 13 August . Sailing from Punta Arenas the next day , she navigated the Straits of Magellan , crossed the South Atlantic , and arrived at Cape Town , South Africa , on 2 September . Sailing from Cape Town on 6 September , " Samuel Huntington " sailed around the African continent , calling at Durban on 10 September , and arriving at Aden , on the Arabian peninsula , in mid September . Departing there on 24 September , the " Huntington " sailed up the Red Sea , calling at Massaua on the Eritrean coast on 26 September and Suez on 1 October . Departing Suez on 12 October , she retraced her track around Africa , calling at Port Sudan on 18 October , Durban on 2 November , Cape Town on 7 November . Leaving the same day , she crossed the South Atlantic and headed for Paramaribo , Suriname . " Samuel Huntington " arrived at Paramaribo on 27 November , and sailed three days later for Trinidad . After arriving at that Caribbean port on 1 December , the " Huntington " waited for a week before sailing in convoy TAG - 27 to Guantanamo Bay with 12 other ships . After arriving at Guantanamo Bay on 12 December , the convoy , dropping four ships , reformed as convoy GN . 27 headed for New York City and departed the same day . The " Huntington " , calling at a U . S . port for the first time in seven months , arrived at New York on 19 December . The " Huntington " departed New York as a part of Convoy SC - 118 headed for Liverpool via Halifax on 24 January . As the convoy , which consisted of 60 ships and 26 escorts , sailed near Iceland , a wolf pack of Kriegsmarine U - Boats attacked the convoy repeatedly over a four - day period . Some 20 U - boats participated , sinking 12 Allied ships , including , a troop transport that went down with 272 men — more than half of her passengers and crew ; three U - boats were lost . " Samuel Huntington " departed the convoy and arrived at Clyde on 11 February . After calling at Belfast Lough in early April , " Samuel Huntington " made her way to Liverpool to join Convoy ON 181 to New York . Departing on 30 April as one of 48 merchant ships in the convoy , the liberty ship made port at New York on 17 May . The convoy reported no submarine activity , and about two - thirds of the convoy were able to take target practice on icebergs during the voyage . " Samuel Huntington " next departed New York on 13 June for Oran as a part of Convoy UGS - 10 . Joining 74 other merchant ships and their 28 escorts , the " Huntington " made it safely to Oran on 5 July ; another ship in the convoy was sunk by a U - boat . During her participation in Operation Husky , the Allied invasion of Sicily , the " Huntington " and fellow liberty ships and all suffered casualties from an air attack on 1 August at Palermo . Damage to the ship was apparently minor enough that she was ready to sail nine days later , when she joined Convoy GUS - 12 — which had originated in Alexandria and was destined for Hampton Roads , Virginia — to return to the United States . " Samuel Huntington " left the convoy as it neared the U . S . east coast , and headed for New York , arriving there on 5 September . After making her way to Hampton Roads , " Samuel Huntington " departed for Casablanca on 5 October as part of Convoy UGS - 20 , where she arrived on 21 October . Eight days later , she joined Convoy GUS - 19 — a 110 - ship Alexandria – Hampton Roads convoy — and headed for home . She arrived in Baltimore on 16 November . Shifting to Hampton Roads in early December , " Samuel Huntington " prepared to depart on what would be her last sailing from the United States . The " Huntington " — in Convoy UGS - 27 , a 115 - ship convoy — sailed from Hampton Roads on 15 December for Oran , arriving there on 3 January 1944 . She departed from Oran on 16 January and arrived at Naples five days later . One week later , " Samuel Huntington " sailed to Anzio where she anchored one - quarter mile ( 400 m ) off the beach on 29 January with of cargo , including ammunition , canned gasoline and TNT . Sinking . At sunset on 29 January , Luftwaffe bombers planes armed with Henschel Hs 293 anti - shipping guided missile s attacked the ships at anchor off Anzio . British cruiser was hit amidships and rolled over on her port side and sank with a loss of 65 men . Soon after " Spartan " was hit , another Hs 293 slammed into " Samuel Huntington " , penetrating to her boiler room before exploding and killing four men . The force of the explosion blew out two of her cargo hatches , launching a jeep into the stricken ship ' s flying bridge in the process . With no power , and , hence , no way of fighting the fire , " Samuel Huntington " s master ordered the ship abandoned , and the crew lowered her lifeboats and headed away from the ship . Fifteen minutes after the bomb ' s blast , another explosion rocked the ship , throwing a cloud of debris over in the air , and raining shrapnel on ships as far as away . After the second explosion , " Samuel Huntington " settled to the bottom , but because the bottom had been only below her keel , most of the ship remained above the water . U . S . Navy salvage ship came alongside the " Huntington " and trained two deck water guns and a water hose to douse the fires . When the task seemed accomplished , " Weight " pulled away . The fires flared up again four hours later and " Weight " returned to fight the conflagration again . After tending to other ships damaged during the raid , " Weight " returned a third time . By the early morning hours on 30 January , any hope of salvaging " Samuel Huntington " or her cargo ended when the fires reached her load of canned gasoline . The resulting explosion completely destroyed the ship and again rained shrapnel on nearby ships . When the smoke cleared , no trace of the " Huntington " remained .