Shepard Steamship Company
| Industry | Shipping, transportation |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1930 in 31 Milk Street, Boston, Massachusetts, United States |
Area served | Intercoastal Service |
Key people | Otis N Shepard, H B Shepard, Francis Parker Shepard, Charles L Stanton, David Dysart, E J Martin |
Established in 1930 by Otis N Shepard and H B Shepard in Boston, Massachusetts, the Shepard Steamship Company operated the Shepard Line, providing routes from the Pacific Coast to Philadelphia, New York City, Albany, and Boston. In 1947, the firm moved its headquarters to 21 West Street, New York City. The company’s main freight consisted of lumber products, a business area linked to Otis N Shepard’s earlier collaboration with George H. Morse dating back to 1868 when they founded the Shepard & Morse Lumber Company in Burlington, Vermont.
Throughout World War II, Shepard Steamship Company participated extensively in charter shipping agreements with the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration. The company managed operations of Victory ships and Liberty ships, with crews provided by Shepard personnel while US Navy Armed Guards were responsible for operating defensive weaponry such as MK II 20mm Oerlikon autocannons and an array of deck guns including 3"/50, 4"/50, and 5"/38 caliber models.
Ships
- SS Harpoon – initially named SS Hopatcong (1920), renamed Empire Tarpon in 1940
- SS Sea Thrush – constructed in 1920; sunk by U-505 submarine near the Bahamas in 1942
- SS Timber Rush – previously City of Eureka (1925–1928), built in 1919; lost off Acapulco in 1940
- SS Sage Brush – a cargo vessel of 5,565 tons built in 1919; sank in 1943 under the name SS Keystone
- SS Exporter – cargo ship from 1939, formerly USS Hercules
- SS Wind Rush – originally SS Westbrook (1918); suffered fire damage in 1939; renamed Kavkaz in 1945; dismantled in 1977
- SS Wind Rush (2) – Liberty ship Lloyd S. Carlson, constructed in 1945
- SS Exford – built in 1919
World War II Ships
The fleet operated under wartime charter during and shortly after World War II included:
- Victory ships:**
- La Grande Victory (used as a troop transport)
- Binghampton Victory
- N. Y. U. Victory
- Liberty ships:**
- Theodore Foster
- Warren P. Marks (also known as USS Protector)
- Edwin Abbey
- Segundo Ruiz-Belvis
- John A. Dix
- John P. Harris
- George E. Waldo
- George H. Himes
- George M. Cohan
- Lot Whitcomb
- Charles H. Lanham (utilized for the Marshall Plan)
- Clarence F. Peck
- Robert D. Carey
- During the Korean War:**
- Harpoon (operated from 1950 to 1954; previously Ward Hunt)