SS Stephen Hopkins
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| Career | |
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| Launched: | May 1942 |
| Built By: | Permanente Metals Corporation |
| Class/Type: | Liberty Ship |
| Fate: | Sunk in battle |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 7,181 gross t |
| Length: | 441 ft 6 in (135 m) |
| Beam: | 57 ft (17.4 m) |
| Draft: | 27 ft 9 in (8.5 m) |
| Speed: | 11 knots (20 km/h) |
| Engine: | triple expansion, 2,500 ihp (1,860 kW) |
| Armament: | 1 x 4 in (102 mm) gun, 2 × 37 mm cannon; 6 machine guns |
The SS Stephen Hopkins was a United States Merchant Marine Liberty ship that served in World War II. She was the first US ship to sink a German surface combatant during the war.
She was built at the Permanente Metals Corporation (Kaiser) shipyards in Richmond, California. Her namesake was Stephen Hopkins, a signer of the Declaration of Independence from Rhode Island.
She completed her first cargo run, but never made it home. On September 27, 1942, en route from Cape Town to Dutch Guiana, she encountered the German commerce raider Stier (german for 'bull') and her tender the Tannenfels. Because of fog, the ships were only two miles (3 km) apart when they sighted each other.
Ordered to stop, the Stephen Hopkins refused to surrender, and the Stier opened fire. Although greatly outgunned, the crew of the Hopkins fought back, replacing the crew of the ship's lone 4 inch (102 mm) gun with volunteers as they fell. The fight was fierce and short, and by its end both ships were wrecks.
The Stephen Hopkins sank at 1000. The Stier, too heavily damaged to continue its voyage, was scuttled by its crew less than two hours later. Most of the crew of the Hopkins died, including captain Paul Buck. The survivors drifted on a lifeboat for a month before reaching shore in Brazil.
Captain Buck was posthumously awarded the Merchant Marine Distinguished Service Medal for his actions. So was Merchant Marine Academy cadet Edwin J. O'Hara, who single-handledly fired the last shots from the ship's 4 inch (102 mm). O'Hara was the second cadet to win this award, and the first to win it posthumously. Marine reservist Kenneth Willett, gun boss for the 4 inch (102 mm), was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.
External links
- The Gallant Liberty Ship SS Stephen Hopkins Sinks a German Raider (http://www.usmm.org/hopkins.html) from American Merchant Marine at War - U.S. Maritime Service Veterans
- Ships of the World: An Historical Encyclopedia (http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/ships/html/sh_087300_stephenhopki.htm) from Houghton Mifflin.
- Tribute to Paul Buck (http://www.usmm.org/duffyheroic.html) and an account of the battle.
- www.usswashington.com (http://www.usswashington.com/dl27se42.htm) - WWII events of Sept 27-30, 1942 (includes a detailed account of the battle.)