GA coast–14

lornajarrettblanchard April 21, 1942

–14 American Merchant Marine at War. U.S. Ships Sunk or Damaged on Eastcoast of U.S…
–5 crew
–9 passengers
–14 Helgason. Ships hit by U-boats. “San Jacinto – American Steam merchant.”
–1 the master
–4 crewmen
–9 passengers
–14 Moore. A Careless Word, A Needless Sinking. 1983. Table extracted by armed-guard.com.
–5 crew
–9 passengers

Narrative Information

American Merchant Marine at War:
“Date Ship Type Cause Result Location Deaths
“04/21/42 San Jacinto Passenger Ship Torpedo & Shelled Sunk Eastcoast Crew 5; Passengers 9

Helgason/u-boat.net:
“Name San Jacinto
“Type Steam passenger ship
“Tonnage 6,069 tons
“Completed 1903 – Delaware River Iron Shipbuilding & Engine Works, Chester PA
“Owner New York & Puerto Rican SS Co. (Agwilines Inc.), New York
“Homeport New York
“Date of attack 22 Apr 1942 [We show 2 other sources noting the date as April 21, 1942. ]
“Nationality American
“Fate Sunk by U-201 (Adalbert Schnee)
“Position 31° 10’N, 70° 45’W – Grid DC 5631
“Complement 183 (14 dead and 169 survivors).
“Route New York – San Juan, Puerto Rico
“Cargo 3200 tons of general cargo and passengers
“History ….
“Notes on event At 03.29 hours on 22 April 1942 the unescorted and unarmed San Jacinto (Master Robert W. Hart) was hit on the port side by one G7e torpedo from U-201 about 375 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The U-boat had chased the ship for about 12 hours and was spotted only 300 feet off the port beam just before the torpedo (a surface runner) struck slightly aft of amidships in the #5 hold near the waterline. The explosion blast vented upwards, tore up the deck and demolished the staterooms, recreation halls, radio room and the boat deck. The damaged engines were stopped and the ship lost all power. After the survivors of the eight officers, 71 crewmen and 104 passengers on board abandoned ship in six lifeboats and several rafts quickly and in good order, the U-boat fired 75 rounds from the deck gun at the vessel, which caught fire and sank after three hours. The master, four crewmen and nine passengers were lost.

“The survivors (among them 32 women and children) tied together the boats and rafts and waited until dawn to send a distress signal from a portable radio transmitter in one of the boats because they feared an attack by the U-boat. They were picked up the same day by USS Rowan (DD 405) and landed at Norfolk on 24 April.”

Note: u-boat.net contains information on 7 of those onboard was accessible as of 4-19-2021 at:
https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship1561.html

Moore: “S.S. San Jacinto…Torpedoed & Shelled 4/21/42…Passenger Ship…Crew 5, Passengers 9.”

Sources

American Merchant Marine at War. U.S. Ships Sunk or Damaged on Eastcoast of U.S, and Gulf of Mexico During World War II Eastcoast of U.S. (175 ships). Accessed 4-19-2021 at: http://www.usmm.org/eastgulf.html

Helgason, Gudmundur. Ships hit by U-boats. “San Jacinto – American Steam passenger ship.” Accessed 4-19-2021 at: https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/ship/1561.html

Moore, Captain Arthur R. A Careless Word, A Needless Sinking: A History of the Staggering Losses Suffered By the U.S. Merchant Marine, Both in Ships and Personnel, During World War II. American Merchant Marine Museum 1983 (1st edition), 1990. Table extracted by armed-guard.com. Accessed 4-19-2021 at: https://www.armed-guard.com/sunk.html

Naval History and Heritage Command, U.S. Navy. Photo entitled “80-G-464811 Survivor of SS San Jacinto.” Accessed 4-19-2021 at: https://www.history.navy.mil/our-collections/photography/numerical-list-of-images/nhhc-series/nh-series/80-G-464000/80-G-464811.html