Does anyon have information on the SS David Starr Jordon. My father, Joseph Bastien, served aboard this ship in 1944. They were at Utah Beach on 9 June 1944.
Re: SS David Starr Jordon
Posted by Ron Carlson on October 26, 2010, 8:18 am, in reply to "SS David Starr Jordon"
Diane,
SS DAVID STARR JORDAN was constructed by the Kaiser Permanente Yard No. 2, Richmond, California, in early 1943. Her keel was laid February 7, she was launched March 25 and she was completed on April 7, 59 days after keel-laying. Following the war she was laid up in Mobile, Alabama, until being scrapped in 1971 in Panama City, Florida. See http://www.shipbuildinghistory.com/history/shipyards/4emergency/wwtwo/kperm2.htm and scroll down to hull number 472. Also see http://www.mariners-l.co.uk/LibShipsD.html and scroll down to the name of the ship.
The ship likely had an uneventful wartime career as I cannot find anything online of particular note. Interestingly, the Armed Guard website has a page of information on DAVID STARR JORDAN at http://www.armed-guard.com/dsj.html. The very first image on the page lists the Armed Guard crew aboard the ship, with your father's name appearing on the sixth line. Other images on the page include the Armed Guard commanding officer’s report concerning the ship's movement from Southampton, England, to Utah Beach and return. This is very likely the voyage that you mention, "They were at Utah Beach on 9 June 1944."
The ship was named after David Starr Jordan (January 19, 1851 – September 19, 1931), who was a leading ichthyologist, educator and peace activist. He was president of both Indiana University and Stanford University.