SS El Oriente

SS El Oriente

SS El Oriente was a cargo ship built in 1910 for the Morgan Line, a subsidiary of the Southern Pacific Company. During World War I, she was known as USS El Oriente (ID-4504) in service with the United States Navy. At the end of war, she reverted to her original name of SS El Oriente. During World War II she was chartered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as SS Henri Dunant (sometimes also spelled Henry Dunant), but reverted to her original name of SS El Oriente at the end of the charter.

SS El Oriente was one of four sister ships that carried cargo and a limited number of passengers for the Morgan Line. She was acquired by the U.S. Navy in July 1918, and converted to carry horses and mules to France, and after the Armistice, was converted again to carry American troops home from Europe.

El Oriente returned to the Morgan Line in 1919 and sailed with them until June 1941, when the entire Morgan Line fleet was purchased by the United States Maritime Commission. El Oriente served as a civilian-crewed cargo ship during World War II, sailing primarily between the United States and the United Kingdom. In September 1944, she was chartered by the ICRC and sailed under the Swiss flag carrying food parcels to American prisoners of war held in German camps. Henri Dunant continued to sail under Swiss charter until October 1945, when she was returned to the United States and reverted to her former name. El Oriente was placed in the James River Reserve Fleet in November 1945, and was sold for scrapping in July 1946.