Design and Construction
The West ships were cargo ships of similar size and design built by several shipyards on the West Coast of the United States for the United States Shipping Board for emergency use during the First World War. All were given names that began with the word West, like West Coast, the 7th of some 30 West ships built by the Columbia River Shipbuilding Company of Portland, Oregon. West Coast (Columbia River Shipbuilding yard number 7) was launched on 6 July 1918, and was completed on 9 August 1918.
West Coast was 5,689 gross register tons (GRT), and was 409 feet 9 inches (124.89 m) long (between perpendiculars) and 54 feet (16.5 m) abeam. She had a steel hull that displaced 12,200 t with a mean draught of 24 feet 6 inches (7.47 m). Her hold was 29 feet 9 inches (9.07 m) deep. West Coast's power plant consisted of a single steam turbine driving a single screw propeller which moved the ship at up to 11 knots (20 km/h).
Read more about this topic: USS West Coast (ID-3315)
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