USS West Lianga (ID-2758) - World War I

World War I

West Lianga's activities after her 4 May delivery to the are not entirely clear. Many West ships, to avoid sailing empty to the East Coast, loaded grain products intended for the United Kingdom, France, and Italy and sailed to Europe without unloading or transferring their cargo, but it is not known whether West Lianga did so or not. Whatever her early activities, West Lianga was handed over to the United States Navy at Brooklyn in August 1918 and assigned the identification number 2758. USS West Lianga was commissioned into the Naval Overseas Transportation Service on 19 August with Lieutenant Commander Louis Laverge, in command.

At New York, West Lianga took on a load of 6,882 tons of materiel for the United States Army and a deck-load of 32 trucks and departed for France in a convoy. After unloading her cargo at Bordeaux, she returned to New York on 16 October. After voyage repairs, she loaded another 6,685 tons of cargo for the Quartermaster Corps and departed for Europe on 3 November. West Lianga was en route to France when the Armistice that ended fighting was signed on 11 November. West Lianga delivered her cargo to Saint-Nazaire and took on a load of 1,700 tons for delivery to the United States. After departing from France on 21 December, West Lianga arrived at New York on 4 January 1919.

After shifting to New Orleans and taking on a load of cargo there, West Lianga began her third voyage to France. After making her delivery at Brest, the cargo ship took on a load of steel rails and sand as ballast and sailed for Newport News, Virginia, where she arrived on 21 March. She loaded railroad supplies for the Quartermaster Corps and sailed on 4 April on what would be her final trip to France. After delivery at La Pallice, West Lianga returned to New York on 10 June. Two weeks later, she was decommissioned, struck from the Navy list, and returned to the .