Naval Marine Archive - The Canadian Collection
Library Catalogue Ships database Research Collections Bibliography About us Donate

Columbia River Shipbuilding, Portland OR

Columbia River Shipbuilding was an emergency yard, organized in 1918 to build cargo ships for the U.S. Shipping Board: it closed at the end of the war, after building 32 ships. Its owners were A. F. Smith and J. Frank Watson, owners of the Smith and Watson Iron Works, and it was managed by Charles D. Bowles, who was also associated with J. F. Duthie Shipbuilding, in Seattle. The shipyard was next door to Northwest Steel's shipyard, on the west bank of the Willamette River, on SW Moody Avenue at the foot of SW Woods Street, which is where the Ross Island Bridge is now: see the site from the air on Google here. Comments or queries, please email info@navalmarinearchive.com.

Most recent update: 2021-08-24.

Hull# USSB # O.N. Name Owner Type GT Delivery Disposition
1 215990 War Sirdar/Westward Ho US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,643 Mar-19 Later Izan Maru 1938, wrecked and abandoned 1939
2 216076 Santiam/Westbrook US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,742 Mar-18 Later Wind Rush 1929, Kavkaz 1945, scrapped 1977
3 216174 War Agate/West Gate US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,799 May-18 In collision and lost 1918
4 1644 216310 War Diamond/West Indian US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,702 May-18 Scrapped 1938
5 216205 War Bullet/West Grove US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,688 Apr-18 Scrapped 1930
6 1645 216372 War Arrow/Western City US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,828 Jun-18 Later Empire Turnstone 1942, torpedoed and lost 1942
7 1646 216704 War Dagger/West Coast US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,688 Jul-18 Scrapped 1930
8 1647 216976 Nivelle/Western Plains US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,688 Oct-18 Scrapped 1936
9 1648 216787 War Spear/Western Pride US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,688 Aug-18 Scrapped 1931
10 1649 217182 Poincare/Western Belle US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,688 Nov-18 Scrapped 1938
11 1081 217341 West Cobalt US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,179 Dec-18 Later Empire Miniver 1940, torpedoed and lost 1940
12 1082 217436 West Wauneke US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,765 Jan-19 Later Dorothy Cahill 1929, Pan-Atlantic 1938, De Soto 1938, Luga 1943, wrecked off Sakhalin 1948
13 1083 217533 West Corum US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,795 Feb-19 Later William H. Point 1941, scrapped 1947
14 1084 217617 West Imboden US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,179 Mar-19 Torpedoed and lost 1942
15 1085 217778 West Munham US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,167 Apr-19 Later Konzan Maru 1938, torpedoed and lost 1945
16 1086 217961 West Totant US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,167 May-19 Later Empire Moorhen 1941, sunk as breakwater at Normandy 1944
17 1087 218010 West Quechee US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,711 May-19 Later Empire Panther 1940, mined and lost 1943
18 1088 218292 West Nosska US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,563 Jun-19 Later Tazan Maru 1938, torpedoed and lost 1942
19 1693 217569 West Harcuvar US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,696 Feb-19 Later Anzan Maru 1938, torpedoed and lost 1944
20 1694 217708 West Hardaway US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,075 Mar-19 Torpedoed and lost 1942
21 1695 217935 West Hargrave US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,280 Apr-19 Scrapped 1933
22 1696 218143 West Harlan US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,267 Jun-19 Scrapped 1933
23 1697 218018 West Harma/City of Eureka US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,280 May-19 Later Explorer 1928, Timber Rush 1933, wrecked off Acapulco 1940
24 1698 218391 West Harquahala/Mount Evans US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,267 Jul-19 Scrapped 1946
25 1699 218532 West Harshaw US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,267 Jul-19 Later Empire Oryx 1940, Empire Robin 1941, Ferdinand Bol 1942, in collision and lost 1942
26 1700 218673 West Harts US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,167 Aug-19 Later Texas 1929, Kapitan Vislobokov 1945, Omsk 1952, scrapped 1959
27 1701 218750 West Hartland US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 6,167 Aug-19 Later Michigan 1928, torpedoed and lost 1943
28 1702 218877 West Hartley US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,757 Sep-19 Scrapped 1936
29 1703 218972 West Hasson US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,757 Oct-19 Later Siletz 1919, Vtoraya Pyatiletka 1943, scrapped 1967
30 1704 219421 West Hassayampa US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,757 Jan-20 Scrapped 1938
31 1705 West Hastan US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,600 Cancelled Apr-19, completed as Hull 33
32 1706 West Haswell US Shipping Board Cargo Ship 5,600 Cancelled Apr-19, completed as Hull 34
33 219269 Corvus Green Star Line Cargo Ship 5,748 Nov-19 Later Flomar 1930, Uzbekistan 1945, scrapped 1946
34 219268 Circinus Green Star Line Cargo Ship 5,642 Dec-19 Later Vermar 1930, Kamanets-Podolsk 1942, Karaganda 1945, scrapped 1967

These shipbuilding pages are part of an ongoing project; new material and data is added regularly.

Back to Shipbuilding History main page.

 



Naval Marine ArchiveThe Canadian Collection
205 Main Street, Picton, Ontario, K0K2T0, Canada
Telephone: 1 613 476 1177
E-mail: for comments, queries and suggestions.



Copyright © 2024
Naval Marine Archive
The Canadian Collection

Revised: 8 April 2023