William J. Rountree Company

William J. Rountree Company was a steamship agent and broker company founded by William J. Rountree in New York City in 1912. William J. Rountree Company was active in supporting the World War II effort by chartering and operating Liberty ships and Victory ships.[1]

William J. Rountree Company
IndustryTransportation and shipping
Founded1912 (1912) in New York City
Key people
  • William J. Rountree
  • Leater Wolfe
  • Albert E. Gorge
  • Lowell Lincoln Richards VP
  • Lowell Richards VP

History

William J. Rountree was born on May 22, 1882, in New York City. In 1901 he and his brother John Rountree became ship brokers in New York City. William J. Rountree started his own ship broker firm in 1912 William J. Rountree Company, In 1935 William J. Rountree Company became the US agent for the Chilean North American Line. William J. Rountree Company was also the US general agent for Mitsul Line, of the Mitsui Steamship Company Ltd., with routes between Japan and the United States in the 1950s.[2] William J. Rountree Company was also President of the Ship Operators and Owners Association founded in March 1943 at the request of Admiral Emory S. Land.[3]

  • Lester Wolfe (1897–1983) one of the presidents of William J. Rountree Company invented the Sonobuoy that help the American armed forces in World War II. The Sonobuoy is a radio device that helped find enemy submarines. Lester Wolfe also invented "Radiation Fuel Quantity Gauge", which was used in place of a fuel gauge in American fighter planes. Wolfe graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1919 with a degree in physics. During his US Army tour in World War I, he worked as an inventor.[4]

World War II

William J. Rountree Company ships were used to help the World War II effort. During World War II William J. Rountree Company operated Merchant navy ships for the United States Shipping Board. During World War II William J. Rountree Company was active with charter shipping with the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration. William J. Rountree Company operated Liberty ships and Victory ships for the merchant navy. The ship was run by its William J. Rountree Company crew and the US Navy supplied United States Navy Armed Guards to man the deck guns and radio.[5][6][7]

Ships

Liberty ship of World War II
SS El Estero with a full load of ammunition resting on the bottom in New York Harbor after being filled with water on the night of April 24, 1943 to put out a fire on board that threatened a major explosion



    • Other
  • SS El Estero, built in 1920, William J. Rountree Company took over operations of the ship on Jan. 4, 1943. On April 26, 1943, the ship was declared a total lost due to onboard fire in New York Harbor.[24]

See also

References

  1. The Liberty Ships of World War II:By Greg H. Williams
  2. New York Times, June 28, 1951, Page 33,
  3. Hearings of Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee on Merchant Marine Act, by United States. Congress. House. Merchant Marine and Fisheries, page 346, 1946
  4. New York Times, July 9, 1983, Section 1, Page 7
  5. "Sea Lane Vigilantes". www.armed-guard.com.
  6. World War II U.S. Navy Armed Guard and World War II U.S. Merchant Marine, 2007–2014 Project Liberty Ship, Project Liberty Ship, P.O. Box 25846 Highlandtown Station, Baltimore, MD
  7. "Steamship Company Operators of American Flag Ships during World War II". www.usmm.org. Archived from the original on 2021-09-27. Retrieved 2022-07-26.
  8. "1955 The MANDO". Ships Nostalgia.
  9. "LibShipsSam". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  10. "LibShipsJ". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  11. "LibShipsL". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  12. "LibshipsA". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  13. "LibShipsJo". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  14. "LibShipsN". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  15. "LibShipsJon". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  16. "LibShipsP". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  17. "LibShipsW". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  18. "LibShipsE". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  19. "LibShipsR". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  20. "LibShipsZ". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  21. "vicshipsC". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  22. "vicshipsB". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  23. "vicshipsH". www.mariners-l.co.uk.
  24. "EL ESTERO". vesselhistory.marad.dot.gov.
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