MV Diamond Knot

The MV Diamond Knot was a C1-M-AV1 ship owned by the War Shipping Administration. She was operated by United States Lines from 1944 to 1947 under a bareboat under charter with the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration for World War II.

NameMV Diamond Knot

OwnerWar Shipping Administration

Operator

• United States Lines 1944 to 1947
• Alaska Steamship Co. 1947

Orderedas type (C1-M-AV1) hull, MC

Quick facts History, United States ...

C1-M-AV1 type ship
History
United States
Name	MV Diamond Knot
Owner	War Shipping Administration
Operator	United States Lines 1944 to 1947 Alaska Steamship Co. 1947
Ordered	as type (C1-M-AV1) hull, MC
Builder	Consolidated Steel Corporation
Commissioned	December 23, 1944
Fate	Sank August 12, 1947 after collision in the Strait of Juan de Fuca in fog.
General characteristics
Class & type	Alamosa-class cargo ship
Type	C1-M-AV1
Tonnage	5,032 long tons deadweight (DWT)[1][2]
Displacement	2,382 long tons (2,420 t) (standard) 7,450 long tons (7,570 t) (full load)
Length	388 ft 8 in (118.47 m)
Beam	50 ft (15 m)
Draft	21 ft 1 in (6.43 m)
Installed power	1 × Nordberg, TSM 6 diesel engine 1,750 shp (1,300 kW)
Propulsion	1 × propeller
Speed	11.5 kn (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Capacity	3,945 t (3,883 long tons) DWT 9,830 cu ft (278 m3) (refrigerated) 227,730 cu ft (6,449 m3) (non-refrigerated)
Complement	10 Officers 69 Enlisted
Armament	1 × 3 in (76 mm)/50 caliber dual-purpose gun (DP) 6 × 20 mm (0.8 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft (AA) cannons

Close

In 1947 she was operated by the Alaska Steamship Co. She sank in the Strait of Juan de Fuca on the night of August 12, 1947, after a collision with the SS Fenn Victory, a Victory class ship. The Fenn Victory was repaired and returned to service.^[3] At 1:15 AM, in fog, the bow of the Fenn Victory cut into the starboard side of the Diamond Knot. The cut was over 14 feet deep in to the Diamond Knot. The Fenn Victory had departed Seattle, she was partly loaded. The two ships were locked for a time, after getting free the Diamond Knot trying to get to shore sank at 8:57 AM, in 135 feet of water just off of Tongue Point, Washington.^[4] The sinking resulted in the largest collision cargo loss in the waters of the Pacific Coast to that time. The ship was carrying a seven million cans of salmon, most of which was subsequently recovered, repackaged, and sold.^[5]

The wreck remains on the seafloor where it originally sank, at a depth of 70 to 130 ft, and is a popular spot for recreational SCUBA divers west of Salt Creek Recreation Area.^[6][7]