The SS Indigirka was an American-built steamship that later served in the Soviet Gulag system, primarily transporting prisoners across the Sea of Okhotsk. Originally launched in 1919 at the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company in Wisconsin, it was part of the Lake series cargo ships and initially named Lake Galva. The vessel was completed in May 1920 and bore several names during its early years, including Ripon, Malsah, and Commercial Quaker, serving as an American merchant ship under various owners until 1938. In 1938, the ship was acquired by the Soviet government and modified for its new role in the Dalstroi fleet, where it was renamed Indigirka after the Siberian river. With a length of 77.3 meters and a tonnage of 2,689 tons, the vessel was the smallest in the Dalstroi fleet, featuring a cargo hold capacity of approximately 4,700 cubic meters. It is estimated that it could carry between 1,500 and 5,000 prisoners, although records suggest it was often fully loaded with fewer than 1,500 individuals, including prisoners, crew, and guards. The Indigirka was instrumental in the transportation of prisoners from Vladivostok to the remote regions of Magadan and Kolyma, a journey taking roughly six days to two weeks. The conditions aboard were notoriously brutal, with prisoners confined in cargo holds ruled by criminals, subjected to abuse, and guarded outside by guards who would spray cold ocean water to control unrest. On its final voyage in December 1939, the Indigirka carried a mix of crew, prisoners, and workers. While attempting to navigate into the La Perouse Strait during a blizzard, the ship ran aground near Sarufutsu, Japan. The vessel capsized, and despite rescue efforts by the Japanese, over 700 prisoners perished, with only 28 survivors rescued from the wreck. The captain, Nikolai Lavrentevich Lapshin, was later tried and executed for abandoning the ship, and a memorial in Sarufutsu commemorates this tragic event. The sinking of the Indigirka remains a somber chapter in maritime and Soviet history, highlighting the brutal conditions of the Gulag transportation system.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.