The SS Clan Matheson was a notable cargo vessel constructed in 1919 by William Hamilton & Co Ltd of Port Glasgow, with yard number 311. Originally launched as Clan Morgan, she was built for Clan Line Steamers Ltd and measured 397.1 feet (121.04 meters) in length, with a beam of 51.4 feet (15.67 meters) and a depth of 34.0 feet (10.36 meters). Her gross register tonnage was 5,614 GRT, and she had a net register tonnage of 3,458, with a tonnage under deck of 6,348. The ship's propulsion system comprised nine corrugated furnaces with a combined grate area of 190 square feet, powering three single-ended boilers with a total heating surface of 7,668 square feet, producing steam at 180 psi. This steam powered a three-cylinder triple-expansion steam engine built by David Rowan & Co Ltd, rated at 517 NHP, which drove a single screw propeller. The vessel was a sister ship to SS Chronos and SS Macedon and was initially ordered by Australian Steamship Ltd as Bogong, later renamed You Yangs, before being sold to Clan Line and renamed Clan Morgan. She was lengthened and modified under her new management and registered in Glasgow. Throughout her service, Clan Matheson functioned primarily as a cargo ship, also serving as a cadet training vessel. During her operational life, Clan Matheson participated in notable wartime activities, including convoy operations during WWII. She was part of Convoy OG 3 in October 1939, heading from Britain to East Africa, and convoy OG 22 in March 1940. In 1943, she was involved in convoy HX 229, carrying general cargo, mail, and a passenger, although she faced delays and had to return to port at Halifax. Post-war, she was sold multiple times, receiving new names: Harmodius (1948), Claire T (1951), and finally Empire Claire (1955). Her maritime significance culminated in her scuttling on 27 July 1955 as part of Operation Sandcastle, loaded with obsolete munitions, including German Tabun bombs. She was towed and deliberately sunk in the North Atlantic, approximately 800 miles northwest of Ireland, carrying a cargo of 16,000 bombs. Her legacy is commemorated, including by a 2013 Royal Mail postage stamp depicting her underway in heavy seas.

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