The USS Westport (ID-3548) was a United States Navy cargo ship built in 1918 by the Ames Shipbuilding and Drydock Company in Seattle, Washington. She measured approximately 409 feet 5 inches (124.79 meters) in length and had a beam of 54 feet 2 inches (16.51 meters). Her depth was 27 feet 4 inches (8.33 meters), with a draught of 24 feet 11¼ inches (7.60 meters). The ship was assessed at 5,665 gross register tons (GRT), 3,529 net register tons (NRT), and had a deadweight tonnage of 12,175 DWT. Powering her was a triple expansion steam engine rated at 543 nhp, with cylinders measuring 26, 43, and 73 inches in diameter, respectively, and a stroke of 48 inches. Built by Ames, the engine drove a single screw propeller, allowing her to reach speeds of up to 10 knots (19 km/h). Originally constructed as the commercial cargo ship SS Westport for the U.S. Shipping Board, she was transferred to the U.S. Navy on 10 September 1918, where she was commissioned the same day as USS Westport (ID-3548). Assigned to the Naval Overseas Transportation Service, she undertook voyages from Seattle to Chile, loaded nitrates, and transited the Panama Canal en route to Baltimore, Maryland, arriving on 28 November 1918. She subsequently carried cargoes of railroad supplies and U.S. Army return cargo from France, making transatlantic crossings to Brest and Baltimore before being decommissioned and returned to the Shipping Board on 31 March 1919. Post-war, she was allocated the U.S. Official Number 216901 and Code Letters KMVF, later changed to KLCZ in 1934. In 1941, she was transferred to the United Kingdom’s Ministry of War Transport and renamed Empire Nightingale. Under British registry, she participated in numerous convoys across the Atlantic and Mediterranean, carrying essential supplies such as steel, coal, explosives, and military stores during World War II. She operated in various theaters, including North Africa, the Mediterranean, and supported operations in Malta and Italy, often armed with guns and machine guns for protection. After the war, she was sold for commercial service, renamed Inchmull, later Jamalatsya, and finally Ricnat before being scrapped in 1953 in Bo'ness, Scotland. The USS Westport’s service underscores her role as a vital cargo vessel in both World Wars, exemplifying the importance of versatile maritime logistics in wartime and post-war recovery.

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