The Ocean ships were a class of 57 cargo ships built in the Second World War for the Ministry of War Transport. 16 were lost to enemy action, and the survivors were sold into merchant service postwar.

Description

The Oceans were of steel construction with a welded hull. They were all nominally 7,174 GRT with a length of 416 feet (126.8 m) and a beam of 57 feet (17.4 m). They were built by a variety of shipbuilders in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

History

The Oceans were originally built for the Ministry of War Transport. Five of them were transferred to foreign governments during the war.

Country	Ship
Belgium
Netherlands
Poland

Eighteen ships were lost to enemy action during the war, although two were later salvaged and returned to service.

Ship	Details
	Torpedo Torpedo The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for... ed on 15 January 1943 and sunk by at 10°52′N 23°28′W.
	Torpedoed on 26 November 1942 and sunk by at 50°30′N 45°30′W with the loss of all hands.
	Bombed on 13 March 1943 by the Luftwaffe Luftwaffe Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....  and sunk at Murmansk Murmansk Murmansk is a city and the administrative center of Murmansk Oblast, Russia. It serves as a seaport and is located in the extreme northwest part of Russia, on the Kola Bay, from the Barents Sea on the northern shore of the Kola Peninsula, not far from Russia's borders with Norway and Finland... . Refloated on 1 June 1943 and beached in the Kola Inlet where she was scrapped.
	Torpedoed on 16 September 1942 and sunk by I-29 Japanese submarine I-29 I-29, code-named Matsu , was a B1 type submarine of the Imperial Japanese Navy used during World War II on two secret missions with Germany, during one of which she was sunk.-Type B Submarines:...  at 12°48′N 50°50′E
	Torpedoed on 6 November 1942 and sunk by at 10°06′N 60°00′W.
	Torpedoed on 10 January 1944 and sunk by Luftwaffe aircraft at 36°07′N 00°11′W.
	Torpedoed on 2 September 1942 and sunk by at 00°57′N 04°11′W.
	Bombed on 12 July 1943 and sunk by Luftwaffe aircraft at 36°55′N 15°13′E.
	Torpedoed on 15 March 1943 by at 36°55′N 01°59′E. Beached at Algiers Algiers ' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000... , Algeria Algeria Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...  but declared a total loss.
	Torpedoed on 10 January 1943 and sunk by at 57°17′N 20°11′W.
	Torpedoed on 17 September 1942 and sunk by at 10°43′N 60°11′W.
	Torpedoed on 8 February 1942 and sunk by at 37°05′N 74°46′W.
	Torpedoed on 3 May 1942 and sunk by at 28°23′N 80°21′W.
	Struck a mine Naval mine A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...  on 11 October 1943 at 40°19′N 16°59′E and badly damaged. Scuttled as a breakwater at Bari Bari Bari is the capital city of the province of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, in Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy after Naples, and is well known as a port and university city, as well as the city of Saint Nicholas... , Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...  in January 1944. Salvaged in 1947, repaired and returned to service.
	Torpedoed on 22 October 1943 and sunk by I-27 Japanese submarine I-27 I-27 was a submarine of the Imperial Japanese Navy which saw service during the Pacific Campaign of World War II. I-27 was commissioned at Sasebo, Japan on February 24, 1942. The sub's commander, Commander Fukumura, had a history of machine-gunning survivors of ships she had sunk, including the...  at 21°37′N 60°06′E.
	Bombed by the Luftwaffe Luftwaffe Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....  off Augusta, Sicily Sicily Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,... , 21 July 1943, caught fire and sank. Salvaged later that year and later rebuilt as a cargo liner Cargo liner A Cargo liner is a type of merchant ship which carried general cargo and often passengers. They became common just after the middle of the nineteenth century, and eventually gave way to container ships and other more specialized carriers in the latter half of the twentieth... .
	Torpedoed on 22 September 1942 and sunk by at 71°23′N 11°01′W.
	Bombed by the Luftwaffe on 19 March 1943 off Tripoli Tripoli Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three... , Libya Libya Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west.... . Caught fire, exploded and sank.

Eight ships were lost in accidents postwar.

Country	Ship
	On 14 May 1966, Newgrove ran aground at Puerto Padre Puerto Padre Puerto Padre is a municipality and city in the Las Tunas Province of Cuba. It is located on the northern coastal region of the province, in an estuary that opens into the Puerto Padre Bay.... , Cuba Cuba The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city... . The wreck was abandoned to the Cuban Government.
	In 1966, Susana K L suffered a fire in her boiler room, and was subsequently scrapped.
	In 1959, Cape Corso was involved in a collsion and grounding. She was subsequently scrapped.
	On 5 November 1961, Clan Keith sank after hitting rocks off Cap Bon Cap Bon Cap Bon , also Watan el-kibli, is a peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia. It is located at around . It is surrounded by the Gulf of Tunis in the north. Towns located on the peninsula include Nabeul, Kelibia and Menzel Temime. The ruins of the Punic town Kerkouane are located here.... , Tunisia Tunisia Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area... .
	On 13 November 1966, cargo onboard Omonia II caught fire when the ship was berthed at Amsterdam Amsterdam Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population... , Netherlands. The ship was subsequently scrapped.
	On 3 December 1963, Roumeli was grounded after leaving drydock at Gijón Gijón Gijón , officially Gijón / Xixón, is a coastal industrial city and a municipality in the autonomous community of Asturias in Spain. Early mediaeval texts mention it as "Gigia". It was an important regional Roman city, although the area has been settled since earliest history... , Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... . She was subsequently beached and scrapped.
	On 2 November 1962, Santa Irene was wrecked on the Los Cabezos Shoal, off Tarifa Tarifa Tarifa is a small town in the province of Cádiz, Andalusia, on the southernmost coast of Spain. The town is located on the Costa de la Luz and across the Straits of Gibraltar facing Morocco. The municipality includes Punta de Tarifa, the southernmost point in continental Europe. There are five... , Spain.
	In 1953, Clan Macquarrie grounded off Troon Troon Troon is a town in South Ayrshire. It is situated on the west coast of Scotland, about eight miles north of Ayr and three miles northwest of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport. Lying across the Firth of Clyde, the Isle of Arran can be seen. Troon is also a port with freight and ferry services... , Scotland Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...  in a storm and was subsequently scrapped.

The Oceans served until the mid 1980s, with being scrapped in 1985. was on Chinese

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

shipping registers as Zhan Dou 26 until 1992.