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Civilian Identification Numbered Ships Photo Archive

Manta (ID 2036)



Civilian call sign (1919):
Love - George - Mike - Jig
Freighter:

  • Built in 1916 by the Chicago Ship Building Co., South Chicago, IL
  • Launched in 1916
  • Acquired by the Navy 8 December 1917 and commissioned USS Manta (ID 2036) the same day
  • Decommissioned 13 March 1919 at Norfolk, VA and returned to her owner, the Clyde Steamship Company
  • Sold in 1925 to the New York and Porto Rico Steamship Co. of New York, NY
  • Sold four times in 1929, first sold at U.S. Marshal's sale, 21 March 1929 to Charles H. Lawrence of New York, then to the Manta Steamship Co. of New York, then to John McCambridge of New York,
    and finally to Rederi A/S Ring (Hans Hansen, Mgr.) of Oslo, Norway and renamed Ring
  • Renamed Trym in 1931
  • Abandoned and lost in the North Sea 18 January 1937 on a voyage from Kirkenes, Norway to Middlesborough, England.

    Specifications:

  • Displacement 3,800 t.
  • Length 251'
  • Beam 43' 6"
  • Draft 17' 9"
  • Speed 9 kts.
  • Complement 64
  • Armament: One 5"/51 and one 3"/50 mount
  • Propulsion: Two single ended boilers, one 1,250hp verticle triple expansion steam engine, one shaft.
    Click on thumbnail
    for full size image    		 Size Image Description Source
    Manta 58k Photographed circa 1917
    U.S. Navy photo NH 101976    		 Naval Historical Center
    Manta 97k Near Oban, Scotland, on one of her two visits to that area, ca. 1 August 1918 or 30 October 1918. The crates on deck contain aircraft. Note that their camouflage paint is integrated with that of the ship
    Naval History and Heritage Command photo 2014.97.01 from the Mary Ellen Kinnebrew-Skinner collection at Shipscribe.com    		 Robert Hurst
    Commanding Officers
    01LCDR Geert Scheltens, USNRF1918
    Courtesy Joe Radigan
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships:

    Manta

    A very large ray, sometimes called a devilfish.

    [The first] Manta (No. 2036), originally built for the Clyde Steamship Co., was launched in 1916 by the Chicago Ship Building Co., South Chicago, Ill.; and acquired and commissioned by the Navy 8 December 1917.

    Manta, a NOTS cargo ship, plied the waters of the eastern Atlantic and the Caribbean until mid-July 1918. She then conducted two round-trip voyages to Europe as a mine carrier. On 30 October 1918 during the second return voyage, she was damaged in a storm and was towed to Norfolk. After extensive repairs she was decommissioned 13 March 1919 and returned to her owner.

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