SS Fort Mercer
Tanker · United States · Lost 1952 · Cape Cod & Nantucket Shoals
A World War II-built oil tanker broke in two in a monstrous nor'easter off Chatham the same night as the more famous Pendleton disaster, prompting a major Coast Guard rescue.
Become Captain of Record
The Vessel and Her Loss
The tanker SS Fort Mercer, a Sun Shipbuilding-built T2 tanker carrying kerosene and fuel oil from Norco, Louisiana, to Portland, Maine, was caught in a violent nor'easter on February 18, 1952. About 30 miles off Chatham, Massachusetts, her hull cracked and then split in two amid seas reported as high as 68 feet. Nine crew were stranded on the bow section and 34 on the stern; Coast Guard cutters Eastwind and Unimak, aided by aircraft, rescued most of the crew, though five men died. The same storm broke the tanker Pendleton in two nearby the same night, leading to a famous simultaneous Coast Guard rescue effort.
Vessel
- 1945
- Hull number 534 (Maritime Commission contract)
- Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co.
- Chester, Pennsylvania
- Steel
- 524 ft
- 68 ft
- 10448
- Turbo-electric, single screw, 8,000 hp
- Trinidad Corporation of New York
Loss
- February 18, 1952
- Storm
- About 30 miles east/southeast of Chatham, Massachusetts
- Atlantic Ocean, off Cape Cod
- Norco, Louisiana → Portland, Maine
- Kerosene and fuel oil
- 43
- 5
- Frederick Paetzel
The Wreck Today
- Not established
- Ship broke into bow and stern sections; the bow section later sank, while parts of the stern were salvaged.
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
Position
- Not established
- Position not established
- Off Chatham, Massachusetts
Evidence
Overall confidence: Well documented (90/100)
Wikipedia, citing Maritime Commission and Coast Guard records
Build details, dimensions, tonnage, owner, loss narrative, casualty figures.
Naval History Magazine (U.S. Naval Institute)
Detailed narrative of the storm, hull failure, and rescue operation.
Corroborates date, location, and comparison to the Pendleton disaster.
