Benson Ford (1924 ship) explained

-- commercial vessels -->	+MV Benson Ford Ship Image: Benson Ford.jpg Ship Caption: Benson Ford in the Duluth Ship Canal in July 1978 Ship Name: Benson Ford (1924–1983) John Dykstra (1983–1984) Ship Country: United States Ship Builder: Great Lakes Engineering Works Ship Yard Number: 245 Ship Laid Down: November 26, 1923 Ship Launched: April 26, 1924 Ship Identification: USCG ID: 223909 * Ship In Service: August 2, 1924 Ship Out Of Service: December 1981 Ship Fate: Scrapped 1986 Ship Notes: The forecastle of Benson Ford was converted into a private museum residence in 1986 which is now located on a cliff on South Bass Island in Lake Erie.

Benson Ford was a lake freighter built for hauling raw material to Ford Motor Company's River Rouge manufacturing plant in Dearborn, Michigan. She was named for Benson Ford Sr., grandson of Henry Ford.

History

Design and construction

Benson Ford was constructed in 1924 at Great Lakes Engineering Works in Ecorse, Michigan, for the Ford Motor Company,^[1] as one of two “state-of-the-art” bulk carriers^[2] that were ordered by Henry Ford to transport raw materials such as coal and iron ore, the other ship was, which was built by the American Shipbuilding Company in Lorain, Ohio. Rather than being powered by coal fired steam propulsion engines like most ships of the day were, the two Ford ships were had 3000 horsepower Sun Doxford diesel propulsion engines and electrically powered systems.^[3] They also had luxurious passenger accommodations for Henry Ford and his guests.

In order to be an efficient carrier in the ore and coal trades, Benson Ford was constructed with large box holds.

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2020-12-14. Benson Ford . 2021-11-20. Shipwatcher News Great Lakes Ships. en.
2. Book: Historical Society Staff, Detroit Marine. Great Lakes Ships We Remember III. Freshwater Press. 1994. 9780912514505. 134. English.
3. Web site: Taylor. Cory. February 3, 2020. The Ford Fleet. November 28, 2021. The Henry Ford.