Alabat is a Ferris-type wooden cargo vessel built by the American Shipbuilding Co., Brunswick, GA, for the United States Shipping Board. Ships like Alabat were built for the U.S. Emergency Fleet between 1917-1919 as part of America’s engagement in World War I. Although nearly 300 wooden warships were built, the war ended before the ships could be used. Many of them were scuttled to the Potomac River for the purpose of salvaging scrap metal, such as engines, steam boilers, and propellers. They became known as the Ghost Fleet, which was partially dismantled through three separate shipbreaking and metal salvage periods from the 1920s through the 1940s. Alabat now sits within Mallows Bay - Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary. The vessel is entirely submerged except for the forepeak and forward starboard side. Model by Allyson Ropp/NOAA.
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