View source for USS Siboney (ID-2999)

{{short description|United States Navy ship transport}}
{{other ships|USS Siboney}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[File:Siboney.jpg|300px|USS Siboney with camouflage paint]]
|Ship caption=''"Periscope" view of the Siboney in convoy'', by Musician Loren C. Holmberg, USN (c. 1919), shows the [[dazzle camouflage]] applied to the ship during [[World War I]].
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1919}}
|Ship name=USS ''Siboney'' (ID-2999)
|Ship namesake=[[Siboney, Cuba]]
|Ship builder=*[[William Cramp & Sons]], [[Philadelphia]]
|Ship yard number=434
|Ship launched=as SS ''Oriente'', 15 August 1917
|Ship renamed=''Siboney'', 28 February 1918
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship acquired=8 April 1918
|Ship commissioned=8 April 1918
|Ship decommissioned=10 September 1919
|Ship identification=Official number: 216082
|Ship fate=Returned to Ward Line
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=Ward Line
|Ship flag=[[File:Ward Line flag.svg|100x35px|Ward Line house flag]]
|Ship name=SS ''Siboney''
|Ship owner=[[Ward Line]] (New York & Cuba Mail Steamship Co.)
|Ship acquired=August 1919
|Ship route=*[[New York City|New York]]–[[Havana]]–[[Spain]], 1920–1921
* New York–Cuba–Mexico, 1921–1940
|Ship in service=1919
|Ship refit=1924
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship out of service=1940
|Ship fate=Chartered by American Export Lines
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=American Export Lines
|Ship flag=[[File:American Export Lines flag.svg|100x35px|American Export Lines house flag]]
|Ship operator=[[American Export-Isbrandtsen Lines|American Export Lines]]
|Ship acquired=1940
|Ship route=[[Jersey City, New Jersey|Jersey City]]–[[Lisbon]], 1940–1941
|Ship in service=1940
|Ship out of service=28 May 1941
|Ship fate=chartered by [[United States Army|U.S. Army]]
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1948}}
|Ship name=USAT ''Siboney''
|Ship in service=May 1941
|Ship renamed=USAHS ''Charles A. Stafford'', January 1944
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship namesake=Captain [[Charles A. Stafford]], [[Army Medical Department (United States)|U.S. Army Medical Corps]]
|Ship reclassified=[[hospital ship]], January 1944
|Ship refit=January–September 1944
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship out of service=February 1948
|Ship homeport=*[[Charleston, South Carolina]], Sept 1944 – Aug 1945
* [[Los Angeles]], Aug 1945 – Feb 1946
* [[New York City]], Feb 1946 – Feb 1948
|Ship fate=Scrapped, 1957
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class=
|Ship displacement=11,298 tons
|Ship length={{convert|443|ft|3|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|60|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft={{convert|24|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship depth=
|Ship hold depth=
|Ship power=
|Ship propulsion=
|Ship speed={{convert|17.5|knot}}
|Ship range=
|Ship endurance=
|Ship boats=
|Ship troops=*3,100
* 3,900 after [[Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)|Armistice]]<ref name=Gleaves>Gleaves, p. 93</ref>
|Ship complement=346
|Ship armament=*2 × [[QF 1-pounder pom-pom|1-pounders]]
* 2 × [[machine gun]]s
|Ship notes=
}}
|-
| colspan=2 | '''Differences as SS ''Siboney'':'''
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=yes
|Ship crew=127<ref name=gemheist>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60A14FE345B157A93CBAB178FD85F418385F9 | format = fee | title = $5,000 gems stolen from woman at sea | work = [[The New York Times]] | date = 29 April 1935 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 3 }}</ref>
}}
|-
| colspan=2 | '''Differences as USAT ''Siboney'':'''<ref name=TSWWII-59 />
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=yes
|Ship tonnage=6,937
|Ship speed={{convert|16|knot}}
|Ship range={{convert|6000|nmi|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship troops=1,201
|Ship capacity=cargo: {{convert|116000|cuft|abbr=on}}
}}
|-
| colspan=2 | '''Differences as USAHS ''Charles A. Stafford'':'''<ref name=TSWWII-332 />
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=yes
|Ship tonnage=7,587
|Ship range={{convert|8000|nmi|abbr=on}}
|Ship capacity=*patients: 704
* cargo: none
|Ship armament=None
}}
|}
'''USS ''Siboney'' (ID-2999)''' was a [[ship transport]] for the [[United States Navy]] during [[World War I]]. She was the sister ship of {{USS|Orizaba|ID-1536}} but neither was part of a ship class. [[Ship naming and launching|Launched]] as '''SS&nbsp;''Oriente''''', she was soon renamed after [[Siboney, Cuba|Siboney]], [[Cuba]], a landing site of [[United States]] forces during the [[Spanish–American War]]. After her navy service ended, she was '''SS&nbsp;''Siboney''''' for the [[New York & Cuba Mail Steamship Co.]] (commonly called the Ward Line).<ref group=note>While Commonly called Ward Line all official documents such as registers and many references, including DANFS and Roland Charles' ''Troopships of World War II'', use the owner's name: New York & Cuba Mail Steamship Company.</ref> The ship was operated under charter by [[American Export-Isbrandtsen Lines|American Export Lines]] beginning in late 1940. During [[World War II]] she served the [[United States Army|U.S. Army]] as transport '''USAT&nbsp;''Siboney''''' and as [[hospital ship]] '''USAHS ''Charles A. Stafford'''''.

As a transport during World War I, ''Siboney'' made 17 [[transatlantic crossing|transatlantic]] voyages for the navy carrying troops to and from [[Europe]], and had the shortest average in-port turnaround time of all navy transports. During her maiden voyage, her steering gear malfunctioned which resulted in a collision between two other troopships in the convoy.

After her World War I service ended, ''Siboney'' was returned to the Ward Line and placed in New York–Cuba–Spain transatlantic service; the liner ran aground at [[Vigo]], Spain in September 1920. Despite considerable damage, she was repaired and placed back in service. In late 1921, ''Siboney'' was switched to New York–Cuba–Mexico routes, which were a popular and inexpensive way for Americans to escape [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]]. In late 1940, she was [[charter]]ed to American Export Lines to return Americans fleeing Europe at the outset of World War II, making seven roundtrips from [[Jersey City, New Jersey|Jersey City]], [[New Jersey]], to [[Lisbon]].

During [[World War II]], ''Siboney'' was requisitioned by the [[War Shipping Administration]] (WSA) and assigned to the [[United States Department of War|War Department]] as a U.S. Army transport. She made several transatlantic trips and called at ports in [[Africa]], the [[Middle East]], [[Canada]], the [[Caribbean]], and the [[United Kingdom]]. During a 1944 overhaul, the ship was selected for conversion to a hospital ship. Renamed USAHS ''Charles A. Stafford'' after a U.S. Army doctor killed in action in Australia, the ship served in both the [[European Theatre of World War II|European]] and the [[Pacific War|Pacific Theatres]]. After the end of her army service, the ship was laid up in the [[National Defense Reserve Fleet]] in February 1948, and sold for scrapping in 1957.

==World War I naval service==
SS ''Oriente'' was a combination cargo and passenger vessel built by [[William Cramp & Sons]], [[Philadelphia]], for the Ward Line. In mid-1917 the [[United States Shipping Board]] (USSB) commandeered and received title to all private shipbuilding projects in progress, including the still-incomplete ''Oriente'' and her sister ship ''Orizaba''. Plans for both ships were modified for troop carrying duties.<ref>Crowell and Wilson, p. 321.</ref> ''Oriente'' was launched on 15&nbsp;August 1917, renamed ''Siboney'' on 28&nbsp;February 1918, delivered to the navy on 8&nbsp;April, and commissioned the same day, [[Commander (United States)#Naval rank|Commander]] A.T. Graham in command.<ref name=NHC-Siboney>{{cite DANFS | author = [[Naval History and Heritage Command]] | url = https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/s/siboney-i.html | title = Siboney I (ID-2999) 1918–1919 | short = on }}</ref>

[[File:Dwinsk survivors rescued by USS Siboney.jpg|thumb|left|upright|The first of two lifeboats from the torpedoed British transport {{SS|Dwinsk}} to be rescued by ''Siboney'' on 21 June 1918]]
''Siboney'' sailed from Philadelphia on 16 April as a unit of the [[Cruiser and Transport Force]], and arrived at [[Newport News, Virginia|Newport News]] two days later to embark her first contingent of troops. She departed [[Hampton Roads, Virginia|Hampton Roads]] on 23&nbsp;April and joined her first convoy the following day. On 25&nbsp;April, her rudder jammed; and, in the ensuing confusion, transports {{USS|Aeolus|ID-3005|2}} and {{USS|Huron|ID-1408|2}} collided and had to return to [[New York City|New York]]. On 4&nbsp;May, the convoy was joined by the war zone escort of eight destroyers and, on 6&nbsp;May, ''Siboney'' arrived at [[Brest, France|Brest]]. Debarking her troops, she sailed the following day and arrived at [[Hoboken, New Jersey]], on 15&nbsp;May.<ref name=NHC-Siboney />

''Siboney'' embarked her second contingent of troops at [[Lambert's Point]], [[Virginia]], on 25&nbsp;May and sailed the following day. The New York section of the convoy joined two days later and the ships entered the war zone on 6&nbsp;June. In French waters, they were met by {{USS|Corsair|SP-159|6}}, a squadron of [[minesweeper (ship)|minesweepers]], an American [[dirigible]], and two [[French Navy|French]] [[seaplane|hydroplanes]]. ''Siboney'' arrived in [[Bordeaux]] on 8&nbsp;June and departed the following day but remained anchored in the mouth of the [[Gironde estuary|Gironde]] until 13&nbsp;June, awaiting the tanker ''Woonsocket''. On 15&nbsp;June, the convoy passed six empty lifeboats from the torpedoed transport {{USS|President Lincoln|1907|6}}. ''Siboney'' entered the American war zone on 20&nbsp;June, and the next day rescued survivors of the British vessel, {{SS|Dwinsk}}, which had been torpedoed three days previously. The transport arrived at New York on 22&nbsp;June and anchored in the North River.<ref name=NHC-Siboney />

''Siboney'' sailed for France on 30 June; after delivering her troops at Brest on 12&nbsp;July, she returned to New York on 25&nbsp;July. She sailed again on 31&nbsp;July. Before arriving at Brest on 12&nbsp;August, she had to maneuver several times to evade possible submarine contacts.<!-- This is actually about USS Orizaba --
As she was testing her gun during the return voyage, an explosion on deck killed the [[executive officer]] and three men and wounded the captain, the gunnery officer, and 20&amp;nbsp;men. Only two hours later, she sighted a submarine and, without mishap, fired two [[depth charge]]s at the [[U-boat]].
--> She arrived at New York on 22&nbsp;August and was given a two-week repair period.<ref name=NHC-Siboney />

On 4 September, ''Siboney'' sailed from New York on her fifth crossing and arrived at [[Saint-Nazaire]] nine days later. On 15&nbsp;September, she embarked a number of wounded troops and left Saint-Nazaire the same day, but, due to heavy submarine activity, swung at anchor for several days before her convoy sailed. She arrived on 29&nbsp;September at New York. On her sixth eastward crossing, between 6 and 15&nbsp;October, an [[Spanish flu|influenza epidemic]] broke out among the troops, killing a number of soldiers. Sailing from Brest on 16&nbsp;October, the transport returned to New York on 24&nbsp;October.<ref name=NHC-Siboney />

''Siboney'' had already embarked troops for her next voyage when, on 3&nbsp;November, she was ordered to disembark them. She sailed the following day with an army [[Brigadier General (United States)|brigadier general]] and his staff, and a naval draft of 500&nbsp;men. She arrived at Saint-Nazaire on the 12&nbsp;November, shortly after the announcement of the [[Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)|Armistice]], and was met by a cheering crowd.<ref name=NHC-Siboney />

[[File:Siboney in New York Harbor.jpg|left|thumb|''Siboney'' arrives in New York Harbor in late 1918 or 1919 with returning soldiers crowding the rails.]]
''Siboney'' then began her peacetime mission of returning American veterans from Europe to the United States. After embarking 513 wounded men at Saint-Nazaire, she moved to Brest on the 15th and took on 600 more passengers. She sailed the same day under escort and reached New York on 24&nbsp;November. During the next ten months, ''Siboney'' made ten more round trips between the United States and France, returning over 3,000&nbsp;troops per trip when fully loaded.<ref name=NHC-Siboney /> On one such return trip in August 1919, ''Siboney'' carried Admiral [[Henry T. Mayo]] and Congressman [[Thomas S. Butler]] home from France.<ref>{{cite web | author = Naval Historical Center | title = USS Siboney (ID # 2999), 1918–1919 – Actions and Activities | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-s/id2999-k.htm | work = Online Library of Selected Images | publisher = [[United States Department of the Navy|Navy Department]], Naval Historical Center | date = 28 November 2005 | accessdate = 20 January 2008 | url-status=dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070624080906/http://history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-s/id2999-k.htm | archivedate = 24 June 2007 | df =  }}</ref>

''Siboney'' returned to New York on 2 September at the conclusion of her 17th trip, having traveled over {{convert|115000|nmi|km}} and transported approximately 55,000 military passengers to and from French ports.<ref name=NHC-Siboney /> According to the Statistical Department of the U.S. Navy, ''Siboney'' had the shortest average in-port turnaround time out of 37 U.S. Navy transports used during World War I. The ship completed 17 round trips and had an average turn-around time of just under 30&nbsp;days per trip, almost ten days shorter than the average of 39.8&nbsp;days.<ref name=Stats>{{cite web | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h82000/h82951.jpg | format = image file | title = The Original U.S. Troop Transports | date = 16 August 1919 | author = [[United States Navy]], Statistical Department | accessdate = 19 January 2008 | url-status=dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070206015056/http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h82000/h82951.jpg | archivedate = 6 February 2007 | df =  }}</ref>

On 10 September at Hoboken, ''Siboney'' was decommissioned and turned over to the War Department, who returned the ship to the Ward Line, her original owners.<ref name=NHC-Siboney />

==Interwar civilian service==
After her reacquisition, the Ward Line placed SS ''Siboney'' in transatlantic service on a New York to [[Havana]], [[Tenerife]], [[Bilbao]], [[Santander, Cantabria|Santander]], and [[Vigo]] route. On 9&nbsp;September 1920, the ship ran aground in the harbor at Vigo.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/09/11/98589689.pdf | format = pdf | title = Siboney aground at Vigo | work = The New York Times | date = 11 September 1920 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 10 }}</ref> Initial efforts to re-float her were unsuccessful, but by late October, ''Siboney'' had been repaired enough to make it to [[South Shields|Shields]].<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/09/14/102887968.pdf | format = pdf | title = Pittsburgh towed in | work = The New York Times | date = 14 September 1920 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 10 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/10/27/107004801.pdf | format = pdf | title = Shipping and mails | work = The New York Times | date = 27 October 1920 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 22 }}</ref> Despite considerable damage, ''Siboney'' was refitted and placed in service again and, by March 1921, the Ward Line was advertising passage to Spain via Havana aboard her.<ref name=ward-fleet>{{cite web | url = http://www.wardline.com/page/page/4557567.htm | title = Fleet List | first = Michael | last = Alderson | work = Wardline.com | accessdate = 19 January 2008 | url-status=dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20121012060022/http://www.wardline.com/page/page/4557567.htm | archivedate = 12 October 2012 | df =  }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = Spanish ports… | work = The New York Times | date = 28 March 1921 | page = 18 }}</ref> The Ward Line, however, abandoned the New York–Cuba–Spain service later in 1921 due to a lack of passengers.<ref name=Flayhart>Flayhart, p. 292.</ref>

By November 1921, ''Siboney'' was placed in New York–Cuba–Mexico service, where business thrived, in part because of [[Prohibition in the United States]]. Ward Line cruises to Havana were one of the quickest and least expensive ways to what one author called "alcohol-enriched vacations".<ref name=Flayhart /> A typical route from this time period would sail from New York and call at [[Nassau, Bahamas|Nassau]], Havana, [[Progreso, Yucatán|Progreso]], [[Veracruz, Veracruz|Veracruz]], and [[Tampico, Tamaulipas|Tampico]], skipping Nassau on the return.<ref name=maritimetables>{{cite web | url = http://www.timetableimages.com/maritime/images/cml.htm | title = Cuba Mail Line (New York & Cuba Mail Steamship Co. – Ward Line) | work = Maritime Timetable Images | first = Björn | last = Larsson | date = 21 April 2007 | accessdate = 19 January 2008}}</ref> Prohibition also had a more direct effect on ''Siboney'' and her crew. On 27&nbsp;June 1922, ''Siboney''—freshly returned from Havana with a load of pineapples—was raided by [[United States Customs Service]] inspectors who seized 300&nbsp;bottles of smuggled liquor on board.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/06/28/109847896.pdf | format = pdf | title = Seize hidden liquor on ship board boat | work = The New York Times | date = 28 June 1922 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 14 }}</ref> In December 1923, four [[Boiler room (ship)|boiler room]] workers were arrested when police became suspicious of a man who had apparently just delivered a supply of alcohol to the docked ship.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40911F93F5D15738DDDA10A94DA415B838EF1D3 | format = fee | title = Liquor death list mounts to eight | work = The New York Times | date = 28 December 1923 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 17 }}</ref>

''Siboney'' underwent a major refit in 1924 during which time she was replaced on her routes by SS&nbsp;''Yucatán'', formerly the [[North German Lloyd]] ship ''Prinz Waldemar''.<ref name=ward-fleet /> After returning to service for the Ward Line, ''Siboney'' was the first to relay messages from [[Miami, Florida|Miami]] about the severity of the [[1926 Miami hurricane|Great Miami Hurricane]] when she passed there shortly after the storm hit in September 1926.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20B15FC345E1B7A93C2AB1782D85F428285F9 | format = fee | title = Florida cut off for hours by storm | work = The New York Times | date = 20 September 1926 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 4 }}</ref>

On 18 February 1928, ''Siboney'' rammed and sank the coal barge ''Seneca'' off [[Lightship Ambrose|Ambrose Light]] during a snowstorm;<ref>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0C12FD3858167A93CBA81789D85F4C8285F9 | title = Ward liner Siboney rams and sinks barge | format = fee | work = The New York Times | date = 19 February 1928 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 13 }}</ref> the barge had been cut down in 1915 from SS&nbsp;''Seneca'', coincidentally, a former Ward Line ship.<ref name=ward-fleet /> Bad luck continued for ''Siboney'' on 5&nbsp;January 1929, when she rammed and sank the Bauer Towing Company [[tug]] ''Phillip Hoffman'' off [[Battery Park|the Battery]], killing the tug's engineer.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60715F93B55167A93C4A9178AD85F4D8285F9 | format = fee | title = Liner rams tugboat, engineer drowns | work = The New York Times | date = 6 January 1929 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 36 }}</ref>

''Siboney'' continued her same routes into the 1930s, and by 1933 typical runs for ''Siboney'' were from New York to Havana, Progreso, and Veracruz and back, omitting Progreso on the return.<ref name=maritimetables /> On one such return trip from Veracruz and Havana in April 1935, a passenger had $5,000 worth of diamond and platinum jewelry stolen while on board.<ref name=gemheist /> By 1935, multiple [[public relations]] disasters for the Ward Line—the fire and sinking of {{SS|Morro Castle|1930|2}} off [[New Jersey]] in 1934 and the grounding of {{SS|Havana||2}} and the sinking of ''Mohawk'' in the months that followed—caused the "Ward Line" name to be dropped in favor of the "Cuba Mail Line" moniker.<ref name=ward-hist>{{cite web | url = http://www.wardline.com/page/page/4557564.htm | title = History | first = Michael | last = Alderson | work = Wardline.com | accessdate = 19 January 2008 | url-status=dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20080529211747/http://www.wardline.com/page/page/4557564.htm | archivedate = 29 May 2008 | df =  }}</ref> By 1939, ''Siboney'', still on the New York–Cuba–Mexico route, sported a new paint scheme of "dove grey" hull and black funnels with white markings to reflect this change in name.<ref name=maritimetables /><ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wardline.com/albums/album_image/4557875/1359649.htm | title = S.S. Siboney of 1917 | first = Michael | last = Alderson | work = Wardline.com | accessdate = 19 January 2008 | url-status=dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20071019085849/http://www.wardline.com/albums/album_image/4557875/1359649.htm | archivedate = 19 October 2007 | df =  }}</ref> In late 1940, however, the struggling Cuba Mail Line chartered ''Siboney'' to [[American Export Lines]] which employed her on [[Jersey City, New Jersey|Jersey City]]–Lisbon service.<ref name=ward-fleet /><ref name=Ambergris>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0814FF3D58167B93C5AB178ED85F458485F9 | format = fee | title = Ship Finds $750,000 Ambergris – Maybe | work = The New York Times | date = 27 May 1941 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 25 }}</ref> During her American Export service, one of her passengers to the U.S. was French aviator and writer [[Antoine de Saint Exupéry]], when he immigrated in January 1941 to [[Asharoken, New York]] after [[Nazi Germany|Germany]]’s [[Armistice with France (Second Compiègne)|armistice with France]].<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,772580,00.html | title = Men's Fate | work = [[Time (magazine)|Time]] | date = 13 January 1941 | accessdate = 2008-01-21 }}</ref><ref>Schiff, [https://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN0805079130&id=h-gk5R0OmI0C&pg=PA379&lpg=PA379&dq=Asharoken&sig=4p8_dhvcRABg-EiedAuar4UM5PU p. 379]</ref>

On 12 April 1941 at 13:30, {{convert|320|nmi|km}} out of Lisbon, the ship—painted with a large American flag and "American Export" lettering on each side—was accosted by "two [[submarine chaser]]s flying [[White Ensign|British ensigns]]" that fired shots over ''Siboney''{{'}}s bow, one of which landed less than {{convert|100|ft|m|0}} away from the ship. According to ''Siboney''{{'}}s captain, Wenzel Habel, the two ships were British corvette types marked "K-25" and "K-125"—which may have been {{sclass2-|Flower|corvette}}s {{HMS|Azalea|K25}} and {{HMCS|Kenogami|K125}}. After answering questions from "K-25" shouted via loudspeaker, ''Siboney'' was allowed to resume her course. Habel filed a protest with British officials when ''Siboney'' docked at [[Bermuda]].<ref>{{cite news | url = http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FA0B10FC3559167B93C0AB178FD85F458485F9 | format = fee | title = U.S. liner halted by warships' fire | work = The New York Times | date = 22 April 1941 | accessdate = 2008-01-19 | page = 5 }}</ref>

==World War II Army service==
[[File:USAT-Siboney.jpg|thumb|right|USAT ''Siboney'' in port, c. 1942–1943]]

At the conclusion of her seventh and final journey for American Export, ''Siboney'' was placed under time charter for duty as an Army transport.<ref name=TSWWII-59>Charles, p. 59.</ref><ref name=Ambergris /> After a hasty outfitting, the redesignated USAT ''Siboney'' was put to work transporting troops. Based in New York, she made trips up and down the Atlantic and into the [[Caribbean Sea|Caribbean]], and, by the end of 1941, had called at Bermuda, [[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]], [[Trinidad]], [[St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador|St. John's]], [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]], [[Newport News, Virginia|Newport News]], [[Cristóbal, Colón|Cristóbal]], [[Jamaica]], and [[Panama]].<ref name=TSWWII-59>Charles, p. 59.</ref>

December 1941 saw ''Siboney'' depart from New York to Trinidad and on to [[Cape Town]], then sailing up the east coast of [[Africa]] to [[Basra]], [[Iraq]], and [[Bandar Shahpur]], [[Iran]]. The ship returned to Cape Town via [[Aden]] and underwent routine boiler repairs there, before returning to New York in April 1942. After undergoing six&nbsp;weeks of repairs at [[Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation|Bethlehem Steel Company]], the transport sailed for [[City of Halifax|Halifax]], [[Iceland]], and the [[River Clyde|Clyde]], [[Scotland]], in late May, returning to New York in July. Another trip to [[England]] and back followed in September 1942.<ref name=TSWWII-59 />

On 1 July 1942 the ship had been acquired by the War Shipping Administration (WSA) under a bareboat charter converting the Army's time charter to a sub bareboat charter. On 9 August 1943 WSA purchased the ship with the Army's bareboat charter continued.<ref name=MARAD>{{cite web |url=https://www.marad.dot.gov/sh/ShipHistory/Detail/893 |title=Charles A. Stafford (See Status cards) |author=Maritime Administration |date= |work=Ship History Database Vessel Status Card |publisher=U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration |accessdate=10 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181111043822/https://www.marad.dot.gov/sh/ShipHistory/Detail/893 |archive-date=11 November 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In early December 1942 ''Siboney'' departed for [[Newfoundland and Labrador|Newfoundland]] but put into Halifax for two months of [[drydock]]ing and repairs after she collided with SS ''City of Kimberly''. After returning to New York in February 1943, she made several transatlantic runs, calling at [[Casablanca]], [[Oran]], [[Gibraltar]], Clyde, [[Durban]], [[Rio de Janeiro]], Trinidad, and Cuba over the next 11 months. ''Siboney'' returned to New York for major repairs and reboilering at Bethlehem Steel Co. In January 1944, while undergoing this work, the ship was selected for conversion to a hospital ship.<ref name=TSWWII-59 />

[[File:USHS-CharlesAStafford.jpg|thumb|left|U.S. Signal Corps photo print of the USAHS Charles A. Stafford, 1944]]
The ship was renamed USAHS ''Charles A. Stafford'' after [[Captain (OF-2)|Captain]] [[Charles A. Stafford]] of the [[Army Medical Department (United States)|U.S. Army Medical Corps]], who was killed during the [[Attack on Broome|air raid on Broome, Western Australia]], while participating in the [[Battle of Java (1942)|evacuation of Java]] on 3&nbsp;March 1942. With her conversion complete in September 1944, the ''Stafford'', equipped with new boilers, a single stack in place of her original two, and other improvements, moved to her new homeport of Charleston.<ref name=TSWWII-332 /><ref name=navy-photos>{{cite web | author = Naval Historical Center | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-us-cs/army-sh/usash-sz/siboney.htm | title = USAT Siboney (Transport, 1941–1944). Later the Army Hospital Ship Charles A. Stafford (1944–1948) | work = Online Library of Selected Images: Ships of the United States Army | publisher = Navy Department, Naval Historical Center | date = 28 November 2005 | accessdate = 19 January 2008 | url-status=dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20080101125918/http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-us-cs/army-sh/usash-sz/siboney.htm | archivedate = 1 January 2008 | df =  }}</ref> From that port the ship made monthly runs to the United Kingdom and back until May 1945, interrupting the pattern only once for a trip to Gibraltar and [[Marseille]]s. Steaming to New York at the conclusion of her last transatlantic run, ''Charles A. Stafford'' was overhauled for duty in the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|South Pacific]].<ref name=TSWWII-332>Charles, p. 332.</ref>

With the alterations complete, the veteran ship—now homeported at [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]]—sailed in August 1945 for Cristobál and on to [[Honolulu, Hawaii|Honolulu]], [[Manila]], [[Biak]], [[Leyte]], and [[Mindoro]]. After returning to Los Angeles in October, the ''Stafford'' sailed for Honolulu, Manila, and [[Enewetak|Eniwetok]] and back.<ref name=TSWWII-332 />

After sailing to her new homeport of New York via the [[Panama Canal]] during February 1946, ''Charles A. Stafford'' resumed her North Atlantic runs to the UK.<ref name=TSWWII-332 />

On 30 August 1946 the Army transferred the ship to the [[United States Maritime Commission|Maritime Commission]]. On 16 February 1948 the ship was placed in the [[James River Reserve Fleet]]. Kept on reserve under her original name of ''Siboney'', the ship was sold by the Maritime Administration on 2 January 1957 for $286,125 to Bethlehem Steel for scrapping.<ref name=MARAD/>

{{Clear}}

== Footnotes ==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book | last = Charles | first = Roland W. | title = Troopships of World War II | location = Washington, D.C. | publisher = Army Transportation Association |date=April 1947 | oclc = 1871625 }}
* {{cite book | last = Crowell | first = Benedict | authorlink = Benedict Crowell |author2=Robert Forrest Wilson  | title = The Road to France I: The Transportation of Troops and Military Supplies, 1917–1918 | url = https://books.google.com/books/pdf/The_Giant_Hand.pdf?id=vwBNAAAAMAAJ&output=pdf&sig=4B__e7P23zhYRTvm7ACYw4vByUA | format=pdf | location = New Haven | publisher = Yale University Press | year = 1921 | oclc = 287391 | accessdate = 2008-03-12 | series = How America Went To War }}
* {{cite book | last = Flayhart | first = William H. | title = Disaster At Sea: Shipwrecks, Storms, and Collisions on the Atlantic | location = [[New York City|New York]] | publisher = [[W. W. Norton & Co.]] | year = 2005 | isbn = 978-0-393-32651-2 | oclc = 56913373 }}
* {{Gleaves}}
* {{cite DANFS | author = [[Naval History and Heritage Command]] | url = https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/s/siboney-i.html | title = Siboney I (ID-2999) 1918–1919 | date = | accessdate = 9 November 2018 | link = off }}
* {{cite book | last = Schiff | first = Stacy | authorlink = Stacy Schiff | title = Saint-Exupéry: A Biography | location = New York | publisher = Henry Holt | edition = 1st Owl Books | origyear = 1994 | date = 7 February 2006 | isbn = 978-0-8050-7913-5 | oclc = 3283832 }}
* {{DANFS}} <!-- link not included because it is cited above -->
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons and category|USS Siboney (ID-2999)|USS Siboney (ID-2999)}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061020191758/http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-s/id2999.htm USS ''Siboney'' (ID-2999) photo archive] from the U.S. Navy Historical Center
* {{navsource|12/172999}}
* Photos of SS ''Siboney'' from [http://www.wardline.com/ Wardline.com]: <!-- images of unknown copyright status -->
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20071026014600/http://www.wardline.com/albums/album_image/4583812/1380025.htm Interior of Stateroom No. 1, c. 1925]
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20071011034314/http://www.wardline.com/albums/album_image/4557875/1378595.htm Docked at Havana, 1 March 1930]
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20071019090909/http://www.wardline.com/albums/album_image/4557875/1359633.htm Preparing to dock at Vera Cruz, c. 1934]
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20071019090807/http://www.wardline.com/albums/album_image/4557875/1359648.htm Dockside at Vera Cruz, c. 1937]
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20071019085849/http://www.wardline.com/albums/album_image/4557875/1359649.htm In "Cuba Mail Line" livery at New York, c. 1939]

{{featured article}}
{{1920 shipwrecks}}
{{1929 shipwrecks}}
{{April 1941 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siboney}}
[[Category:Ships built by William Cramp & Sons]]
[[Category:World War I auxiliary ships of the United States]]
[[Category:Transport ships of the United States Army]]
[[Category:Hospital ships of the United States Army]]
[[Category:Ships of the Ward Line]]
[[Category:1917 ships]]
[[Category:Ships of American Export-Isbrandtsen Lines]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1920]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1928]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1929]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in April 1941]]