Talk:MS Torrens (1939)

Foreign registry War Shipping Administration troop ship
Torrens was somewhat unusual in that it retained Norwegian registry and identity as a U.S. War Shipping Administration, Army Transportation Corps charter agreement troop ship. Since Norway quickly established a government in exile its ships avoided the fate of occupied countries without such agency — seizure by Allied belligerents or eventually by the then "neutral" United States. The ship also illustrates the confusion among many embarked as to it being an "Army transport" — it was in practical use and from the eyes of one of the thousand or so embarked there was little difference between such a ship that was WSA under a charter agreement with the Transportation Corps (TCA in the status cards) and the actual United States Army Transports (U.S.A.T.) that were Army owned or under bareboat charter to the Army and fully under Army control and operation. Torrens was Norwegian but also WSA and "U.S. Army" as far as passengers were practically concerned. The ship and following references beyond those cited will provide those interested in the complicated relationships of allies and shipping during the war. Regardless, Torrens apparently earned the title "The Ship of Good Cheer" for its service. Palmeira (talk) 14:48, 23 September 2021 (UTC)