Richmond History: SS Red Oak Victory Mystery Cache
Richmond History: SS Red Oak Victory
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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This cache is part of a series of caches dedicated to the History of Richmond, CA. "The City of Pride and Purpose". This cache is located at the historic site of the Kaiser Shipyards at the end of Canal Blvd in Richmond, CA.
About the Cache:
NOTE: THE CACHE IS NOT AT THE POSTED COORDINATES.
The final location will take you to a rather large historic monument. You will end this cache very near the SS Red Oak Victory. Read below for details about this WWII vessel. In order to find the cache, you will need to assemble the final coordinates from observations that you will make at each of the 3 cache stages.
The Final Coordinates are: N 37° 5?.???, W 122° 2?.???
At the starting coordinates (Stage 1): There is a very prominent sign. Count the number of letters in each row of the sign.
At Stage 2: Take note of all the address numbers on the Port Directory Sign.(List them in order.)
At Stage 3: Looking at the sign posted on the fence in front of you. There are 3 years mentioned on this sign. Which year is mentioned second?
To complete the Northern Coordinates. Refer to the address numbers you wrote down at (Stage 2). Add together every other number(The 1st, 3rd, 5th & 7th) and then subtract 983. You should have a 4 digit number that will complete the Northern Coordinates.
To Complete the Western Coordinates. Take the total number of letters in the bottom line of the sign at Stage 1 and multiply by 2. Then add the number of letters in the middle line, then subtract that number from the year on the sign at Stage 3. You should have a 4 digit number that will complete the Western Coordinates.
Now you have your complete coordinates and should lead you to the cache.
History SS Red Oak Victory
The Victory Ship was built as a replacement for the Liberty ship, which was produced in great numbers right up through the middle of 1944. Based on the venerable British "tramp steamer," the Liberty was already old-fashioned when World War II began. It was under-powered (with a reciprocating steam engine), slow, unsophisticated, and vulnerable. But it was simple, sturdy, reliable, and easy to build and maintain. During the war it became the workhorse of the cargo convoys plodding the sea lanes to the European and Pacific theatres of war.
The Victory Ship was simply an improvement of the Liberty model. Somewhat larger, it was also much faster than its older sister, utilizing a much more modern steam turbine engine. With its greater speed, the Victory could outrun the submarine wolf packs and could sail in relative safety outside of a convoy. It was also expected that the new Victory would be able to operate successfully in peacetime in the post-war period.
A total of 411 Victory ships were built during the war, 142 of them in Richmond Kaiser Shipyards. Most (110) of the ships built in Richmond were of the VC2-S-AP2 type (like the Red Oak Victory), equipped with 6000 hp engines. The remainder were either the AP3 type or the AP5 type, which were equipped with 8,500 hp engines. The first Victory launched in Richmond was the SS Ethiopia Victory, an AP3, sent down the ways on April 20, 1944. The U.S. Navy specifically designated 10 of the Richmond AP2 Victory ships as ammunition carriers, and the Red Oak Victory was one of this group. She was delivered to the Navy on December 5, 1944, as the USS Red Oak Victory, Cmdr John S. Sayers in command.
In February, the USS Red Oak Victory sailed (without a convoy) to Ulithi Atoll in the Philippines, the largest naval facility in the world at the time, and began its task of delivering its cargo of ammunition to warships. It then went on to Leyte Gulf, where it remained for the rest of the war, and continued to supply ammunition to combat vessels. Some damage was sustained in these dangerous operations. No damage was sustained by enemy action, but at Ulithi, the Red Oak Victory was in sight several kamikaze attacks on neighboring war vessels.
Following World War II, the USS Red Oak Victory was returned to the Maritime Commission and became officially the SS (Screw Steamer) Red Oak Victory. Several different steamship lines made use of her services in the following years. She was active during the Korean War, and during the later 1950s ferried emergency grain shipments to India, Pakistan, and other eastern ports. From 1965 to 1968, she was again active, carrying cargo to ports in Viet Nam. The last of 13 voyages to Viet Nam was completed on December 16, 1968. After this voyage, the SS Red Oak Victory was laid up in the Suisun Reserve Fleet, where she remained until 1998, when she was acquired by the Richmond Museum Association.
Today the ship is being restored as a permanent monument to offer remembrance and representation of the work that was produced here at the Kaiser Shipyards.
Credits: SS Red Oak Victory Museum
(visit link)
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)