History of the U.S.S. Leviathan, cruiser and transport forces, United States Atlantic fleet / Compiled from the ship's log and data gathered by the history committee on board the ship

by U.S.S. Leviathan History Committee

Description of the Vaterland and General Data

The Vaterland was built at Cuxhaven, Germany, by Blohm and Voss, shipbuilders, of Hamburg, assisted by German naval architects and German army engineers. It was launched in the early part of 1914.

The ship is equipped with 46 Yarrow boilers, German built, and are arranged in four firerooms separated by four watertight bulkheads. 8,731 tons of coal are carried and an average of 700 tons at 17½ knots up to 900 tons at 21½ knots, is burned during twenty-four hours. 5,670 tons of fresh water are carried. This allowed every man aboard, including troops carried later and crew, six gallons per day. Cooking, drinking and water for washing is included in these figures. The ship is divided into fourteen watertight compartments and all doors in the engine room spaces are controlled by compressed air and may be closed from the bridge by a master lever in case of accident or emergency.

The following list of dimensions may also be of interest: The bridge is 87 feet above the water-line. The boat deck is 101 feet above the keel. From the top of the smokestacks to the water-line is 146 feet. Fore and aft diameter of funnels is 29 feet. Athwartships diameter of funnels is 18 feet.

A crew of 1,200 was carried by the Germans and a crew of 2,240 was carried when operated by the United States Navy. This included gun’s crews, additional men for coaling at Brest, and a training complement. The ship is driven by four propellers. The shafts to which these propellers are attached are twenty-one inches in diameter. The propellers have four blades and are without a doubt the largest in existence, being fourteen feet from tip to tip. The shafts are driven by eight Parsons turbines, four in a cruising combination and four in a manœuvering combination.

The ship is equipped with five passenger and six freight elevators, each capable of lifting more than a ton.

The rudder and steering gear are the largest known and the rudder and steering engine are the largest and most powerful installed on any vessel afloat.

Concerning the ground tackle, the data is:

Stem anchor	24,000	lbs.;	chain	150	fathoms
Starboard, lower	22,000	”	”	150	fathoms
Port, lower	22,000	”	”	165	fathoms
Spare	22,000	”
Stock or stream anchor	7,000	”

The ship is equipped with a 36,000 candle power searchlight and when lighted at night may be seen for a distance of forty miles.