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

Storage

Another phase of the preparation presented itself, the storage of provisions. The combined experience of the leading men in the department was brought into play to solve the many problems involved, to provide for storing and keeping of over two millions of pounds of provisions in the space allotted. The principal items and their quantities required for this loading were as follows: 200,000 lbs. of flour, 60,000 lbs. tinned meats, 25,000 lbs. salt meats, 120,000 lbs. smoked meats, 260,000 lbs. fresh meats, 25,000 lbs. turkey and fowl, 30,000 doz. eggs, 140,000 lbs. beans, 75,000 tinned vegetables, 420,000 fresh vegetables, 22,000 cereals, 145,000 dried, tinned and preserved fruits, 175,000 fresh fruits, 40,000 lbs. coffee, 3,000 lbs. cocoa, 2,500 lbs. tea, 60,000 evaporated milk, 5,000 qts. fresh milk, 5,000 qts. of cream, 40,000 lbs. fresh butter, 15,000 lbs. of lard, 15,000 lbs. salt, 175,000 lbs. of sugar.

These quantities were estimated to subsist 10,000 troops twenty-five days and 1,400 crew one hundred and twenty days.

Careful consideration had to be given to the location, size, drainage and estimated temperatures of the various storerooms and cold storage. Also the items of provisions and quantities of each item required and the storeroom best adapted by size and accessibility. This was worked out so successfully that when the actual provisioning was finished only about five hundred packages were left out of the allotted spaces due to the fact that at the last moment, passages had to be left in several rooms to give access to manhole plates leading into the double bottoms.

The cold storage spaces were an unknown quantity, only uncertain data (not from German sources) being available concerning the temperatures of the various compartments. However, this part of the provisioning was also successfully finished and it might be well to state that since the first loading, to the end of hostilities, only about 3,000 pounds of meats, and 6,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables were lost through deterioration.

Enough provisions were carried in the ship to approximate the supply of ten battleships and one supply ship. This comparison was often used when explaining to distinguished guests the enormous size of the Leviathan’s larder.

During this phase of the work great consideration was given to the method of issuing the food to the individual soldier. No data was obtainable except the general requirements of the army regulation. How to make these requirements fit into the planned system of feeding was a problem, which however was so successfully solved that the Leviathan system of issue was, either in whole or in part, practically adopted for all transports.

The general scheme is an elaboration on a rough, but efficient system of feeding landing forces of sailors at Guantanamo, where it was the custom to land the various ship battalions and go into camp at Deer Point for small arms practice.

The equipment then was a limited one, namely, a mess table at the foot of each company street and four syrup barrels filled with soap and water for washing the mess gear. From this crude idea was built up a system that operates as follows:

In the after end of the troop mess hall are placed twelve tanks fitted with direct steam jets. These tanks have specially fitted tops and are capable of holding eight insets or food containers, each container holding about seventy pounds of food or coffee. The steam jet is turned on when the tank is filled with the food containers, thus enabling the food to be placed ready for serving, some time before the messing, keeping the food warm and palatable.

This tank, or serving station, contains such items of the meal as meats, gravy, vegetables and beverages. In addition to each serving station is an auxiliary serving table from which is served, bread, butter and desserts. Each serving station and table has a detail of four men and a messing sergeant who draws the food from the galley and serves to the men as they file past their particular station.

The men march from their compartments under control of their compartment officer in four lines, two from forward and two from aft, meeting on E-deck at the grand staircase leading into the troop mess hall coming down the staircase four abreast. When in the mess hall the column is split into twelve lines and pass the serving stations at a slow walk through to the mess tables. When finished, they go on to the forward end of the mess hall, where there are the washing tanks somewhat similar to the tanks at the serving stations. These tanks have hot soapy and clear water in which the men wash and rinse their mess gear, returning to their compartments by other established routes. All the mess lines, both to and from the mess, are kept under control so that in case of an emergency during the messing the men may be brought to their proper stations quickly and without confusion. This arrangement of the messing lines and mess hall has kept intact and separate the feeding space of the troops from their sleeping quarters, an arrangement of much sanitary value and in evidence only upon United States Navy transports.