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| SHIP NOTES: (Gentile, Jordan) |
| Name: William Rockefeller |
Type: tanker; built 1921 |
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| Date Sunk: June 28, 1942 |
Cause: Sunk by U-701 |
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| Size (ft.): 572 x 75 x 31 |
Tonnage: 14,054 |
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| Propulsion: steam reciprocating engine/2 props; speed 11.5 kts |
Location - unknown; sinking reported ENE of Diamond Shoals Light Buoy |
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| The William Rockefeller was enroute from Aruba to New York carrying over 135,000 barrels of bunker c fuel oil when she crossed paths with the U-701. A torpedo struck amidships on the port side igniting a furious inferno. The ship was abandoned approximately 15 minutes after the torpedo hit. All 50 members of its crew (44 crew members and 6 Naval Armed Guard) survived the attack and were taken to the Ocracoke Coast Guard Station by CG-470. The ship continued to drift ablaze and sunk 11 hours after the intial attack by means of a second torpedo from the U-701. The u-boat successfully avoided by aerial and naval counter attacks. [Note: At the time of its sinking, the William Rockefeller was one of the largest tankers in the world and the largest to be lost off the North Carolina coast. |
