Four were ordered for British use but requisitioned by the United States Shipping Board (USSB) for WW I service when the U.S. entered that war.

[3] Federal Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, Kearny, N. J. modified the ships to a Gibbs & Cox design.

The original propulsion was replaced with a steam plant of four Babcock & Wilcox water-tube boilers powering a De Laval compound double reduction geared turbine for a speed of over 17 kn (20 mph; 31 km/h) on trials.

[4][5] After the Maritime Commission ruled the Baltimore Mail routes were a non-essential service in 1937 the ships were sold in 1938 to the Panama-Pacific Line for operation between the U.S. East and West coasts.

Immediately after the war, most of the ships were occupied in deploying troops for occupation duties in newly conquered Japan and in bringing home demobilizing servicemen in Operation Magic Carpet.