R. W. Gallagher was a steam turbine-powered tanker built in 1938 by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation of Quincy for Standard Oil Company of New Jersey with intention of operating between the oil-producing ports of the southern United States and Mexico and the Northeast.

[1][2] The ship was named after Ralph W. Gallagher, an acting vice-president of Standard Oil at the time of construction and future president of the company.

The ceremony was attended by nearly 800 people including 450 dignitaries, such as James J. Walker, former mayor of New York, accompanied by his wife Betty Compton and Rear-Admiral Emory S. Land, head of Maritime Commission.

[3] The ship was built on the modified Isherwood bracketless principle of longitudinal framing developed by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding's naval architect H. P. Frear.

[10] Upon return the tanker proceeded to Newport News where after evaluation she was time chartered to the United States War Shipping Administration on 20 April 1942.

[12][13] R. W. Gallagher sailed from Newport News in ballast on 29 June 1942 as part of convoy KS-515 together with fifteen other merchant ships and reached Key West on 5 July.

[16] The tanker first sailed to Bolivar Roads in Galveston Bay where she stayed for two days awaiting orders from the Navy as she were to continue unescorted on her trip.

At about 01:20 on 13 July the tanker was detected by German submarine U-67 lurking outside Louisiana coast in an approximate position 28°32′N 90°59′W / 28.533°N 90.983°W / 28.533; -90.983, about 80 miles from Southwest Pass.

The tanker immediately was put ablaze amidships and started listing to starboard as her engines stopped and a short circuit knocked out all electricity.

[10] Meanwhile, the submarine seeing that the vessel does not sink rapidly fired another torpedo from approximately 500 meters to deliver coup de grâce about 10 minutes later aiming for the engines, but inexplicably missed.