SS West Cressey was a steel-hulled cargo ship that saw a brief period of service as an auxiliary with the U.S. Navy in the aftermath of World War I.

She was laid up for much of the 1930s through lack of work, but eventually re-entered service in 1941 as mounting losses to German U-boats in the Battle of the Atlantic had increased the demand for shipping.

[5] The ship was powered by a triple expansion reciprocating steam engine,[2] driving a single screw propeller and delivering a speed of 11 knots.

[6] West Cressey's first and only voyage to Europe under Navy command began in January 1919 when the ship loaded a cargo of flour bound for Romania as part of a postwar famine relief mission.

[8] With the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, the scale of international trade fell sharply and many ships were mothballed in this period due to lack of work, West Cressey included.

West Cressey became one of the ships so reconditioned, and in March 1941 she was placed back into service with the Grace Line for a monthly charter price of $16,486.

[13] From 19 May until 13 July 1942 the ship was operating under control of the United States Army in the Southwest Pacific Area without being assigned a local fleet X number.