One of the ugly ducklings built at Hog Island the Independence Hall was built too late for the Great War, but 22 years after she was launched she was still in service and now she was in the Second World War. Early in the war, before the U.S.A. was involved the Independence Hall became a rescue ship when she picked up the crews of two ships lost to U-boats. On Oct. 17, 1939 SS Yorkshire and SS City of Mandalay were sailing in convoy HG-3 when they were sunk by U-37 and U-46 respectively. Almost 300 souls were taken aboard the Independence Hall and later landed at Bordeaux, France.

On March 7, 1942 while outbound in convoy SC-73 the Independence Hall encountered some kind of trouble and became a straggler, off Sable Island she hit a reef and broke in two and sank taking ten of her forty-seven man crew with her.