USS Freedom (ID-3024) was a cargo and transport ship in the United States Navy in World War I. Originally Wittekind for the North German Lloyd line, the ship also served as USAT Iroquois and USAT Freedom after being seized by the United States in 1917.
Wittekind was built in Germany for the Bremen – New York service of the Roland Line service of North German Lloyd, and was the sister ship of . In March 1900 Wittekind was lengthened because her cargo capacity was found lacking. Later that same year, Wittekind was among the first transports to carry German Empire troops as part of the Eight-Nation Alliance intended to put down the Boxer Rebellion in China. In August 1914, at the start of World War I, the ship was interned at Boston in the neutral United States.
When the US entered the war in April 1917, Wittekind was seized and turned over to the United States Shipping Board. Renamed Iroquois, the ship was chartered to the United States Army as a cargo ship after a refit, and, in 1918, was renamed Freedom. In January 1919 the ship was commissioned into the United States Navy, and carried almost 5,000 troops home from Europe before her decommissioning in September. Held in reserve for transport duty, the ship was laid up for five years before being scrapped in 1924.
Wittekind
Wittekind was built by Blohm & Voss of Hamburg for North German Lloyd's Roland Line, which was a fortnightly steerage and freight service between Bremen and New York. Launched on 3 February 1894, Wittekind—named for Wittekind (c. 730–808), the Duke of Saxony — and sister ship Willehad were the first twin-screw steamers expressly built for North German Lloyd. The new liner sailed on her maiden voyage to Hoboken, New Jersey on 14 April. Wherever the work was performed, it was completed by March 1900. Wittekind <nowiki>'</nowiki>s wireless operator calculated that the ship passed fewer than from Essex. The steamer was interned by the US and her Canadian-bound passengers—18 cabin-, and 305 steerage-class who were not allowed to remain in the United States—were greeted by the Canadian Commissioner of Immigration who was stationed at Boston.
After the US declared war on Germany, Wittekind and the other interned ships were seized on 6 April 1917 and handed over to the United States Shipping Board (USSB).
She arrived at Hoboken on 5 September 1919 and was assigned to duty in the 3rd Naval District. Freedom was decommissioned at New York on 23 September and returned to the USSB the same day.