The 7,212 ton liberty ship E.A. Bryan, named after the former WSC president and funded by Washington State 4-H Club members, explodes while workers load it with explosives. The ship had been dedicated to former 4-H Club members who were then serving in the War.

On July 17, 1944, the E.A. Bryan and the Quinalt Victory were moored across from each other at the Port Chicago Naval Base, in the San Francisco Bay. They were being loaded with explosives when something exploded; pieces of the Quinalt Victory were recovered but the E.A. Bryan was effectively vaporized. There had been an estimated 4,600 tons of explosives and ammunition on the E.A. Bryan when it detonated.