Posted on Tuesday, November 19, 2024

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by AMAC, D.J. Wilson

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The Titanic is a famous ship that most people have heard of, likely due to the commercially successful film highlighting the dramatic story of its sinking. But there’s an even bigger ship that has a bittersweet tale to tell – it’s the retired SS United States.

The SS United States has important claims to fame. Not only is she the largest ocean liner ever to be constructed in our country, but she is also the fastest one to cross the Atlantic in both directions, a record still held today. The SS United States proudly holds the Blue Riband from Great Britain for having the highest average speed since her maiden voyage in 1952 – even beating out the RMS Queen Mary! The ship crossed the Atlantic in just 3 days and 10 hours and 40 minutes, maintaining 36 knots or 41 mph.

Built in the early 1950s, and designed by renowned American naval architect William Francis Gibbs, the SS United States was considered advanced in her day. Thus, construction was shrouded in secrecy. Despite the confidential nature of production, her reveal was big!  In July of 1952, just days before her maiden voyage, 70,000 people came out to see her. Per SSUSC.org, this was, “…more than a sellout crowd at Yankee Stadium! The line stretched for fourteen blocks.”

The passenger ship boasted a famous roster over time to include four U.S. Presidents (Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Clinton) plus scores of famous Hollywood stars like Marlon Brando, Gary Cooper, Walt Disney, Charlton Heston, Judy Garland, Elizabeth Taylor and more! Other famous passengers included Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and even the Mona Lisa. Yes, indeed!  In 1963, Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous masterpiece traveled aboard the SS United States from its home in Paris’ famous Louvre for rounds on the east coast USA.

The ship has undeniably remarkable features to include its power, large and dramatic size, and combination of its speed and magnitude. The 900-foot-long stem-to-stern ship is over 100 feet longer than the Titanic. Just for perspective, the SS United States earned bragging rights for being taller than the New York’s Chrysler Building. Now that’s something! The ship also had the potential for being converted into a troopship if required by the Navy.

The SS United States was built with fireproof capabilities in mind and featured other innovations such as steam propulsion, hull form, and more. However, as air travel increased in popularity, the ocean liner faced passenger declines by the mid-1960s. The financial collapse of the United States Lines caused her to suddenly be withdrawn from service. Not only was a new paint job on the funnels left half-finished, but travel was abruptly canceled.

The ownership of the vessel bounced around. The SS United States was handed over to the US Maritime Administration and was laid up at Norfolk International Terminals for some time. She was sold to different owners since the 1970s. After failed attempts to restore the ship, the interior mid-century modern furnishings were auctioned off. In the early 1990s, the SS United States was towed across the Atlantic to a shipyard in the Ukraine for asbestos removal. When completed, the empty hull was returned to the US to a port in Philadelphia. That is now where she sits in decay, sadly deteriorating for upwards of 25 years.

The vessel has become an historic fixture and part of the South Philadelphia scenery. From the cafeteria windows of the IKEA across the street, folks peer out to see the iconic ship and take selfies with it in the background. Even young children are in awe, pushing aside their plates of Swedish meatballs to stare outside. Despite its timeworn presence in Philly, the SS United States has a new future waiting, one as an ocean reef. Officials in Okaloosa County, Florida, approved a $10.1 million plan to relocate the ship. The goal is to clean it up and sink it off the coast of Destin-Fort Walton Beach. Additionally, a museum and visitor center will be built to commemorate the ship.

The story doesn’t stop there, the current plan to move it this month was sadly scrapped due to low tide, weather disturbances in the Gulf of Mexico, and other “logistical details.” This has put the ship’s new life as the world’s largest artificial reef on hold. What does this mean? Only time will tell. But, for now, folks in the City of Brotherly Love will continue to enjoy the sentimental decaying ship they’ve come to know and love.