The Big "U"

            After the end of World War II the United States government realized how valuable large liners were as troopships.  The United States Lines and other American shipping companies had been behind European lines in terms of tonnage, size, luxury, and scope.  Not since the conversion of the German Vaterland (1914) into Leviathan in the 1920s had Americans operated a super liner.  In the late 1940s, with the possibility of another world war and in an attempt to put an American mark on Atlantic travel, plans were made to built an American super liner.  The United States Lines received a generous subsidy (not unlike Cunard in earlier decades) and design directives from the Pentagon to build a vessel that could be rapidly converted into a troopship if needed.

1960s Revell 1:600 model kit, built 2004.  Original c1952 deck plans.

            In secret, naval architect William Francis Gibbs designed the most advanced liner yet built, the United States.  Because of her wartime potential, she was designed to be the fastest liner in the world and also the safest.  All of the machinery had back-up systems if she were to be torpedoed.  New materials such as aluminum and synthetics were used throughout the ship and rendered her fireproof.  It was said the only wood on board were the butcher’s blocks and Steinway piano (supposedly Gibbs asked for a metal coated piano, but Steinway refused).  She was consequently much lighter than any other passenger vessel of the day.

1:1200 Hornby-Minic model with Tri-ang Minic Ocean Terminal and dock accessories.

            In 1952 the United States was floated out of her drydock- rather than launched- after a simple ceremony.  It was clear to onlookers that this was a tremendously modern ship.  She is long and sleek with curved superstructure, single mast, and two raked funnels topped with fins.  In a touch of bitter irony, there is a jet-like quality to her futuristic design.  On her maiden voyage in July 1952, she broke the Queen Mary’s best time with a crossing in 3 days, 10 hours and 40 minutes at an average speed of 35.59 knots. This was a speed that no liner could match and to this day no passenger liner has beat the United States.  Though top-secret in the 1950s, it was later revealed that the ship reached speeds of 42 knots on her sea trials and an astonishing 20 knots in reverse! 

The sleek lines of the United States imply speed.  She looks fast!

The ship’s interiors were very modern and functional, but opulent for their simplicity.  Passengers in all accommodations welcomed central air conditioning and sophisticated motion stabilizers that helped compensate for rough weather on the North Atlantic.  Passengers also enjoyed, for the first time, an American superliner that served alcohol (unlike Leviathan during Prohibition) and was filled with passengers of all stripes. 

United States passing the Statue of Liberty (one of the less common Tri-ang mimic models).

Unfortunately, United States came to sea at the wrong time.  While passenger lists were solid in the early years, she too lost travelers to jet airliners.  She sailed on longer than the Queens despite the losses, but the end of the government subsidy in 1969 made her uneconomical to operate.  She completed her final voyage in November and was subsequently laid up. Her furnishings were sold at auction and the ship slowly deteriorated in Newport News.  

Side view in harbor with Tri-ang mimic accessories.

From the early 1970s she was in limbo: the Navy briefly considered her for conversion to a hospital ship, ship breakers made offers, and several owners bough her with plans for conversion into a cruise ship.  From Newport News she  was moved to Turkey by one of the owners and again to Philadelphia, where she is docked today.  In 2010-211 ship breakers again tried to buy her from then-owners Norwegian Cruise Line but were blocked by a counter offer from a preservation group.  Today the SS United States Conservancy owns the vessel and is raising money to preserve her.  One plan is for the ship to become part of a larger development to revitalize the Philadelphia waterfront.  New York City may also be the new home for the empty vessel.  Time will tell what will happen to her.

S.S. United States (1952-1969, laid up 1969-present).  Built for United States Lines by Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Newport News, Virginia. 53,329 GRT, 990 feet long, 101 feet wide.  Steam turbines geared to quadruple screw.  Service speed 33 knots. 1,928 total passengers (871 first class, 508 cabin class, 549 tourist class).

The Green Goddess

After the end of World War II the Cunard Line (no longer Cunard-White Star, Ltd.) predicted that cruising would become a popular pastime, particularly among older and wealthier vacationers.  One of the first new ships built after the war, Caronia was designed to be a first class cruise ship, and the first major vessel designed to cruise all year.  She was the first Cunarder to have an outdoor swimming pool (previous vessels had indoor pools) and the first passenger vessel painted entirely in shades of green.  She was the first liner to feature a bath or shower in every stateroom, regardless of class and catered to a small number of passengers waited on by a crack staff.  In her prime, she had 600 stewards serving a maximum of 600 but usually fewer passengers.  The service kept passengers coming back to her again and again.

Caronia in harbor.  1:1200Model by Tri-ang Minic, repainted January 2014 with Hansa steam tug and Tri-ang Minic harbor accessories.

Affectionately known as “the green goddess,” she sailed a relaxed schedule of cruises in the Pacific, around Africa or in the West Indies.  Each January, she departed for a three month world cruise.  Some passengers stayed on board for months, and one very wealthy woman reportedly sailed on voyages for a record of 15 years!  Caronia was a floating country club, a grand hotel, and a seaside resort all in one. 

Note the green hull but traditional Cunard colors on the funnel.

While the number of transatlantic passengers declined in the early 1960s, cruise passengers held steady.  However, by the end of the decade passengers were attracted to newer ships and Caronia's numbers dropped as well.  She was retired soon after the Queen Mary and awaited her fate.  In 1969 she was sold to a Greek shipping company and renamed Caribia.  During one the voyages for her new owners she was damaged by fire and laid up until 1974 when she was sold for scrap.  During the long voyage from New York to the Taiwanese ship breakers, she grounded during a storm near Guam and broke in three.  The wreckage was a serious hazard to shipping and was cut up on the spot.  An ignominious end to a beloved vessel.

End of the Caribia, ex-Caronia. By Erwin N. Thompson, US Army Corps of Engineers [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Caronia (1948-1974) built by John Brown & Company, Ltd., Clydebank, Scotland for Cunard line.  34,172 GRT, 715 feet long, 91 feet wide, steam turbines geared to twin screw.  Service speed 22 knots.  600 Passengers for all first class cruising, for some voyages, 923 passengers maximum (581 first class and 351 in cabin class).

Queen Elizabeth

The subsidy Canard-White Star received to construct and operated Queen Mary also provided capital to build a second ship.  Cunard envisioned a two ship express service on the Southampton-Cherbourg-New York run.  Early in the century, the express run was idealized with three ships to maintain weekly service, but size and speed made two ships more economical than three in the late 1930s. The running mate to Queen Mary was not intended to be a sister ship in the way of Bremen and Europa or Cunard’s Lusitania and Mauretania, but rather a vessel all her own in design, but similar in speed.  Running mate is a more appropriate word to describe the Queen Elizabeth. 

1:600 scale Queen Elizabeth model with 1950s promotional poster and luggage tag.
The model is an Airfix kit built in 2003.

The new Queen began her life under the clouds of war.  She was launched in 1938 on the eve of Hitler’s promise for peace.  However, war was declared early during the ship’s fitting out period that few of the furnishings were installed.  Engineers fitted the crucial operating machinery and under a veil of secrecy prepared her for service.  The public expected grand festivities to see the vessel off from Southampton.  While these were canceled, Cunard made no public statements about the maiden voyage.  As the new liner prepared to leave the Clyde, her captain received sealed orders from the Admiralty.  Queen Elizabeth would not call on Southampton but sail under cover of darkness for New York.  On the day of her expected arrival in the English Channel, German bombers circled above, ready to sink her.  Crates of supplies marked as ready for the Queen were left idling in warehouses as the liner zig zagged at full speed to still-neutral United States waters.

1:1200 model by Tri-ang Minic produced in the 1960s, repainted December 2013.  Model positioned amongTri-ang Minic dock accessories, mix of 1960s and new production line models.

Four days later an airliner spots a large ship in the fog in the approaches to New York harbor.  Newsreel cameras head aloft and film the conclusion to the most dramatic maiden voyage in history.  With speed and secrecy, Queen Elizabeth shocked a delighted public with such an unannounced arrival.  It was attended with relief on both sides of the Atlantic as well, for the largest ship in the world was going to be needed for the British war effort. 

For a brief interval in 1940 the world’s largest ships were docked together in New York:  Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary, Normandie, and Aquitaina (serving in a second conflict).  In 1941 Queen Elizabeth sailed for the Pacific and joined Queen Mary on trooping duties.  In 1942 she carried thousands of American and Canadian soldiers to war.  At war’s end, she brought the veterans home and helped immigrants and refugees move to new places to begin new lives.

Queen Elizabeth in His Majesty's service.  Photograph by Royal Navy official photographer [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

In June 1946 the Queen Elizabeth returned to Cunard for long-delayed fitting out as a luxury liner.  Her much anticipated maiden voyage was sold out and she quickly settled into service. In 1947 the Queens operated the first two-ship express service between Europe and America.  There was a sailing every Wednesday from New York and Thursday from Southampton (with calls at Cherbourg and sometimes Fishgaurd or Queenstown).  

Postcard depicting an arrival in New York.

The ships left a new art-deco facility at Ocean Dock, renamed Ocean Terminal.  The building was designed in the 1930s but construction halted during the long years of war.  It belatedly opened in 1950 and served the Queens for the next two decades.  The building was demolished in the 1980s to make way for a simpler structure and to accommodate newer cruise ships.

Queen Elizabeth at sea.

Alongside the superliners on the Atlantic were a quartet of the Scythia class single stackers from the 1920s, The second Mauretania (1939) was also part of the express service along with new tonnage built in the early 1950s for cruising.  The intended consort to Mauritania was Caronia (1948)* but sensing the future, outfitted the new ship solely for cruising.  Painted in shades of green, she was an all first class ship- a floating country club making trips to the tropics and Mediterranean.    

Stern view of Queen Elizabeth at Ocean Terminal.

The 1950s were the final years of the great Atlantic liners. More people than ever were crossing the Atlantic on holiday, business, and politics.  For those on vacation, Cunard boasted that “getting there was half the fun” and indeed it was.  The early 1960s were rough years for Cunard and the other lines.  Passengers chose jets over ships and the bookings rapidly declined.  By 1965 there were often more crew members than passengers on the Queens.  By then, most of the smaller ships were withdrawn from service.  Queen Mary was retired in 1967 and Queen Elizabeth in 1968.

Queen Elizabeth had very sleek and modern lines.  1:1250 model by Mercator/Skytrex.

Queen Elizabeth  left service as Cunard’s builder John Brown & Company, worked to complete the newest liner (QE2), a ship designed for both Atlantic crossings and cruising.  After her final crossing, she was sold to investors in Port Everglades, Florida to become a floating hotel.  The plans fell through and the ship was sold to a Taiwanese millionaire who refit her as a floating university and cruise ship.  Renamed Seawise University she caught fire in 1972 and capsized in Hong Kong harbor.  A sad ending to a splendid vessel.

R.M.S. Queen Elizabeth (1940-1968) Built for Cunard-White Star, Ltd. By John Brown & Company, Ltd., Clydebank, Scotland.  83,673 gross tons; 1,031 feet long, 118 feet wide, steam turbines geared to quadruple screw.  Service speed 28.5 knots.  As built, 2,238 passengers (823 first class, 662 cabin class, 798 tourist class).

*Steamship companies frequently reused names of famous and profitable ships. 

Hail the Queen!

Facing fierce competition from the Art Deco German super liners Bremen (1929) and Europa (1930) and the stunningly decorated Ile de France (1926) British shipping began planning new, ultra modern ships to compete on the Atlantic ferry.  White Star Line was planning a ship of at least 60,000 tons and rival Canard developed plans for a huge 80,000 ton liner that they hoped would be the largest and fastest ship.  The onset of the Great Depression halted these plans.  Canard and White Star were forced to merge in order to stay afloat (pun intended) and with the merger came a combined fleet of splendid vessels, but ships losing money to diminished traffic.  The new company Canard-White Star, Ltd., faced new competition on the Atlantic by the mid-30s:  the elegant Rex (1932) sailing from Italy and the massive-- and faster-- Normandie (1935) from France.  When these ships entered service they were the fastest liners afloat and Normandie was the largest.  At 81,000 tons (later refitted to 83,000) she was by far the heaviest ship yet built.  

In Scotland, the British contender sat rusting on the stocks for two and a half years as depression halted construction.  In 1934, Cunard-White Star sold or scrapped much of the fleet to build capital and Parliament granted a large subsidy to the company to resume construction on the new ship.  Why the subsidy?  For one, national pride was at stake.  Britain always sough to be the best on the seas, the North Atlantic in particular.  Workers needed encouragement and jobs to show that the Depression would end.  Construction of the massive liner put many shipwrights, ironworkers, carpenters, etc back to work in Glasgow and in the other firms that supplied parts and machinery.  The ship, simply known as Hull 534 was a symbol of national recovery.  In addition to the ship’s civic and economic value, was the notion that a super liner may be needed for war duties as some in the British government sensed that another conflict with Germany may loom near.

As Hull 534 neared completion, Cunard decided to name the ship Victoria.  Legend has it that Canard executives went to see George V to inform him they decided to name the ship after “England’s greatest queen” to which the King replied, “my wife would be delighted.”  While the veracity of this story is questionable, with much fanfare  Their Majesties launched the newest liner, Queen Mary, in September 1934.

1:1200 model of Queen Mary by Triang-Minic resting on frontispiece for James Steele's Queen Mary.  Original Cunard luggage tag and photo postcard circa 1960s.

The new ship entered service in 1936 with a competitive tonnage of 81,237 and length of 1,018 feet and competed directly with the Normandie.  Depending on who you asked and what criteria they measured, either one was considered the world’s largest ship.  For nearly four years, they competed to be the largest and also the fastest.  The Queen Mary did not beat Normandie’s speed record on her maiden voyage, as was hoped.  A combination of rough weather and new machinery hindered her chances.  On her sixth voyage she captured the Blue Ribband, now formally the Hales’ Trophy (since 1933) with a run of 4 days 27 minutes at 30.14 knots.  Normandie subsequently made faster crossings in 1937, but the Queen won the record for good in 1938 with a crossing in under four days (3 days 21 hours and 48 minutes) at nearly 31 knots.  Queen Mary was the fastest liner in the world.

Much of the design of Queen Mary was modern, but some features such as the three funnels and the open well deck forward were classic features.  It is, perhaps, this blend of new and old that made her so popular.  It certainly gives her charm.  Revell of Germany 1:570 model kit built in 1999.  Original Cunard postcards.  The Black and White card was posted in 1936.

Queen Mary was one of the most successful liners of all time and, perhaps second to Titanic the most famous.  She was instantly popular and solidly booked throughout the first years of service despite the depression and fewer passengers making crossings.  No one has ever managed to fully understand why she was much more popular with passengers compared to Normandie, Rex, Conti di Savoia or other new vessels of the era that boasted much newer designs inside and out.  It is suggested that people shied away from Normandie because she was too elegant.  There was something comfortable about Queen Mary’s interiors.  Nothing was spared on the ship.  Hardwoods from across the empire, shiny metals, fine carpets, and artwork throughout.  Many cabins, even in tourist class had private bathrooms.  Tourist class passengers had more promenade and open deck space than before and they had a swimming pool (indoor) and children’s playroom as well.  The ship had a streamlined bridge front, gracefully rounded superstructure, and a modern cruiser stern. She also had new gravity davits that made lowering boats smoother and also hoisted them above the boat deck, allowing more room for passengers to walk.

Triang Minic model and general arrangement plans published in The Shipbuilder, 1936, 1987 reprint.

Queen Mary sailed for barely three years before the war clouds gathered and she found herself idling in the safety of New York harbor alongside Normandie and lIe de France.  In 1940 she was joined by her new companion ship, Queen Elizabeth- the undisputed largest ship in the world- to be readied for war.  In May 1940, Queen Mary began ferrying troops in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific.  These were her roughest days-- crammed with thousands of troops in the tropics-- she did so without air conditioning and inadequate ventilation for the warm climate.  In 1942 she returned to the Atlantic run ferrying Canadian and American troops to England and Scotland.  In July 1943 she set a record for carrying 16,683 people-- the largest number of soldier-passengers in a single crossing.  Special bunks, called standee bunks were installed in every possible location so that the maximum number of men could be carried.  They ate and slept in shifts.

Miraculously, Queen Mary made her wartime crossings without endangering her troops to submarine or air attack.  There were close calls however.  On one stormy crossing a massive wave nearly capsized the troop laden ship.  In 1942 she tragically collided with the destroyer HMS Curaco and cut the smaller vessel in two.  Full of troops, Queen Mary was under orders not to stop or slow down under any circumstances.  The few survivors had to wait for nearby naval vessels to rescue them.  

Queen Mary at sea. 1:1250 model by Mercator.  Rebuilt masts.

The contribution of the Atlantic liners as troopships and hospital ships cannot be underestimated or ignored.  Winston Churchill credited the Cunard Queens for shortening the war by at least a year.  In 1945-1946 Queen Mary brought the veterans and the millions of “war brides” home.  These men and women were eager to visit families, friends, and experience Europe and the world in a way the two decades of depression and war prevented.  Queen Mary returned to her peacetime role in 1947 and remained the most popular ship for years afterward.

The legendary profile of Queen Mary.  Her outline is unmistakable.

By the late 1950s, Queen Mary faced new competitors.  First, she was dethroned as the fastest liner by the American liner United States (1952), and by 1960 was losing passengers to transatlantic airliners.  All of the liners suffered declining passenger traffic during the 1960s and were once again losing money.  Smaller ships, such as the second Mauretania and Caronia were converted exclusively to cruising, a form of travel slowly gaining popularity.  By 1967 Cunard decided to retire Queen Mary from service. Fortunately, she was saved from scrappers by the city of Long Beach, California were she still serves the public as a museum, hotel, and convention center.  She made her 1,000 crossing from Southampton to New York and then to Long Beach.  The last voyage was sold out.  

R.M.S. Queen Mary (1936-1967).  Built for Canard-White Star, Ltd. by John Brown & Company, Ltd., Clydebank, Scotland.  As built: 1,018 feet long, 118 feet wide, 81,235 gross tons.  Steam turbines geared to quadruple screw.  Service speed 28.5 knots.  As built: 2,139 passengers (776, first class, 784 tourist class, 579 third class).