Move of SS United States from Philadelphia this week is delayed

Plans this week to move the SS United States, the heralded 73-year-old ocean liner that activists had for years sought to save as a piece of maritime history, from its Philadelphia pier have been delayed, organizers said on Tuesday.

“Operations to move the SS United States have been delayed to ensure logistical details and procedures maintain ideal conditions for the move,” said Okaloosa County, Fla., which plans to sink the ship as the world’s largest artificial barrier.

Planners were also monitoring a tropical disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico “that could impede safe delivery of the vessel” to its first stop, Mobile, Ala., according to the announcement.

“Like most large, multi-faceted operations, this move involves coordination with multiple agencies and dates, times, and other logistics are subject to change to make certain the vessel is moved safely,” the county said.

No new date for the move has been set.

The effort to relocate the ship was originally set to begin just before noon on Thursday, with a move from its longtime home at Pier 82 to Pier 80, which organizers say is a better spot for it to be towed from at low tide.

Plans had called for tugboats to begin maneuvering the liner into the Delaware River to begin its two-week journey to Mobile on Friday morning.

Bittersweet farewell

When the time comes, the bon voyage from its berth after nearly 30 years will be bittersweet as the destiny of the nearly 1,000-foot-long ship is hardly what preservationists had in mind.

Instead of being converted into a museum or upscale hospitality and cultural center as its owners had once hoped, the SS United States is instead destined to be sunk off the coast of Florida in what will become the world’s largest artificial reef.  

The sinking of the ship, which was once described as America’s Greatest Ocean Liner, is at least at year away as it will first be moved to Mobile, where it will be prepared to be scuttled off the Florida Panhandle by its new owner, Okaloosa County.

Those preparations include removing hazardous materials and fuel to ensure the sunken ship will be environmentally safe.

The SS United States will join another high-profile artificial reef, a decommissioned Essex Class attack aircraft carrier, the USS Oriskany, which was sunk off the coast of Pensacola, Fla., in 2006.

Okaloosa County commissioners earmarked up to $10 million to buy, transport, dock and sink the SS United States in the hopes that it will become home to diverse marine life in the Gulf of Mexico and a unique attraction for scuba divers.

You can keep tabs on the ship’s journey in real time at this website.

‘Beating the odds’ but only for so long

In a report, the SS United States Conservancy, which owns the ship said, “We have been beating the odds year after year as we care for an irreplaceable historic asset, a horizontal skyscraper 100 feet longer than the Titanic.”

But those odds finally caught up to the conservancy as it found itself embroiled in a lawsuit this year in federal court with its landlord over overdue rent.

That, in turn, put in motion eviction proceedings and a mad scramble to try to find a new home for the ship. Faced with a court-ordered deadline (and mediation), the conservancy ran out of time to find a berth that was both available and large enough to accommodate the ship.

The conservancy had made it clear in recent months that it reluctantly viewed the reefing of the ocean liner as a possible outcome after having invested years in spearheading other projects to restore it to its former glory.

So, it all comes as a bit of an ignominious end to a luxury passenger ship with a storied past.

Ship for the history books

In its heyday in the 1950s and 60s, the ship was as celebrated as much as other noteworthy cruise ships, like the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth, and had the glitz and glamor to attract among its passengers celebrities like Bob Hope, Rita Hayworth and Duke Ellington.

It was even used as a movie set for feature films, such as the 1955 musical-comedy “Gentlemen Marry Brunettes,” starring Jane Russell, according to the conservancy.

The ship enjoyed a reputation for top-line amenities, including a theater, a first-class lounge with a stage and dance floor and an indoor pool.

Beyond its luxurious accommodations, the ship was remarkable for several design features, including propellers with a proprietary design by the U.S. Defense Department that allowed it to reach impressive speeds, and a reliance on more aluminum in its construction than any prior project in history to help reduce its weight, according to the conservancy.

All of that contributed to the SS United States making the transatlantic crossing in three days and 12 hours, cutting the travel time by nine hours and shattering the previous record held by the Queen Mary.

The achievement was heralded in black-and-white newsreels, complete with brass band music in the background as a narrator declared that a “a new queen has been crowned.”

“Sleek, streamlined and trimmed, she completes the 2,900-mile run with an average of almost 40 land miles an hour,” the narrator says, later adding: “Anyone who’s ever been aboard realizes that it’s impossible to describe the experience. The only way to know what it’s like is to travel on the American champion of the ocean.”

Preserving artifacts for museum

A preservation team has been working to identify and remove items of significance from the ocean liner that will be incorporated into a state-of-the-art museum and visitor center in Florida, according to the conservancy.

“The team has been tirelessly working to tag, document, and photograph important ship items,” the group said on Facebook.

Okaloosa County has pledged up to $1 million in “hard costs” to support the construction of a land-based museum. The museum is expected to feature a one-of-a-kind experience for visitors and include iconic components from the ship, including the vessel’s radar mast and at least one of her signature funnels.