Today the Christmas Ship is Chicago’s largest all volunteer charitable support program for inner city youth and their families at Christmas time. At the turn of the twentieth century, the “Christmas Tree Ship” was a family business. In the mid 1880s, August and … Continue reading
Category Archives: Ships
In the United States, we have seen an explosion of so-called “reality TV,” which is usually more akin to unscripted soap opera than reality, fortunately. In Canada, however, the CBC has some wonderful programming which is reality television in … Continue reading
Valeska Paris recently appeared on the Australian television program “Lateline” where she charged that she was held for twelve years against her will on the cruise ship MV Freewinds, a ship operated by the Church of Scientology. The ship, the … Continue reading
Twenty five years ago today, the ore-bulk-oil carrier MV Kowloon Bridge sank off the coast of West Cork with a cargo of 165,000 tons of iron ore and 2,000 tons of bunker oil, becoming the world’s largest shipwreck by tonnage. The Kowloon … Continue reading
After an lovely warm November, winter is beginning to settle in here on the banks of the Hudson River, so it feels like a good time to feature a video of warm water, blue sky and white sails. Here is a video shot by Jimmy … Continue reading
The gangway to HMS Belfast, collapsed into the Thames River in London shortly after noon today. Two work men are reported to have been taken to the hospital with what are described as abrasions. More than 100 people on board the ship, including 30 school … Continue reading
The Naval Heritage Society is attempting to to build a full-scale, fully functional replica of of the USS Hornet, a sloop of war built in 1805, which had a successful career in the War of 1812 and beyond, before being lost in a hurricane in … Continue reading
On November 21st, at IMO Headquarters in London, Captain Seog Hae-gyun was awarded the IMO Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea for 2011 “for his decisive, brave and courageous actions to protect his ship and crew during a vicious pirate attack … Continue reading
Last Friday night, only twelve hours into a 15 day Mediterranean voyage, the research vessel Atlantis received a mayday call, relayed by the Greek Coast Guard reporting a fishing boat in distress about 40 miles away, near the island of … Continue reading
The impact of the ongoing budget crisis in Britain on the Royal Navy has been far reaching. Last week we posted about concerns that budget cuts would leave Britain with a shortage of attack submarines. Recently, it was revealed that the … Continue reading
Update: Prince William co-piloted the Sea King helicopter which rescued two crew from the sinking Swanland. Prince William serves with RAF Valley in north Wales. The bulk carrier Swanland is reported to have sunk this morning off north Wales in heavy … Continue reading
The World War II era US Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk is scheduled to be scuttled in 2012, 16 miles off the coast of Sanibel Island, FL in the Gulf of Mexico to serve as an artificial reef. Veteran’s Memorial Reef planned off … Continue reading
The British Tall Ship Youth Trust has published a new development plan detailing some significant changes in the organization, including the planned sale of the one remaining tall ship owned by the Trust, the Stavros S Niarchos. In September of … Continue reading
When the RMS Titanic sank on April 15, 1912, a number of those who died were celebrities of their day, including the American millionaires John Jacob Astor IV and Benjamin Guggenheim. Canadian railroad president Charles Melville Hays and Isidor Straus, American owner of … Continue reading
The schooner Lady Maryland is being dry docked at Chase’s Wharf in Fells Point to replace rotted sections of the stem and to refasten the hull as necessary. The docking and repairs are expected to take around four months and … Continue reading
A report by Britain’s National Audit Office revealed that the Ministry of Defense is concerned that recent budget cuts have put the country at risk due to a shortage of modern attack submarines. The National Audit Office said delays to … Continue reading
Last month we posted that tanker charter rates were at the lowest they have been in 14 years and that the number of large tankers in lay up was approaching levels similar to those during the slump in the 1980′s. This … Continue reading
The Thames sailing barge was a remarkably efficient cargo carrier that lasted well into the 20th century before being replaced by diesel trucks. We have followed the rebuilding and the relaunching of the Thames sailing barge Cambria, which was the last British … Continue reading
The USS George HW Bush, the tenth of the Nimitz class, is the US Navy’s newest aircraft carrier. It cost $6.2 billion to build and is powered by two nuclear reactors which can develop 260,000 shaft horsepower. The carrier can … Continue reading
The Maritime Museum of San Diego brags that the Star of India is the oldest active sailing ship in the world. This weekend they demonstrated how they can make that claim. The Star of India, built at Ramsey Shipyard in … Continue reading