Update: SS United States Docking Dispute in Philadelphia Heads to Mediation

We recently posted about a tentative deal to sell the historic ocean liner SS United States to be sunk to create the world’s largest artificial reef, off the coast of Destin-Fort Walton Beach, FL in the Gulf of Mexico.  That deal is … Continue reading

Historic Ocean Liner SS United States in Deal to be Sunk as Artificial Reef

After decades of working to save the historic ocean liner SS United States, the SS United States Conservancy has made the difficult choice to sell the old liner to be sunk to create the world’s largest artificial reef, off the … Continue reading

Retired Passenger Liner SS United States Threatened by Eviction From Philadelphia Pier

The SS United States, the largest and fastest transatlantic passenger liner ever built in America, has spent the last 27 years moored at Philadephia’s Pier 82 on the Delaware River. The venerable ship is now threatened with eviction.  Yahoo reports … Continue reading

SS United States – Exploration of the Abandoned Ocean Liner

The SS United States is a ship from another era. One of the last great ocean liners, very different from modern cruise ships, she was designed to carry passengers across oceans.  On her maiden voyage in 1952, she set speed … Continue reading

SS United States Plans for Floating Hotel Moves Forward

The once-grand passenger liner SS United States may be moving closer to conversion and restoration to a floating hotel, hospitality space, and museum.  RXR Realty, a real estate owner, operator, and developer in the New York Tri-State area, has partnered … Continue reading

Crystal Says No to SS United States — Not Feasible to Return to Service

Last February we posted “Will the SS United States Sail Again? Crystal Cruises Tosses a Life Line.”  Crystal Cruises had signed an option to purchase the ship and was undertaking a feasibility study to determine whether the ship could be economically … Continue reading

Will the SS United States Sail Again? Crystal Cruises Tosses a Life Line

In October, the SS United States Conservancy announced that it had retained the services of a broker to explore selling the SS United States for scrap. Prospects for the ship looked dire. In a dramatic reversal of fortune, Crystal Cruises has … Continue reading

Donations Help Keep SS United States Afloat Well into Next Year

Great news from the SS United States Conservancy.  At the beginning of October, the  Conservancy announced that its board had retained the services of a broker to explore selling the SS United States for scrap “over concerns about the organization’s … Continue reading

A New Home in Red Hook, Brooklyn for the SS United States?

In early October, the headline in the Philadephia Inquirer was Is the S.S. United States headed toward the scrap yard?. After years of attempting to save the iconic cruise ship, the SS United States Conservancy announced that the SS United States, … Continue reading

Buying Time – Scrambling to Raise Half Million to Save SS United States from Scrap Yard

The SS United States Conservancy is scrambling to raise $500,000 to buy time in their effort to save the ex-passenger liner SS United States.  If they fail, the ship could be sold for scrap.  The conservancy is exploring potential partnerships with … Continue reading

J.P. Morgan, RMS Titanic and SS United States

What does J.P. Morgan, the American financier, and the passenger ships, RMS Titanic and SS United States have in common? Everyone knows that White Star Line, the owner of the RMS Titanic, was a British Company. Fewer are aware that White … Continue reading

Trouble on the Delaware – Three Historic Ships at Risk

The day after Philadelphia’s tall ship, the newly repaired, Gazela, arrived in New York harbor, an article in this morning’s New York Times focussed on the three historic ships in trouble on the Delaware River, in or near Philadelphia – the Olympia, the battleship … Continue reading