William Francis Gibbs, the ship’s designer, would be proud — his granddaughter has guided a conservancy to protect her future.
Nearly a century ago, the SS United States was a glimmer in the eye of the late William Francis Gibbs’ eye. The attorney, who abandoned law for the love of ship design, had been drawing and dreaming up the United States his entire childhood. In July 1952, the 990-foot long ship broke transatlantic travel speed records, which it still holds, on its maiden voyage from New York City to La Havre, France. Though the ship’s been retired for more than 46 years, the last 20 have seen the iconic maritime machine docked in South Philly within sight of Christopher Columbus Boulevard.
“This is big news, yes indeed,” Susan Gibbs, the executive director of the SS United States Conservancy and the granddaughter of the ship’s designer, confirmed.
At a Feb. 4 press conference in New York, Crystal Cruises announced that it would enter into an exclusive purchase option agreement, which will effectively take the money restraints off the Conservancy’s shoulders.
“As you know, this fall we reached a very low point and issued an SOS that literally went global – it enabled us to, thankfully, raise the funding to keep the lights on and keep the ship afloat,” Gibbs told SPR. “That gave us the time, and we used that time to advance conversations with a number of parties, and it ended up in a triumphant announcement on Thursday in New York City.”
The ship, as it sits in the Delaware River, costs nearly $60,000 a month just to keep afloat. It’s been stripped completely – the furnishings were sold in an auction in the ’80s and asbestos-laden walls were ripped out, too.
The most exciting part, which Gibbs didn’t really expect, is that Crystal plans to make it an ocean-going vessel by modernizing it, bringing it back to code, refurbishing it, and turning it back into a luxury cruise vessel. It’s a project that may cost upwards of $700 million and one that will be completed only if a feasibility study, which could be finished before the end of 2016, proves it’s structurally reasonable. If Crystal moves forward into ’17, there will certainly be no tickets bought until at least the following year.
“It will be a very challenging undertaking, but we are determined to apply the dedication and innovation that has always been the ship’s hallmark,” Crystal Cruise’s president and CEO Edie Rodriguez said. “We are honored to work with the SS United States Conservancy and government agencies in exploring the technical feasibility study so we can ultimately embark on the journey of transforming her into a sophisticated luxury cruise liner for the modern era.”
For Gibbs, who’s reasonably sentimentally attached to the ship (regularly and affectionately referred to as a female object), seeing it brought back to a functioning ship and not just a stationary hotel like the Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA feels like a miracle.
“Speaking personally, I’ve always been frankly agnostic on the specifics of its rebirth or her final port of call – whether she stays In Philly or goes to New York,” she said. “Likewise, we’ve explored stationary [ideas], mixed-use, a museum, as well as scenarios like seagoing service. I guess where I come out is there’s something extraordinary about her returning to sea. For her to return to sea in a form that is modernized but still preserves her lines, her ambience, her identity and her speed… she’s up for the challenge.”
In sea trials, the ship broke 38 knots (almost 45 miles per hour) and on her record-breaking maiden voyage, she clocked in at 35 knots at two-thirds steam – still four knots faster than Queen Mary’s fastest. With four, 18-foot bronze propellers powered by eight boilers fueling four turbines that could generate 240,000 horsepower, she is a marvel of technology. Sadly, six years after her first voyage, the first transatlantic jet trip was considered a success and maritime luxury was mostly abandoned.
“My career was as a boat builder and, to me, the way the US was built, it’s pretty fascinating. It seems as if money was really no object – they used the best materials and techniques that they thought would work the best, not necessarily the cheapest,” John Brady, president and CEO at the Philadelphia Seaport Museum, said. “She’s a muscle car. Fuel efficiency isn’t what it was about.”
He knows about the ship and the Conservancy, in part, because the Seaport museum has two ships of its own: the Olympia, built in 1893 and served as a naval vessel until 1922, helped the United States acquire the Philippines at the Battle of Manila Bay; and a submarine called Becuda, which was in service into the Cold War, until ’69.
“Oh, it’s very momentous,” Brady says of the Crystal/Conservancy agreement. “I get out on the river quite often in the summertime and [the SS United States] is always a favorite destination for an evening cruise. If you get past the peeling paint and the rust streaks, she’s got a wonderful shape, very fast-looking.”
“There are no holes. She is floating. There’s certainly some silting around her,” Gibbs stressed when asked about if she’s really floating in the Delaware. “When you’re on-board, you feel it if it’s a windy day, she moves around. She’s still got some life in her, for sure.”
Four U.S. presidents have boarded her, so have international royalty and Hollywood superstars. Gibbs’ Conservancy has certainly been collecting relics, memorabilia, and artifacts that celebrate the ship’s incredible history. There’s even fascinating mystery shrouding some aspects of her genesis.
“She was designed as part of a top-secret Pentagon program during the Cold War, which stipulated it could be quickly converted from a luxury liner into a naval troopship in the event of a war, carrying 15,000 troops… capable of traveling 10,000 nautical miles – almost halfway around the globe – without refueling,” according to a Crystal statement.
Though the folks at the Conservancy are pumped to see her come back to life, even brought back to her original purpose, they’ll still be working with Crystal to make sure nothing crazy happens.
“If Crystal Cruises wanted to paint polka dots on the ship and just disregard her history, that would be a serious problem, but it’s our job and the Conservancy is passionately committed to preserving and curating the ship’s history,” Gibbs offered. “We’re still in business to ensure that the ship’s history is honored and shared.”
Contact Staff Writer Bill Chenevert at bchenevert@southphillyreview.com or ext. 117.
William Francis Gibbs, the ship’s designer, would be proud – his granddaughter has guided a Conservancy to protect her future.
Photo Provided by the SS United States Conservancy
A common view of the SS United States from Pennsport could soon be a memory – Crystal Cruises will likely move her to New York if a feasibility study proves a transformation is possible.
Photo Provided by the SS United States Conservancy
