SS ''President Cleveland'' was an American

passenger ship A passenger ship is a merchant ship whose primary function is to carry passengers on the sea. The category does not include cargo vessels which have accommodations for limited numbers of passengers, such as the ubiquitous twelve-passenger freig ...

originally ordered by the

United States Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 1950. The co ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, as one of the ''Admiral W. S. Benson''-class Type P2-SE2-R1 transport ships, and intended to be named USS ''Admiral D. W. Taylor'' (AP-128). She became the

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

nian-flag passenger ship SS ''Oriental President'' in 1973 before being scrapped in 1974. She operated on routes in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

History

Construction

''President Cleveland'' was originally ordered by the

during

, as one of the Admiral-class Type P2-SE2-R1 transport ships, and intended to serve in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

with the name USS ''Admiral D. W. Taylor'' (AP-128). The ship was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one ...

on 28 August 1944 at the

Bethlehem Steel The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Until its closure in 2003, it was one of the world's largest steel-producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success ...

shipyard in

Alameda, California Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for "Avenue (landscape), tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, United States, located in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is built on an informal archipe ...

, but was cancelled on 16 December 1944. Redesigned for commercial passenger service, the ship was launched on 23 June 1946 with the name SS ''President Cleveland'', and she was completed in 1947.The Presidents ''

Ships Monthly Kelsey Media Ltd is a magazine publisher and trade fair company based in Yalding, England. Founded in 1989, it has bought and sold many publications over the years, including former Bauer Media Group magazines ''Sea Angler'', ''Car Mechanics'' ...

'' November 2017 pages 24–29

Service history

''President Cleveland'' was operated by

American President Lines American President Lines, LLC, is an American container shipping company that is a subsidiary of French shipping company CMA CGM. It operates an all-container ship fleet, including nine U.S. flagged container vessels. In 1938, the U.S. governm ...

under a

bareboat charter A bareboat charter, or demise charter, is an arrangement for the chartering or hiring of a ship or boat for which no crew or provisions are included as part of the agreement. Instead, the renter of the vessel from the owner is responsible for ...

. She appeared in the background during an Embarcadero waterfront scene in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, California, in the 1950 film ''

Woman on the Run A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional uteruses ...

'', featuring

Ann Sheridan Clara Lou "Ann" Sheridan (February 21, 1915 – January 21, 1967) was an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in the films ''San Quentin'' (1937), '' Angels with Dirty Faces'' (1938), '' They Drive by Night'' (1940), '' ...

, at 46 minutes and 40 seconds into the film. On 22 or 23 July 1958 (sources disagree), ''President Cleveland'' was in the

about from California during a voyage from

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

Territory of Hawaii The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Panalāʻau o Hawaiʻi'') was an organized incorporated territories of the United States, organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from Apri ...

, to San Francisco when U.S. Navy

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral. Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...

Lynne C. Quiggle Lynne Cline Quiggle (22 May 1906 – July 1958) was a rear admiral of the United States Navy. He saw service in World War II and in the Cold War before he was lost at sea in 1958. Early life Quiggle was born in Grand Island, Nebraska, ...

, a passenger on board, disappeared. He was presumed to have jumped or fallen overboard.United Press International, "QUIGGLE STORY DENIED; Widow of Admiral Reported Disputing Statement"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. July 27, 1958. ''President Cleveland'' appeared in the 1961 film ''

Susan Slade ''Susan Slade'' is a 1961 American Technicolor drama film directed by Delmer Daves and starring Troy Donahue, Connie Stevens, Dorothy McGuire and Lloyd Nolan. Based upon the 1961 novel ''The Sin of Susan Slade'' by Doris Hume, concerns a well-t ...

'', featuring

Connie Stevens Connie Stevens (born Concetta Rosalie Ann Ingoglia; August 8, 1938) is an American actress and singer. Born in Brooklyn to musician parents, Stevens was raised there until the age of 12, when she was sent to live with family friends in rural Mi ...

Troy Donahue Troy Donahue (born Merle Johnson Jr., January 27, 1936 – September 2, 2001) was an American film and television actor, best known for his role as Johnny Hunter in the film '' A Summer Place''. He was a popular sex symbol in the 1950s and ...

Dorothy Maguire Dorothy Maguire (November 21, 1918 – August 2, 1981) was a catcher and outfielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Maguire batted and threw right-handed. She also played under the name of Dorothy ...

, and

Lloyd Nolan Lloyd Benedict Nolan (August 11, 1902 – September 27, 1985) was an American stage, film and television actor who rose from a supporting player and B-movie lead early in his career to featured player status after creating the role of Captain Qu ...

, and was featured in a 1962 Britannica Films production called ''The Seaport'', filmed in San Francisco. It is also seen at anchor in

Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan spanning the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture, on the southern coast of the island of Honshu. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. Th ...

in the 1970 Japanese movie ''Hadaka no Jukyu-sai (Live Today, Die Tomorrow!)''. ''President Cleveland'' was sold to Orient Overseas Line on 9 February 1973, re-registered in

,''Energy Transportation Security Act of 1974: Hearings Before the Subcommittee on Merchant Marine of the Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representatives, Ninety-Third Congress, First and Second Sessions'', Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1974, pp. 186–187.
/ref> and renamed ''Oriental President''. She was scrapped at

Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, officially Kaohsiung City, is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsiung City has a population of approximately 2.73 million p ...

, Taiwan in 1974.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:President Cleveland Maritime incidents in 1958 Ships built in Alameda, California Type P2 ships 1946 ships Grover Cleveland