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SS ''Aleutian '' was a passenger ship in North American coastal service. Built in 1899 for the Ward Line as SS ''Havana'', she would later serve the building of the
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a Channel ( ...
as SS ''Panama'' and ultimately enter Alaskan service as ''SS Aleutian''.


Ward Line service

In 1898 the Ward Line ordered two ships from
William Cramp & Sons William Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Company (also known as William Cramp & Sons Ship & Engine Building Company) of Philadelphia was founded in 1830 by William Cramp, and was the preeminent U.S. iron shipbuilder of the late 19th century. Company hi ...
Shipbuilding Company in
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
as part of a modernization plan in response to increased passenger and freight demand. The new passenger ship SS ''Havana'' was delivered in 1899 and briefly saw military transport service (Official Number 96435) during the
Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cl ...
moving two infantry units from
Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.
, Cuba to
Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...
. She soon joined the company's steamers linking New York with Nassau, Havana, and Mexican Gulf ports.


Panama Railroad Steamship Company service

''Havana'' was sold to the Panama Railroad Steamship Company on behalf of the
Isthmian Canal Commission The Isthmian Canal Commission (often known as the ICC) was an American administration commission set up to oversee the construction of the Panama Canal in the early years of American involvement. Established on February 26, 1904, it was given cont ...
in 1905. She was renamed SS ''Panama'' and would serve a crucial role in the construction of the
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a Channel ( ...
. The steamship company was already running connecting service with New York and
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
. It also ran a Central American line of steamships linking Nicaragua, Costa Rica, San Salvador, and Guatemala to
Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...
. The shipping service was greatly expanded as canal construction began. The line's heyday was during the construction period; once the canal was finished in 1914 the service shifted to the business of supporting the maintenance and operation of the canal and its supporting infrastructure, including the railroad.


Alaska Steamship Company service

In February 1927 ''Panama'' was sold to the
Alaska Steamship Company The Alaska Steamship Company was formed on August 3, 1894. While it originally set out to ship passengers and fishing products, the Alaska Steamship Company began shipping mining equipment, dog sleds, and cattle at the outbreak of the Klondike G ...
and transferred to Pacific coastal service. Renamed SS ''Aleutian'' after the volcanic
Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands ( ; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin, "land of the Aleuts"; possibly from the Chukchi ''aliat'', or "island")—also called the Aleut Islands, Aleutic Islands, or, before 1867, the Catherine Archipelago—are a chain of 14 main, ...
that stretch westward from the
Alaska Peninsula The Alaska Peninsula (also called Aleut Peninsula or Aleutian Peninsula, ale, Alasxix̂; Sugpiaq: ''Aluuwiq'', ''Al'uwiq'') is a peninsula extending about to the southwest from the mainland of Alaska and ending in the Aleutian Islands. The ...
, the vessel received a complete overhaul and refit in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
. At this time she likely would have been converted from a coal- to an oil-fired vessel. Contemporary reports described her as palatial and she became the steamship company's
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the f ...
. She entered the company's Alaska service carrying freight, passengers and mail service from Seattle. On 26 May 1929 ''Aleutian'' was steaming into Uyak Bay () on the coast of
Kodiak Island Kodiak Island (Alutiiq language, Alutiiq: ''Qikertaq''), is a large island on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, separated from the Alaska mainland by the Shelikof Strait. The largest island in the Kodiak Archipelago, Kodiak Island is ...
in clear weather with good visibility when she suddenly shook throughout her hull. She had struck a submerged pinnacle rock off the south end of
Amook Island A fishcake (sometimes written as fish cake) is a culinary dish consisting of filleted fish or other seafood minced or ground, mixed with a starchy ingredient, and fried until golden. Asian-style fishcakes usually contain fish with salt, water, ...
() that had torn into her. She sank just seven minutes after impact. One crew member was lost when he went below to retrieve his lucky
horseshoe A horseshoe is a fabricated product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human ...
, but the other 153 people on board – 39 passengers and 114 crewmen – made it off and survived. A small
motorboat A motorboat, speedboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine. Some motorboats are fitted with inboard motor, inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the internal combustion ...
took a few of the passengers to
Larsen Bay Larsen Bay (Alutiiq: ) is a city in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 87, down from 115 in 2000. Geography Larsen Bay is located at (57.536651, -153.991440). According to the United States Cens ...
, from which a
cannery tender A cannery tender was a type of commercial fishing vessel operated by salmon canneries in the early to mid- 20th century. Most commonly used in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, cannery tenders transported fish from cannery-owned fish traps to c ...
was dispatched to pick up the rest of the survivors and bring them to Larsen Bay as well. After all the survivors had reached Larsen Bay, the
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey (abbreviated USC&GS), known from 1807 to 1836 as the Survey of the Coast and from 1836 until 1878 as the United States Coast Survey, was the first scientific agency of the United States Government. It ...
survey ship A survey vessel is any type of ship or boat that is used for underwater surveys, usually to collect data for mapping or planning underwater construction or mineral extraction. It is a type of research vessel, and may be designed for the purp ...
met them there and transported them all to Seward in
Southcentral Alaska Southcentral Alaska (russian: Юго-Центральная Аляска) is the portion of the U.S. state of Alaska consisting of the shorelines and uplands of the central Gulf of Alaska. Most of the population of the state lives in this regio ...
.alaskashipwreck.com Alaska Shipwrecks (A)
/ref>


Wreck discovery and conservation

''Aleutian'' was thought to have sunk in very deep water and no salvage had been attempted. In 1998 shipwreck historian Steve Lloyd researched the testimony from the Marine Board of Inquiry hearing that had been conducted after the sinking of ''Aleutian''. Reconstructing testimony given by ''Aleutian''s officers he estimated the course of the ship just before the pinnacle rock had inflicted its mortal blow. In 2002 he began a side-scan
sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances ( ranging), communicate with or detect objects on ...
and a
magnetometer A magnetometer is a device that measures magnetic field or magnetic dipole moment. Different types of magnetometers measure the direction, strength, or relative change of a magnetic field at a particular location. A compass is one such device, o ...
search of the sea floor beginning at the rock that had sunk the ship. (The rock was later marked with a navigation aid and named ''Aleutian Rock'' to honor the deceased crew member.) On 14 August 2002 the searchers found a metallic target on the seabed. The discovery was confirmed when a diver descended for an inspection. On the bottom, still upright, lay ''Aleutian''. Her wreck is located just off the southern tip of Amook Island, about midway down the length of Uyak Bay at Kodiak Island. In 2003 Lloyd sought salvage rights to the wreck. "The cargo's still in the hold. The furniture is still in the stateroom ... spittoons still in the gentlemen's smoking room…Portions of the superstructure have collapsed, and almost all the wood is gone. But sections of the deck were steel and are still there." In 2004 the wreck site was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artist ...
. In December 2005 the state of Alaska and the discoverer's exploration company reached a settlement that would allow artifact recovery in compliance with state's Office of History and Archeology and environmental regulations. ''Aleutian'' is slowly deteriorating from the effects of saltwater corrosion and time. Despite the ship's rapid sinking and time underwater she is nonetheless remarkably intact. The depth, current, and low visibility of her resting place makes her accessible only to experienced deep-wreck divers with advanced training and certification.


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Kodiak Island B ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aleutian, SS 1899 ships Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska Maritime incidents in 1929 Passenger ships of the United States Ships of the Ward Line Shipwrecks on the National Register of Historic Places in Alaska National Register of Historic Places in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska Ships built by William Cramp & Sons 1890s in Panama