Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
June 19, 1816 William H. Webb, a prominent shipbuilder who is widely considered to be the first true American naval architect, was born in New York City. His father owned and operated a shipyard in the city. William H. Webb showed a strong aptitude for mathematics at an early age. Webb created his first vessel... Continue Reading →
May 29, 1950 The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) schooner St. Roch arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia, after becoming the first ship to circumnavigate North America. The ship, which was launched in 1928, was specially designed and built to withstand the heavy ice pressures of Canada’s Arctic region. The vessel’s original purpose included serving as... Continue Reading →
The Argentine Navy ship ARA Buenos Aires was launched. The vessel, which Marine Engineer magazine characterized at the time as “a very remarkable cruiser,” was built by British manufacturer Armstrong, Mitchell & Co. Ltd. The launch of the Buenos Aires took place at the company’s shipyard in the city of Newcastle in northeastern England. “She... Continue Reading →
Manjirō Nakahama became the first known Japanese immigrant to the United States when he arrived in New Bedford, Massachusetts, on board the American whaleship John Howland. He was only 16 at the time. Manjirō had been a fisherman in the coastal village of Naka-no-hama on Shikoku, one of Japan’s four main islands. His life underwent... Continue Reading →
The first commercially successful container ship took its maiden voyage on a route from New Jersey to Texas. The Ideal X started life as a World War II T-2 oil tanker named Potrero Hills. Built by the Marinship Corporation in the early 1940s as part of its fleet of 93 ships constructed during that time,... Continue Reading →
About five months after being launched, the Red Star Line steamship SS Zeeland completed her maiden voyage. The British-flagged ocean liner had departed the Belgian city of Antwerp on April 13, 1901. After being delayed by a thick fog, Zeeland made her way into New York City’s harbor on April 23. Zeeland was built specifically... Continue Reading →
USS Mount Vernon (LSD-39), a dock landing ship built by General Dynamics Corporation (GD) for the U.S. Navy’s use in providing logistical support for ground forces, was officially launched. The ceremony took place at GD’s Quincy Shipbuilding Division in eastern Massachusetts. Eileen Shillito christened the new ship: her husband Barry J. Shillito was serving at... Continue Reading →
The twin-screw turbine steamer SS Ben-my-Chree was launched at North West England’s Cammell Laird shipyard, where she had been constructed. The steamer was the fourth Cammell Laird vessel to be named Ben-my-Chree, which means “girl of my heart” in the Manx language that is native to that region’s Isle of Man. This latest version of... Continue Reading →
Two new hydrographic survey ships were commissioned into the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (USC&GS). These vessels, USC&GS Rude and USC&GS Heck, were described in the April 1970 issue of the U.S. Navy magazine All Hands as “wire drag ships, the only ones of their kind in the United States, which search out underwater navigational... Continue Reading →
A group consisting of seven officers and 13 sailors from the Bangladesh Navy began training on board a vessel that had recently been obtained by that military branch. The vessel was USCGC Jarvis, which had been commissioned by the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) in 1972. During her years of service as a USCG cutter, the... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 