SS Washingtonian (1913) facts for kids
SS Washingtonian in port, c. 1914
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Quick facts for kids History |
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| Name | Washingtonian |
| Owner | American-Hawaiian Steamship Company |
| Ordered | September 1911 |
| Builder |
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| Yard number | 131 |
| Launched | 11 October 1913 |
| Completed | 16 January 1914 |
| Identification | U.S. official number: 211297 |
| Fate | sunk in collision, 26 January 1915 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | cargo ship |
| Tonnage | 6,649 GRT 10,250 LT DWT |
| Length | 360 ft 11 in (110.01 m) (LPP) |
| Beam | 50 ft 2 in (15.29 m) |
| Propulsion |
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| Speed | 12.5 knots (23.2 km/h) |
| Capacity | 490,858 cubic feet (13,899.6 m3) |
| Crew | 40 |
| Notes | Sister ships: Minnesotan, Dakotan, Montanan, Pennsylvanian, Panaman, Iowan, Ohioan |
The SS Washingtonian was a large cargo ship built in 1913. It was launched by the Maryland Steel Company in Sparrows Point, Maryland, near Baltimore. This ship was one of eight sister ships made for the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company.
When it was launched, the Washingtonian was the biggest cargo ship sailing under the American flag. In April 1914, during the United States occupation of Veracruz in Mexico, the United States Department of the Navy rented the Washingtonian. It was used as a special supply ship to carry refrigerated food for the U.S. Navy fleet.
Sadly, in January 1915, after just over a year of service, the Washingtonian crashed into another ship. This happened off the coast of Delaware. The ship sank in only ten minutes. It lost its valuable cargo of 10,000 tons of raw Hawaiian sugar, worth about $1,000,000. After the sinking, the price of sugar in the United States went up by almost nine percent. This was partly because of the lost cargo.
Today, the Washingtonian's wreck lies about 100 feet (30 meters) underwater. It is now one of the most popular places for recreational divers to explore on the eastern coast.
Contents
Building a Giant: The Washingtonian's Design
In November 1911, the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company ordered two new cargo ships from the Maryland Steel Company. These ships were named Panaman and Washingtonian. The cost for each ship was around $640,000, but the final cost for Washingtonian ended up being nearly $733,000.
The Washingtonian (also known as Maryland Steel yard number 131) was the second ship built under this order. It was a very large ship, weighing 6,649 gross tons. It was 360 feet 11 inches (110 meters) long and 50 feet 2 inches (15.29 meters) wide. It could carry 10,250 long tons of cargo. At the time it was launched, it was the biggest cargo ship flying the American flag. The Washingtonian could travel at a speed of 12.5 knots (23.2 km/h).
The Washingtonian's Journeys
When the Washingtonian first started sailing, the American-Hawaiian company used a route called the Tehuantepec Route. This route involved shipping cargo from ports on the East Coast of the U.S. to ports on the West Coast and Hawaii, and vice versa.
Ships on this route would arrive at Mexican ports, like Salina Cruz or Coatzacoalcos. Then, the cargo would be moved across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec by train on the Tehuantepec National Railway. Cargo going east usually included sugar and pineapple from Hawaii. Cargo going west was more general. The Washingtonian sailed on this route, but we don't know if it was on the east or west side of North America.
On April 21, 1914, the United States occupied Veracruz in Mexico. Because of this, the Mexican government closed the Tehuantepec National Railway to American ships. Since the Panama Canal wasn't open yet, American-Hawaiian ships had to go back to sailing all the way around South America through the Strait of Magellan.
During the U.S. occupation, the U.S. Navy rented the Washingtonian. It was used as a special supply ship to carry refrigerated food for the U.S. naval fleet near Mexico. The ship was prepared at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and sailed with 500,000 pounds (226,796 kg) of fresh meat for the United States Navy and United States Army. The Washingtonian worked alongside other Navy supply ships like USS Culgoa and USS Celtic.
New Routes Through the Panama Canal
When the Panama Canal officially opened on August 15, 1914, American-Hawaiian ships started using this new, shorter route. In late August, the company announced that the Washingtonian would sail between San Francisco, the Panama Canal, and Boston. It would sail opposite other ships like Mexican, Honolulan, and its sister ship Pennsylvanian.
In early October, the Washingtonian left Los Angeles with a cargo of California products. These included canned and dried fruits, beans, and wine, all headed for New York City and Boston. After delivering this cargo, the Washingtonian sailed to Honolulu, Hawaii. There, it picked up a huge load of 10,000 tons of raw sugar, valued at about $1,000,000.
The ship left Honolulu on December 20. It arrived at Balboa on January 17, 1915, and then went through the Panama Canal. Two days later, it sailed from Cristóbal (on the eastern side of the canal) towards the Delaware Breakwater, on its way to Philadelphia.
The Collision and Sinking
At 3:30 a.m. on January 26, 1915, the Washingtonian was about 20 nmi (37 km) from Fenwick Island, Delaware. At the same time, an American schooner named Elizabeth Palmer was sailing at 8 knots (15 km/h).
The captain of the Elizabeth Palmer saw the Washingtonian heading towards them. He didn't change course because sailing rules say that steam-powered ships (like the Washingtonian) must move out of the way for sailing ships. However, the captain and crew on the Washingtonian saw the Elizabeth Palmer but misjudged how fast the schooner was going.
The Washingtonian, traveling at 12 knots (22 km/h), did not change its course or speed. As a result, the Elizabeth Palmer crashed into the right side of the Washingtonian. The impact created a large hole, and the Washingtonian sank just ten minutes later.
Less than a mile (2 km) away, the Elizabeth Palmer was also in trouble. Its jib boom (a part of its mast) and the top of its foremast were broken off. Water started coming into the schooner through cracks. When it became clear that the Elizabeth Palmer would also sink, its captain told the crew to leave the ship. It slowly sank about an hour after the crash.
After the Washingtonian's crew left their ship, one crew member, a water tender, was missing and was believed to have drowned. The 39 survivors from the Washingtonian and all 13 crew members from the Elizabeth Palmer were rescued about an hour later. They were picked up by a passenger ship called the Hamilton, which took them to New York the next day.
Impact on the Sugar Market
The sinking of the Washingtonian had a big effect on the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company and the world sugar market. The company lost an estimated $2,000,000, which was a huge amount of money. News reports at the time, like those in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, talked about how the collision affected sugar prices.
Normally, losing one large cargo of sugar wouldn't change the market much. However, bad weather in Cuba, which was the biggest supplier of sugar to the United States, had already reduced their sugar crop by over 200,000 tons. Also, World War I was happening in Europe, which meant fewer ships were available to carry goods like sugar.
Because of all these reasons, the price of sugar for delivery in February 1915 went up. A week before the Washingtonian sank, sugar cost 2.90 cents per pound (6.39 cents per kg). The day after the sinking, it had risen to 3.16 cents per pound (6.96 cents per kg).
The Wreck Today
The wreck of the Washingtonian lies upside down about 100 feet (30 meters) underwater. It is mostly a skeletal framework of its hull plates and bulkheads (walls inside the ship). It is one of the most visited wreck sites for divers along the eastern coast of the United States. It's a popular spot for night dives and for sport divers looking for lobster.
