"Amerika"
(renamed "America", renamed "Edmund B. Alexander")
Glass no.2172: In this collection allocated to: Hamburg
The Amerika was built in 1905 for the Hamburg-Amerika (HAPAG) line by Harland & Wolff shipyards, Belfast.
Launched on 20 April 1905, her maiden voyage on 11 October took her from Hamburg via Dover and Cherbourg to New York.
In many ways the Amerika resembled the Harland & Wolff White Star liners "Celtic" and "Cedric", alhough she was considerably more luxurious.
Her passenger accommodation, far ahead of any predecessor included such refinments as suites with a private bathroom, electric lifts, a winter garden,
electrical medicinal baths and a Ritz-Carlton restaurant (the first à-la-carte resturant on the North Atlantic).
She was a 22,225 gross ton ship, length 669ft x beam 74.3ft, with two funnels, four masts, twin screw and a speed of 18 knots.
There was passenger accommodation for 386 First, 150 Second, 222 Third and 1,750 Fourth Class.
In June 1914 the Amerika inaugurated a Hamburg – Boulogne – Southampton – Boston service, but already in August of that year she was
interned in Boston. Seized by the US in April 1917, she was turned over to the US Navy. Renamed America, she became a Navy Transport and sailed on nine
trooping voyages from the USA to France. From February 1919 on, the America was back in service for the US Shipping Board. She sailed from New York via the
Panama canal to Vladivostock, then embarked 6,500 troops for Trieste sailing via Suez.
Overhauled and refitted in 1920 she returned to the New York – Europe service under charter to United States Mail Steam Ship Co.
Tranferred to United States Lines in August of that year, the America sailed on the New York – Bremerhaven service.
Converted from coal to oil-firing in 1921 at Brooklyn, she was refitted to carry 225 First, 425 Second Class, 1,500 Third Class,
sailing New York – Plymouth – Cherbourg – Bremen service. After a refit in 1926, a large fire swept through the ship and demolition was considered.
Insted she was repaired and returned to between New York and Bremen. After her final transatlantic voyage in 1913 she was laid upat Hoboken, NY, and was towed to
Chesapeake Bay for lay-up, September 1932. In October 1940 she was towed to Baltimore for conversion to an accomodation ship for US Maritime Commission in St. Johns, Newfoundland,
and was renamed Edmund B. Alexander, while the name "America" was transferred to the newest and largest United States liner.
In 1941, the Edmund B. Alexander was again fitted out as a troop transport and began trooping from New Orleans to Panama.
By 1942, her aging engines were giving only 10 knots. The US Maritime Commission sent her to Bethlehem Steel Corp. in Baltimore for an overhaul which included removing one funnel.
In April 1943, she was transferred for use as US Army transport. In 1949, laid up at Baltimore, then laid up on Hudson River in 1951. In 1957 she arrived at Bethlehem Steel Corp.
in Baltimore for demolition where she was finally scapped in 1958.
[Text adapted from http://www.maritimematters.com/amerika.html, http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/descriptions/ShipsA.html]
[Text adapted from http://www.maritimematters.com/amerika.html, http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/descriptions/ShipsA.html]
"Bavaria II"
Glass no.1353: In this collection allocated to: Lindau (Bodensee)
The Bavaria II began its service on the Bodensee (Lake Constance) in 1912.
On the occasion of its christening, the harbour was lit with electrical lights for the first time.
The ship was inactivated in 1959 and finally scrapped in 1961.
"Deutschland"
"Deutschland"
(renamed "Viktoria Luise", renamed "Hansa")
Glass no.1991: In this collection allocated to: Hamburg
The Deutschland was built from 1898 in the Vulcan shipyards of Stettin
(now Szczecin, Poland) for the HAPAG (Hamburg-Amerikanische Packetfahrt-Actien-Gesellschaft) line in order to give the line
a new, fast ship that would outperform its competitors from the Norddeutscher Llyod and White Star lines. The Deutschland was launched on the 10th of January 1900.
Already on its maiden journey the ship won the Blue Ribband on the 4th of July of that year with a mean speed of 22.42 knots and a journey time of 5 days, 15 hours and 46 minutes.
The Blue Ribband for the westbound journey was taken by the
→Kronprinz Wilhelm
of the Norddeutscher Lloyd in 1902, but could
be regained by the Deutschland in the following year. One of the main problems of the ship were heavy vibrations at high speeds which caused the loss of the rudder
and the breaking of the cast-iron stern post in 1902 during the return journey from New York to Hamburg. Because the ship also was unprofitable
since it required so much coal as fuel, the ship was decommissioned in 1910 and was remodeled into a cruise ship with less engine power. The new ship, the largest cruise ship
of its time, began its service on the 23rd of September 1911 under the new name Viktoria Luise. During World War I the ship was rebuilt into an auxilliary cruiser,
but it never was put into service due to insufficient power of the boiler units. Because of her bad technical condition, the Viktoria Luise was the only large German ship
that was not claimed as reparation by the victorious powers and which remained under German flag. During a thorough remodeling in 1921 two of the original four funnels were
removed and the ship continued her service under the name Hansa. In 1925 the ship was finally scrapped at the Vulcan shipyards of Hamburg.
"Fürst Bismarck"
Glass no.2233: In this collection allocated to: Hannoversch Münden
Steamships were used on the Weser river from 1843 onwards. For a long time travel by ship was cheaper than travel by rail
so that the ships remained popular until the early 20th century. In 1851 the shipping company "Oberweser Dampfschifffahrt"
offered a daily downstram connection from Hannoversch Münden to Hameln via Bad Karlshafen where the ships stopped to
wait for the arrival of the trains from Kassel, Marburg and
Eisenach. On four days a week the journey continued from Hameln to Minden and
Bremen. On further seven days a month the ships were reserved for the transport of emigrants
who continued there journey to the US or Canada from Bremen or Bremerhaven. The journey by ship
from Hannoversch Münden to Bremen took three days, the onward journey to America further eight to ten days.
The best-known ships on the Weser river were the paddle wheel steamers Kaiser Wilhelm (named for German Emperor
Wilhelm I), Kronprinz Wilhelm (the later Emperor Wilhelm II; the ship previously had been named
Meißen) and Fürst Bismarck (founder and first chancellor of the German empire).
The Kaiser Wilhelm still operates as a museum ship on the river Elbe near Lauenburg, the remainders of the
Kronprinz Wilhelm are exhibited in the German National Maritime Museum of Bremerhaven; the fate of the
Fürst Bismarck is not known.
"Kaiser"
"Kaiser"
(renamed "Nekrasov", renamed "Beniowski")
Glass no.2034: In this collection allocated to: Hamburg
The Kaiser was built in 1905 at the Vulcan shipyards in Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland).
The ship was originally commissioned by the Hamburger Nordsee-Linie. However, already before the ship could take up its service the company was taken over by the
HAPAG line. The Kaiser was the first ship built in Germany that used turbines for propulsion.
Until 1914 she was used in the North Sea serving on the route from Hamburg to Helgoland and Sylt, and in the Adriatic between Genova and Nice.
During World War I the ship was used for casting mine barriers. For tactical reasons the aft funnel was removed to alter the ship's silhouette. After the war the ship was restored but had to be handed over to
Great Britain as reparation. Since the British had no use for the ship, it was repurchased by the HAPAG line which in 1921 had the Kaiser remodeled at the Vulcan shipyards of
Bremen. At this occasion, the aft funnel was removed for good and the power of the ship was decreased. Until 1934 the ship again served on the line from
Hamburg to Helgoland. After 1934 it was used in the Baltic Sea. During World War II the Kaiser served military purposes. In 1945 was ceded to
Great Britain again, but in the following year was handed on to the USSR. The ship was at first renamed Nekrasov and later, in 1948, Beniowski
after having been transfered to Polish ownership.
For a short while the ship was used on the route between Sopot, Gdynia and Szczecin. In 1949 the ship was recommissioned as a training and boarding ship by the
maritime school of Gdynia. In 1954 the ship was finally scrapped in Szczecin.
"Kaiser Wilhelm II"
"Kaiser Wilhelm II"
(renamed "USS Agamemnon", renamed "Monticello")
Glass no.1394: In this collection allocated to: Bremerhaven
The Kaiser Wilhelm II of the Norddeutscher Lloyd company
was built in 1902 and was considerably larger (length 216 m, tonnage 19,361 gross tons) than her older sister ships,
the Kaiser Wilhelm der Große and the
→Kronprinz Wilhelm.
It interiors were so lavishly decorated that it outmatched even those of the Kronprinz Wilhelm.
However, she still could not match the
→Deutschland
for speed and also had a tendency to vibrate when steaming at high speed. Only after new propellers were fitted she managed to win the Blue Riband for
the eastbound Atlantic crossing in 1904 with an average speed of 23.6 knots and held this record until 1907.
In 1907 a fourth ship, the
→Kronprinzessin Cecilie,
was delivered from the Vulcan shipyards and the quartet soon had won
a reputation of grandeur, reliability and speed. It did not take long before they were commonly known as "The Four Flyers".
At the outbreak of World War I, the Kaiser Wilhelm II was on her way to New York and she
was immediately interned by the US authorities at her pier in Hoboken. Like the "Kronprinz Wilhelm", she was confiscated to become a
troop transporter in 1917, now renamed USS Agamemnon. She had much less luck and was involved in several collisions and mishaps
including a collision in 1917 with the USS Von Steuben (the former Kronprinz Wilhelm) and a near-collision in 1918 with the
USS Mount Vernon (the former Kronprinzessin Cecilie). After the war the ship was used for repatriation voyages until 1920.
After that she was laid up together with the Mount Vernon in the Patuxent River, in the backwaters of Chesapeake Bay.
Renamed Monticello she remained laid up until 1940 when the two ships were offered to Great Britain for use as troop transports.
Due to their bad condition the British declined to put the ships in use again. Instead, the two former ocean liners were sold to
the Boston Iron & Metal Co. of Baltimore for scrapping the same year.
"Kronprinz Wilhelm"
"Kronprinz Wilhelm"
(renamed "USS Von Steuben")
Glass no.1425: In this collection allocated to: Bremerhaven
The Kronprinz Wilhelm of the Norddeutscher Lloyd company
was built in 1901 in the Vulcan shipyards of Stettin (now Szczecin, PL). Like the older Kaiser Wilhelm der Große,
the first four-funnel steamship built in 1897, it was a four-stacker, with the four funnels chracteristically grouped in two pairs.
The Norddeutscher Lloyd had commissioned the ship because the
→Deutschland of the
Hamburg-Amerika (HAPAG) Line took the Blue Riband from her rival in 1900. Somewhat larger (length 203 m, tonnage 14,908 gross tons) than the "Kaiser Wilhelm der Große", the
Kronprinz Wilhelm outmatched the older ship when it came to the interiors. Although the Kronprinz Wilhelm (service speed 22 knots)
could win back the Blue Riband for the westbound journey in 1902, the Deutschland soon regained the prize in the following year.
At the beginning of World War I, the Kronprinz Wilhelm was
transformed into a merchant cruiser. After eight months at sea she had captured and sunken 14 ships with a combined tonnage of 58,201.
The ship, however, was in a terrible condition by then and in 1915 managed to make it into American (then still neutral) waters,
where she and her crew were interned at Newport News by the US authorities. When the US entered the war in 1917 the ship was confiscated
to be as a troopship, now renamed USS Von Steuben. After the war the Von Steuben was handed over to the United States Shipping Board.
As a result of her poor condition she remained laid up until 1923 when she was finally sold for scrap to the Boston Metal Company.
"Kronprinzessin Cecilie"
"Kronprinzessin Cecilie"
(renamed "Mount Vernon")
Glass no.1758: In this collection allocated to: Bremerhaven
The Kronprinzessin Cecilie
was the fourth of the famous "Four Flyers" of the Norddeutscher Lloyd company. The ship, a virtual copy of the
→Kaiser Wilhelm II, was built
in 1907, again at the Vulcan shipyards of Stettin (Szczecin). The ship should have left on her maiden voyage
from Bremerhaven in July 1907, but unfortunately she sank when still in Bremerhaven harbour. Only on the 6th of August she was finally
pumped out and repaired. The lavish interiors made her a popular ship for millionaires, but she also carried many emigrants. Tickets were
sold from $2,500 for first-class passengers down to a mere $25 for the cheapest accomodation. At the beginning of World War I
the Kronprinzessin Cecilie was in mid-Atlantic heading for Germany. In order to avoid being confiscated when trying to enter the
Baltic Sea, her captain decided to turn back for the still neutral United States. In America the ship and her crew were interned at Boston.
When the United States entered the war in 1917 the ship was confiscated like both of her remaining sister ships (the Kaiser Wilhelm der Große
had been sunk in 1914). The Kronprinzessin Cecilie was renamed Mount Vernon for military purposes, and several war-time
changes were made. In September 1918 the ship was hit by a German torpedo in her aft engine room while she was transporting wounded
soldiers back to America. Although the explosion killed 37 men the ship managed to return to Brest, France, at a speed of 15 knots.
After the war the ship remained under American authority and served as troop transporter. When World War II broke out in 1939
the Americans offered the ship to the British, but she was considered too old then. The ship remained in
Chesapeake Bay until 1940, when she was finally towed away and was scrapped at Baltimore.
"S.M.S. Lothringen"
Glass no.2150: In this collection allocated to: Kiel
The S.M.S. Lothringen was built in 1904 in Danzig
(now Gdańsk, PL). During World War I the Lothringen was used only for second-rate duties
as this type of ship was already outdated at that time.
The ship was taken out of service in 1920 and was finally wrecked in 1931.
"Maine"
Glass no.1593: In this collection allocated to: La Habana
The Maine, a 6,682-ton second-class battleship of the United States Navy,
was originally designated as Armored Cruiser #1. Congress authorized her construction in 1886 and the ship was launched on November 18, 1889.
Commissioned in 1895 she spent her duty along the U.S. east coast and in the Caribbean. In January 1898 the Maine was sent to Havana
to protect U.S. interests during a time of insurrection and civil disturbance. Three weeks later, on the evening of February 15, the ship was sunk by
an explosion. Although the exact cause is still debated it was reported at the time
that a Spanish naval mine caused the explosion. The tragedy was the precipitating incident which caused the Spanish-American War that
began in April of the same year and which resulted in the United States of America gaining control over the former colonies of Spain in the
Caribbean and Pacific. On August 5, 1910, Congress authorized the raising of the Maine. On February 2, 1912, she was refloated and towed out to
sea where she was sunk in deep water in the Gulf of Mexico on March 16, 1912. There is a memorial to the 266 men who died at the
Arlington National Cemetery, Virginia.
"R.B. Hayes"
Glass no.2138: In this collection allocated to: Sandusky, OH
The R.B. Hayes was built in 1876.
It was used to carry passengers to the Lake Erie Islands and other ports in Lake Erie.
The ship was named for Rutherford B. Hayes (1822–1893) who in the year of the ship's construction was elected
19th president (1876–1881) of the United States. The steamer was scrapped in 1920.
"S.M.S. Wettin"
Glass no.2335: In this collection allocated to: Rendsburg
The SMS Wettin was built in 1899–1901 at the Schichau shipyards in Danzig (now Gdańsk).
Launched in 1901 she was commissioned in 1902.
The battleship of the Wittelsbach Class had a length of 125 metres, a width of 21 metres and a draught of 7.7 metres.
The ship had a displacement of 12,596 tons and sailed at a speed of 17.5 knots, her crew was ca. 680 men. With the launch of the
HMS Dreadnought in 1906, this type of ship essentially became outdated. The Wettin served with the fleet until 1911 when she became an
artillery training ship until 1914. In 1916 the Wettin was disarmed and soon after became an accomodation and tender at Wilhelmshaven.
In 1922 the Wettin was finally scrapped at Rönnebeck (today part of Bremerhaven). The ships's bell is in the army museum at
Dresden.