 Celtic in the River Mersey | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | SSCeltic |
| Namesake | Celtic Sea |
| Owner | White Star Line |
| Route | Liverpool - Queenstown (Cobh) -New York City |
| Builder |
|
| Yard number | 79 |
| Laid down | asArctic |
| Launched | 18 June 1872 |
| Completed | 17 October 1872 |
| Maiden voyage | 24 October 1872 |
| Fate | Sold to the Thingvalla Line ofCopenhagen on 6 April 1893 |
 Denmark | |
| Name | SSAmerika |
| Owner | Thingvalla Line ofCopenhagen |
| Route | Copenhagen - Christiania (Oslo) - Christiansand -New York City |
| Acquired | 6 April 1893 |
| In service | 27 May 1893 |
| Out of service | September 1897 |
| Fate | Scrapped at Brest in 1898 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Oceanic-class ocean liner |
| Tonnage | 3,867 gross register tons |
| Length | 437.2 ft (133.3 m) |
| Beam | 40.9 ft (12.5 m) |
| Installed power | Steam |
| Propulsion | Single screw |
| Sail plan | Four masts (rigged for sail) |
| Speed | 14 kn (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Capacity | 166 1st- and 1,000 3rd-class passengers |
| Notes | Iron construction, single funnel |
SSCeltic was anocean liner built for theWhite Star Line by shipbuildersHarland and Wolff ofBelfast.
TheCeltic, the first of two White Star ships to bear the name, was the last of sixOceanic-class liners commissioned by White Star; she and her older sisterAdriatic were ordered following the success of what was originally a series of four.
The new ship was originally proposed to be namedArctic, but as the AmericanCollins Line had a Paddle steamerwith that name whichsank in 1854, the White Star managers changed their minds, and settled on the nameCeltic.[1][2]
Celtic was one of six liners built for White Star to allow the line to operate a mail service across the Atlantic. (As the ships had a five week turnaround, five ships were needed to allow a weekly service, with the sixth ship acting as a spare).Celtic was a duplicate ofAdriatic and likeAdriatic, was larger than the first four ships.[3]Celtic was 437 ft 2 in (133.25 m) long, with abeam of 40 ft 9 in (12.42 m).[4] Twelve single-ended boilers fed steam at 70 psi (480 kPa) to a four-cylinder tandem steam engine, rated at 600NHP.[4] The ship had aGross register tonnage of 3867 tons and aNet register tonnage of 2439 tons.[5]
Celtic was built byHarland and Wolff at theirBelfast shipyard, and waslaunched on 8 June 1872.[4]
Celtic leftLiverpool on her maiden voyage in October 1872.[4] On 18 January 1873,Celtic struck floating wreckage in theAtlantic Ocean and lost her propeller blades. She was towed in toQueenstown, County Cork on 20 January byGaelic.[6] On 24 January 1877,Celtic rescued the survivors from the AmericanschoonerIsland Belle, which resulted inCeltic's Commanding Officer, Benjamin Gleadell being thanked by thePresident of the United States,Ulysses S. Grant. In early 1879,Celtic's propeller became detached from the driveshaft while at sea, and the ship made its way to Queenstown (nowCobh) in Ireland by sail.[4]
In 1880,Edward Smith, who later became the Line's most celebrated Captain, and the Captain of theRMSTitanic, joined the crew ofCeltic as her Fourth Officer.
In November 1881,Celtic again rescued a shipwrecked crew, this time of theBrigantineAlice.[4]
On 19 May 1887, at about 5:25 in the afternoon, theCeltic (commanded by Captain Peter John Irving) collided with the White Star linerBritannic in thick fog about 350 miles (560 km) east ofSandy Hook, New Jersey. TheCeltic, with 870 passengers, had been steaming westbound forNew York City, while theBritannic, carrying 450 passengers, was on the second day of her eastward journey toLiverpool. The two ships collided at almost right angles, with theCeltic burying her prow 10 feet (3 m) in the aft port side ofBritannic. TheCeltic rebounded and hit two more times, before sliding past behindBritannic.
Sixsteerage passengers were killed outright on boardBritannic, and another six were later found to be missing, having been washed overboard. There were no deaths on boardCeltic. Both ships were badly damaged, butBritannic more so, having a large hole below her waterline. Fearing that she would founder, the passengers on board began to panic and rushed thelifeboats.Britannic's captain, pistol in hand, was able to restore some semblance of order, and the boats were filled with women and children, although a few men forced their way on board. After the lifeboats had launched, it was realized thatBritannic would be able to stay afloat, and the lifeboats within hailing distance were recalled. The rest made their way over to theCeltic. The two ships remained together through the night, and the next morning were joined by the Wilson Line'sMarengo and theBritish Queen of theInman Line, and the four slowly made their way intoNew York Harbor.[7]
A subsequent Court of Enquiry held in New York in June 1887, found that the captains of both ships were guilty of 'not observing regulations for the prevention of collisions at sea'; theCeltic's captain Irvine was censured for failing to reduce speed whilst steaming through fog, whilst captain Perry of theBritannic was censured for failure to sound the ship's whistle before the collision. Another more far reaching recommendation was for the separate 'in' and 'out' shipping lanes be extended right across the Atlantic.[2][1]
In 1892 she was retired by White Star and put up for sale. In 1893, she was sold to the DanishThingvalla Line, and renamedAmerika and put on theCopenhagen to New York route, however the ship was too large for the passenger loadings on that route, and the service was not a commercial success, as she was used for only eight peak season sailings. In 1898, she was sold for scrap.[2][1]