Famous Ships and Boats

In history, movies, books, on exhibit

War ships, ship tragedies, steam ships, yachts, and more

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American Cargo and Commerce Ships

A. J. Goddard — American paddle steamer
A Klondike Gold Rush era sternwheeler built for transporting men and supplies on the Upper Yukon River in Canada. She was not suited for the larger sections of the turbulent Yukon River, so instead she carried passengers and equipment across Lake Laberge. LAUNCHED: 1898 → FATE: Sank October 22, 1901.

Andrea Gail — American fishing vessel
Lost at sea off the coast of Massachusetts with six crew during The Perfect Storm of 1991. The tragedy was the basis of the 1997 book by Sebastian Junger and the 2000 movie The Perfect Storm. LAUNCHED: 1978 → FATE: Lost at sea October 28, 1991.

Buford, USAT — American cargo/passenger ship
Used to deport 249 non-citizens of the U.S. to Russia because of their alleged anarchist political beliefs; nicknamed the Soviet Ark.. In 1906, rescued over 600 passengers and crew from the SS Mongolia. In 1921, rescued 65 passengers and crew from the inferno of the Japanese steam freighter Tokuyo Maru. Used by Buster Keaton for his film The Navigator. LAUNCHED: 1890, August 29 → FATE: Scrapped in late 1929.

C.A. Thayer — American three-masted schooner
Last survivor of the schooners in the West Coast lumber trade. In 1912, she was converted for use in the Alaskan salt-salmon trade. In 1984, she was designated a National Historic Landmark. LAUNCHED: 1895 → FATE: She made her final voyage in 1950. After several restorations, she now is on exhibit at Hyde Stree Pier, San Francisco.

Carroll A. Deering — American five-masted commercial schooner
A famous maritime mystery after she was found with her crew of 11 missing. Theories of her demise include piracy, mutiny, hurricane, and paranormal events. Nine other ships also disappeared without a trace in that same area at about the same time. LAUNCHED: 1919 → FATE: Found wrecked off Cape Hatteras on January 31, 1921; scuttled on March 4 that year.

(Another )

Charles W. Morgan — American whaling ship
World's oldest surviving merchant vessel; America's only surviving wooden whaleship. After a 5-year, multi-million dollar restoration, she set sail again, July, 2013. LAUNCHED: 1841 → FATE: On exhibit at the Mystic Seaport museum in Mystic, Connecticut.

Clotilda — American two-masted schooner
Last known slave ship to bring captives from Africa to the United States. The shipwreck was discovered in early 2019. LAUNCHED: 1855 → FATE: Burned and sunk in the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta probably in 1860.

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Cotopaxi, SS — American bulk carrier
She disappeared on a voyage from Charleston, S.C., to Havana, Cuba; none of the 32 people on board were ever seen again. She became part of the legend of the Bermuda Triangle even though she was found outside that area. In the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind, aliens are responsible for the ship's disappearance. LAUNCHED: 1918, November 15 → FATE: Lost 35 miles off St. Augustine in Florida, December, 1925.

Edmund Fitzgerald, SS — American lake cargo ship, freighter; ore carrier
Sank suddenly during a gale storm on Lake Superior without a distress signal. All 29 crew members were lost gaining it the appellation "Titanic of the Great Lakes." The wreck was found 17 miles from Whitefish Bay 4 days later. LAUNCHED: 1958, June 18 → FATE: Lost in a storm on November 10, 1975.

El Faro, SS — American container ship (cargo ship)
The worst maritime disaster for a U.S.-flagged vessel in decades, resulting in the deaths of 33 crew. In 2003, prior to the invasion of Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom, the vessel, then named Northern Lights, ferried U.S. Marines and supplies from California to Kuwait. LAUNCHED: 1974, November 18 → FATE: Lost at sea with all hands on October 1, 2015 after losing propulsion near the eyewall of Hurricane Joaquin.

Empress of China — American three-masted, square-rigged sailing ship
First American ship to sail from the newly independent United States to China, opening what is known today as the Old China Trade. She left New York harbor on Washington's birthday, February 22, 1784 and returned to New York after a round voyage of fourteen months and twenty-four days. LAUNCHED: 1783 → FATE: Unknown.

Essex — American barque; whale ship, a three-masted
Basis of Nathaniel Philbrick's book In the Heart of the Sea and the movie as well as the inspiration for Herman Melville's 1851 classic novel Moby-Dick. She left Nantucket in 1819 on a whaling voyage in the South Pacific with 21 aboard. It was attacked and sunk by a sperm whale in the Pacific Ocean. Only two men survived. LAUNCHED: 1800, approx. → FATE: Sunk in the southern Pacific November 20, 1820.

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Exodus 1947 — American packet steamer
The ship carried 4,500 Jewish immigrants from France to British Mandatory Palestine on July 11, 1947. The incident was the topic of the 1960 movie Exodus.. Until 1942, she carried passengers and freight between Norfolk, Virginia and Baltimore, Maryland. LAUNCHED: 1928 → FATE: After efforts to restore her, a fire destroyed her in 1952 while tied up in Haifa. The wreck was towed out past the ship lanes and scuttled. Two later attempts to raise her for salvage failed.

Exxon Valdez — American oil tanker
Spilled millions of gallons of crude oil in Prince William Sound. Over her life, she was renamed several times ending up in 2011 as Oriental Nicety. In 2010, as Dong Fang Ocean, she colided with Aali, a cargo ship, causing severe damage to both ships. LAUNCHED: 1986, October 18 → FATE: Beached for dismantling August 20, 2012.

Faith, SS — American Concrete cargo steamer
The first concrete ship built in the United States and the largest in the world at the time at 336.5 feet (102.6 meters) and 8000 tons. The first successfully launched cement ship was the 84 foot-400 ton Namsenfjord on August 2, 1917, N.K. Fougner of Norway. LAUNCHED: 1918, March 14 → FATE: After being cracked during a Gulf storm in 1921, she was towed to Cuba for use as a breakwater.

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Ghost — American schooner; a seal-hunting ship
The setting for the 1941 movie The Sea Wolf, starring Edward G. Robinson and Ida Lupino. The story is based on the novel The Sea Wolf by Jack London. LAUNCHED: 1941 → FATE: Inconclusive.

Grandcamp, SS — American liberty ship
Origin of the deadliest industrial accident in U.S. history and one of the largest non-nuclear explosions. The initial blast and subsequent fires and explosions in other ships and nearby oil-storage facilities killed at least 581 people, wounding over 5,000. LAUNCHED: 1942, November → FATE: Exploded and destroyed April 16, 1947.

Hannibal, USS — American collier
A target ship in the Chesapeake Bay. In 1966, a old WW II Liberty ship, the American Mariner, was made a target ship, and, by tradition, was named Hannibal. LAUNCHED: 1898, April → FATE: Sunk as target practice March 1, 1945.

Henry B. Smith, SS — American lake cargo ship, freighter; steel-hulled, propeller-driven
One of several ships lost in the Great Lakes Storm of 1913. The crew of 25 were lost and the wreck has not been located as of 2017. LAUNCHED: 1906, May → FATE: Foundered and sank near Marquette Michigan, November 10, 1913.

Hewell, USS — American cargo ship
Featured in the 1955 movie Mister Roberts, starring Jack Lemmon. For the movie, small alterations were made including the palm trees on deck. LAUNCHED: 1944 → FATE: Scrapped 1973.

Ideal X, SS — American cargo ship (container ship)
First container ship. She was converted from a World War II T-2 oil tanker named Potrero Hills by a trucking executive named Malcolm McLean. LAUNCHED: 1944, December → FATE: Scrapped in Japan in 1967.

John W. Brown, SS — American liberty ship
One of two still operational and one of three preserved as museum ships. After making 12 troop and cargo voyages across the Atlantic during World War II, she served as a training ship from 1946 to 1982. LAUNCHED: 1942, September 7 → FATE: After restoration, now a floating museum stationed in the Chesapeake Bay, Baltimore, Maryland.

Maersk Alabama, MV — American container ship
Its hijacking by pirates near Somalia in 2009 was followed by the rescue of its crew. A second unsuccessful hijacking that year and several in 2011 were attempted. The hijacking was the subject of the movie Captain Phillips starring Tom Hanks. LAUNCHED: 1998, launched as Alva Maersk → FATE: Still in service.

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Marine Electric — American bulk carrier
Her sinking resulted in some of the most important maritime reforms in the 20th century. The tragedy, with the loss of 34 crew, resulted in better inspection standards, mandatory survival suits for winter North Atlantic runs, and creation of the Coast Guard's Aviation Survival Technician program. LAUNCHED: 1944, May 2 → FATE: Sank February 12, 1983 about 30 miles off the coast of Virginia.

Mighty Servant 2 — American heavy lift ship, semi-submersible
Hauled the USS Samuel B. Roberts from Dubai to Newport, RI after the frigate struck a mine in the Persian Gulf. Along with sister ships Mighty Servant 1 and Mighty Servant 3, used mainly for moving oil drilling rigs. LAUNCHED: 1983 → FATE: Capsized near the Indonesian island of Singkep with loss of 5 crew November 2, 1999.

Monte Carlo, SS — American concrete ship
She became a gambling and prostitution ship operating in international waters off the coast of Long Beach, California. In the 1930s, she was the largest of a fleet of ships making up Gambling Ship Row off the southern California. LAUNCHED: 1921, December → FATE: Wrecked during a storm in 1937, ending up on a San Diego beach where it remains.

Mount Hood, USS — American ammunition ship
The ship and dozens of surrounding vessels were obliterated with over 370 casualties in a massive explosion. The ship's 3800 tons of ordnance produced a blast equivalent to a tactical nuclear weapon. LAUNCHED: 1943, November 28 → FATE: Exploded on November 10, 1944, at Seadler Harbor on Manus Island.

Niantic — American whaling ship
Brought fortune-seekers to Yerba Buena (now San Francisco) during the California Gold Rush of 1849. She was a prominent landmark in the booming city for several years. The site of Niantic beside the Transamerica Pyramid is now a California Historical Landmark. LAUNCHED: 1832 → FATE: Converted to hotel in 1849, destroyed by fire 1852.

Pequod — American whaling ship
Fictitious 19th-century Nantucket whaling ship in the 1851 novel Moby-Dick by Herman Melville and in several movies. In the novel, the ship's captain is the one-legged, monomaniacal Ahab. LAUNCHED: 1840, or earlier → FATE: Destroyed by a whale supposedly in 1851.

Pewabic, SS — American lake steamship; cargo ship
Worst shipwreck on the Great Lakes with the loss of an estimated 125 lives, hundreds of tons of copper, silver, and iron ore. Over the years five divers died attempting to salvage the cargo. Some of the copper was recovered during World War I, the rest in 1974. LAUNCHED: 1863 → FATE: Collided with SS Meteor in Michigan's Thunder Bay and sank August 9, 1865.

Robert E. Perry, SS — American liberty ship
Gained fame during World War II for being built in the shortest time for such a large vessel. Typical completion of liberty ships took 50 days; she was completed in 4 days 15 hours and 29 minutes after the keel was laid down. LAUNCHED: 1942, November 12 → FATE: Scrapped at Baltimore, June 1963.

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Rochambeau — American frigate, ironclad
The longest wooden ship ever built. When the French thought Otto von Bismarck might be interested in the ship, they hurriedly bought her from the Americans and commission her in 1867. LAUNCHED: 1862, July 22 as Dunderberg → FATE: The French scrapped her in 1874.

Serpens, USS — American Crater-class cargo ship
The most catastrophic single-event loss of life in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard with 250 casualties. In the explosion, a 12-ton locomotive, the wooden pier it sat on, and 16 boxcars loaded with bombs and ammunition disappeared completely. LAUNCHED: 1943, April 5 → FATE: Exploded in complete destruction January 29, 1945, on the coast of Guadalcanal.

Tonquin — American merchant ship
The ship was part of Astor's attempt to establish a fur trading outpost on the Pacific Northwest coast. After an angry encounter with natives, two surviving crew hid in the ship, then when the Indian natives returned to loot the ship, lit a fuse that detonated her powder magazine killing more than 100 natives and two crew. LAUNCHED: 1807, May 26 → FATE: Blown up June 16, 1811.

Wanderer — American whaling ship
Last American whaling ship. The mast of the Wanderer stands as a flagpole in Boston Navy Yard, a few feet from where it was built. LAUNCHED: 1878 → FATE: Lost in a storm near Cuttyhunk Island, Massachusetts, on August 26, 1924.

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Western Flyer — American fishing boat
Known for its use by John Steinbeck and Ed Ricketts in their 1940 expedition to the Gulf of California.. After Steinbeck's voyage, the ship was returned to commercial fishing, harvesting sardines, perch, and crab. Twice in 2012 the boat sprang leaks and sank and refloated each time. LAUNCHED: 1937, July 3 → FATE: Being restored to its historic glory by the Port Townsend Shipwrights Co-Op.

The number of American Cargo and Commerce Ships listed is 36

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For a full list of all ships, select HERE

First Ship on each page
Page	Ship Name (Country and Type)
1.	Andrea Gail (American fishing vessel)
2.	Cotopaxi, SS (American bulk carrier)
3.	Ghost (American schooner)
4.	Marine Electric (American bulk carrier)
5.	Rochambeau (American frigate)

American Cargo and Commerce Ships
1.	Andrea Gail American fishing vessel
2.	Buford, USAT American cargo
3.	C.A. Thayer American three-masted schooner
4.	Carroll A. Deering American schooner
5.	Charles W. Morgan American whaling ship
6.	Clotilda American two-masted schooner
7.	Cotopaxi, SS American bulk carrier
8.	Edmund Fitzgerald, SS American lake cargo ship
9.	El Faro, SS American container ship
10.	Empress of China American three-masted, square-rigged sailing ship
11.	Essex American barque
12.	Exodus 1947 American packet steamer
13.	Exxon Valdez American oil tanker
14.	Faith, SS American Concrete
15.	Ghost American schooner
16.	Grandcamp, SS American liberty ship
17.	Hannibal, USS American collier
18.	Henry B. Smith, SS American lake cargo ship
19.	Hewell, USS American cargo ship
20.	Ideal X, SS American cargo ship
21.	John W. Brown, SS American liberty ship
22.	Maersk Alabama, MV American container ship
23.	Marine Electric American bulk carrier
24.	Mighty Servant 2 American heavy lift ship
25.	Monte Carlo, SS American concrete ship
26.	Mount Hood, USS American ammunition ship
27.	Niantic American whaling ship
28.	Pequod American whaling ship
29.	Pewabic, SS American lake steamship
30.	Robert E. Perry, SS American liberty ship
31.	Rochambeau American frigate
32.	Serpens, USS American Crater-class cargo ship
33.	Tonquin American merchant ship
34.	Wanderer American whaling ship
35.	Western Flyer American fishing boat