The Fabre Line or Compagnie Francaise de Navigation a Vapeur Cyprien Fabre & Compagnie was a French
shipping line formed in 1881 by Cyprian Fabre. It began operating a small fleet of sailing ships in 1865.
Its ports of call included New York, NY; Providence, Rhode Island; Boston, MA; Ponta Delgada, Madeira, and Lisbon, Portugal; Piraeus, Salonica, and Athens, Greece; Algiers, Morocco; Beirut, Lebanon; Naples & Palermo, Italy; Alexandria, Egypt; Jaffa and Haifa, Palestine; Constantinople, Turkey; and Monaco and Marseilles, France.
In 1886, the
James W. Elwell & Co., became the agents of the Fabre Line of freight and passenger steamers between Mediterranean ports and New York.
[
] In April 1911, the James W. Elwell & Co., as general agents of the Fabre Line, announced that the line has launched a mail, passenger and freight service between New York and
Portugal. This new service opened up Portugal and
Spain to
Tourism in the United States
In the United States, tourism is a large industry that serves millions of international and domestic tourists yearly. Foreigners visit the U.S. to see natural wonders, cities, historic landmarks, and entertainment venues. Americans seek simil ...
.
In June 1911, Fabre Line
steamship
A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...
s began trans-Atlantic service to
India Point in
Providence, Rhode Island.
Between June 30, 1912, and June 30, 1913, Fabre brought almost 12,000 mostly Italian and Portuguese immigrants to Providence's Lonsdale Dock.
The route was so popular that Fabre built an additional pier in 1914.
Service continued until 1934.
The Fabre Line was the only transatlantic route to southern New England.
On 21 May 1930 the Fabre Line's SS ''Asia'', having brought 700 Algerian pilgrims to
Mecca for the
Hajj
The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...
and then loaded some 1,500 pilgrims, c. 1,200 of them Yemenis returning to
Aden
Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...
and c. 300 from French Somaliland returning to
Djibouti, caught fire in
Jeddah
Jeddah ( ), also spelled Jedda, Jiddah or Jidda ( ; ar, , Jidda, ), is a city in the Hejaz region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) and the country's commercial center. Established in the 6th century BC as a fishing village, Jeddah's pro ...
harbour. At least 112 pilgrims died, possibly many more.
It became the Compagnie Generale de Navigation a Vapeur in 1933 under the helm of Jean Alfred Fraissinet. Jean Alfred Fraissinet, owner of the Nouvelle Société Maritime de Navigation à Vapeur (Compagnie Fraissinet) married Mathilde Cyprien-Fabre. In 1930, the two shipping firms, as well as a third line, integrated operations to mutually increase their commercial competitiveness.
References
{{Authority control
French companies established in 1881
Shipping companies of France
Cruise lines
Transatlantic shipping companies