SS ''Canopic'' was a
passenger liner
A passenger ship is a merchant ship whose primary function is to carry passengers on the sea. The category does not include cargo vessels which have accommodations for limited numbers of passengers, such as the ubiquitous twelve-passenger freig ...
of the
White Star Line
The White Star Line was a British shipping company. Founded out of the remains of a defunct packet company, it gradually rose up to become one of the most prominent shipping lines in the world, providing passenger and cargo services between t ...
.
The ship was built by Harland & Wolff in Belfast for the
Dominion Line
The Dominion Line was a trans-atlantic passenger line founded in 1870 as the ''Liverpool & Mississippi Steamship Co.'', with the official name being changed in 1872 to the ''Mississippi & Dominion Steamship Co Ltd.'' The firm was amalgamated in ...
, and launched on 31 May 1900 as the ''Commonwealth''. The ship was long, and powered by a 988 nhp 6-cylinder triple expansion steam engine which gave her a service speed of . She could carry up to 1,300 passengers.
The ship initially operated between Liverpool and Boston, but in 1903 she was transferred to the White Star Line and renamed ''Canopic''. Her first crossing for the White Star Line began on 14 January 1904, on which she sailed from Liverpool to Boston. Immediately after this first crossing, she joined the ''
Romanic'' and ''
Republic
A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
'' on the White Star Line's new Mediterranean service, on which she would remain for more than 13 years. She was requisitioned for war service between 1917 and 1919, then served on the Liverpool–Montreal route until 1925, when she was scrapped at
Briton Ferry
Briton Ferry ( cy, Llansawel) is a town and community in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales. The Welsh name may indicate that the church, ''llan'', is protected from the wind, ''awel''. Alternatively, ''Sawel'' may be a derivative ...
, Wales. Timber panelling from the dining hall was salvaged and installed in the former Canopic Restaurant at
Mumbles
Mumbles ( cy, Mwmbwls) is a headland sited on the western edge of Swansea Bay on the southern coast of Wales.
Toponym
Mumbles has been noted for its unusual place name. The headland is thought by some to have been named by French sailors, ...
from where it was later reinstalled in the town's White Rose hotel.
References
External links
Multiple images of the ''Commonwealth'' including interior
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canopic, SS
1900 ships
Ships built in Belfast
Ships of the Dominion Line
Ships of the White Star Line
Ships built by Harland and Wolff