SS ''Atlantic'' was an American-built vessel that operated for 42 years in various capacities. First designated SS ''Badger Mariner'', she was originally built as a freighter in 1953. However, her career as a

cargo vessel A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

was relatively short. In 1958, she was rebuilt as 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 ...

. Renamed SS ''Atlantic'', this ship became familiar to many American tourists during the 1960s, making cruises to the Caribbean and

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

. In 1971, she was retired from commercial service and purchased by C. Y. Tung, a Chinese shipping magnate, and converted to a

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

at sea, first as the SS ''Universe Campus'', then as the SS ''Universe''.

Freighter

SS ''Badger Mariner'' was built as a 9,214 gross register ton cargo ship. Construction occurred in 1952 and 1953 at Sun Ship Building & Dry Dock Co., in

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester i ...

. She was launched on July 1, 1953. SS ''Badger Mariner'' was one of approximately 35 cargo ships of the C4-S-1a class designed and built to provide fast support for the US military, following the retirement of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

liberty ships Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Mass ...

. She had a central-island superstructure, with three large deck cranes located forward and two large deck cranes located aft. These cranes serviced four forward hatches and two aft hatches, all of which were hydraulically operated. She had a length of 564 feet, a

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...

of 76 feet, and a

draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...

of 26 feet, and could achieve a maximum speed of 20

knots A knot is a fastening in rope or interwoven lines. Knot may also refer to: Places * Knot, Nancowry, a village in India Archaeology * Knot of Isis (tyet), symbol of welfare/life. * Minoan snake goddess figurines#Sacral knot Arts, entertainme ...

. Her cargo capacity was 769,949

cubic feet Cubic may refer to: Science and mathematics * Cube (algebra), "cubic" measurement * Cube, a three-dimensional solid object bounded by six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex ** Cubic crystal system, a crystal system w ...

, all of which was contained in below-deck holds. In 1958 she was sold to the American Banner Lines.

Cruise ship

Upon acquiring the SS ''Badger Mariner'' in 1958, the American Banner Lines undertook an extensive conversion, turning the ship into a medium-sized

. This work took place at the Ingalls Ship Building Corporation at

Pascagoula, Mississippi Pascagoula ( ) is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is the principal city of the Pascagoula Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is part of the Gulfport– Biloxi–Pascagoula Combined Statistical Area. The population was 2 ...

. Following this conversion, the linear dimensions of the ship remained the same. However, with the addition of passenger decks, her gross register tonnage increased to 14,138. She was renamed SS ''Atlantic''. The conversion successfully masked the ship’s origins as a freighter, and gave her a modern, well-proportioned, though slightly boxy, profile. Overall, her appearance was in keeping with other passenger vessels designed and built in the late 1950s and early 1960s. She sported a black hull with a white strip at the base of the superstructure, the lower deck of which retained the black coloration of the hull. Her upper superstructure was white and was topped by a squat blue

funnel A funnel is a tube or pipe that is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, used for guiding liquid or powder into a small opening. Funnels are usually made of stainless steel, aluminium, glass, or plastic. The material used in its construct ...

. She featured glass-enclosed

promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...

s, running most of the length of both sides of the

promenade deck The promenade deck is a deck found on several types of passenger ships and riverboats. It usually extends from bow to stern, on both sides, and includes areas open to the outside, resulting in a continuous outside walkway suitable for ''promen ...

, and spacious public rooms. On June 11, 1958, SS ''Atlantic'' departed on her maiden voyage. While under the American Banner Lines flag, she ran between New York, Antwerp, and

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

. This service did not return the expected profit, and the vessel was again placed on the market in 1959. SS ''Atlantic'' was soon acquired by the

American Export Lines American Export-Isbrandtsen Lines, New York, was the leading US-flag shipping company between the U.S. east coast and the Mediterranean from 1919 to 1977, offering both cargo ship and passenger ship services, until it declared bankruptcy and was ...

. An extensive refit, completed in May, 1960, increased her tonnage to 18,100 gross registered tons. She was turned into a warm-weather

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports-of-call, where passengers may go on tours known as ...

, catering primarily to

tourist class Economy class, also called third class, coach class, steerage, or to distinguish it from the slightly more expensive premium economy class, standard economy class or budget economy class, is the lowest travel class of seating in air travel, rail ...

passengers. She was equipped with a large outdoor pool and was given an all white hull and superstructure. Her

, in keeping with the

livery, was marked by black, white, and buff stripes. She could accommodate 880 passengers, 40 housed in first class accommodations. The vessel was fully

air conditioned Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...

and each passenger cabin was equipped with a private bathroom. She was fitted with stabilizers in 1961. SS ''Atlantic'' had six passenger decks, with the uppermost designated as the Bridge Deck, and those below as the Boat Deck, Promenade Deck, Upper Deck, Main Deck, and “A” Deck, respectively. Between 1960 and 1967, SS ''Atlantic'' ran successful cruises between New York,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, and the Caribbean, stopping at St. Thomas, Jamaica and other destinations. Her voyages were advertised as Beachcomber Cruises to the Caribbean. She also made 24-day cruises to the

. In January 1967, the SS ''Atlantic'' ran aground on a sand bar when leaving Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale, Florida on a seven-day Caribbean cruise. Tugs required two days to dislodge the ship, which returned to Port Everglades without significant damage. Later in 1967, the vessel was withdrawn from service due to declines in passenger traffic.

University at Sea

In 1971, the vessel was purchased by C. Y. Tung, was registered to Seawise Foundation, Inc., and was designated SS ''Universe Campus''. From this point forward, she had a very successful career traveling the globe as a university at sea. The vessel housed about 500 students and 60 faculty members for four-month semesters. In 1976, SS ''Universe Campus'' was renamed SS ''Universe''. By 1989, she had carried more than 20,000 students.

Disposition

As a result of aging boilers, delayed sailings, and mounting repair bills, SS ''Universe'' was retired in 1995. She was towed to Alang, India, where she was scrapped in 1996.

References

External links

Video: Let's Take the SS Atlantic to the Mediterranean in 1961!
{{DEFAULTSORT:Atlantic Cruise ships Passenger ships Cargo ships of the United States Ocean liners Cargo liners Ships built by the Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Company 1953 ships