USS ''Aeolus'' (ID-3005), sometimes also spelled ''Æolus'', was a
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
transport ship
A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable land troops directly on shore, typicall ...
during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. She was formerly the
North German Lloyd
Norddeutscher Lloyd (NDL; North German Lloyd) was a German shipping company. It was founded by Hermann Henrich Meier and Eduard Crüsemann in Bremen on 20 February 1857. It developed into one of the most important German shipping companies of t ...
liner
A low-ionization nuclear emission-line region (LINER) is a type of galactic nucleus that is defined by its spectral line emission. The spectra typically include line emission from weakly ionized or neutral atoms, such as O, O+, N+, and S+. ...
SS ''Grosser Kurfürst'', also spelled ''Großer Kurfürst'', launched in 1899 that sailed regularly between
Bremen
Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...
and New York. At the outset of World War I the ship was interned by the United States and, when the U.S. entered the conflict in 1917, was seized and converted to a troop transport.
Originally commissioned as USS ''Grosser Kurfürst'', the ship was renamed ''Aeolus'' — after the god of wind in
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
mythology
Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...
— while undergoing repairs and conversion at a U.S. Navy yard. The ship carried almost 25,000 men to France during the hostilities, and returned over 27,000 healthy and wounded men after the
Armistice
An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...
.
After decommissioning by the U.S. Navy, the ship was turned over to the
United States Shipping Board
The United States Shipping Board (USSB) was established as an emergency agency by the 1916 Shipping Act (39 Stat. 729), on September 7, 1916. The United States Shipping Board's task was to increase the number of US ships supporting the World War ...
and underwent a $3,000,000 refit in
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, and was transferred to the
Munson Steamship Line for whom she carried passengers and freight to and from South American ports as SS ''Aeolus''. In 1922 the ship was assigned to the
Los Angeles Steamship Co. and renamed SS ''City of Los Angeles'' and sailed to and from Los Angeles and
Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
. In 1937, the ship was sold for scrapping in Japan.
SS ''Grosser Kurfürst''
SS ''Grosser Kurfürst'' was a steel-hulled, twin-screw, passenger-and-cargo steamship launched on 2 December 1899 at
Danzig, Germany (now
Gdańsk
Gdańsk ( , also ; ; csb, Gduńsk;Stefan Ramułt, ''Słownik języka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego'', Kraków 1893, Gdańsk 2003, ISBN 83-87408-64-6. , Johann Georg Theodor Grässe, ''Orbis latinus oder Verzeichniss der lateinischen Benen ...
, Poland), by the shipbuilding firm of
F. Schichau
The Schichau-Werke (F. Schichau, Maschinen- und Lokomotivfabrik, Schiffswerft und Eisengießerei GmbH) was a German engineering works and shipyard based in Elbing, Germany (now Elbląg, Poland) on the Frisches Haff (Vistula Lagoon) of then- Eas ...
for the
North German Lloyd
Norddeutscher Lloyd (NDL; North German Lloyd) was a German shipping company. It was founded by Hermann Henrich Meier and Eduard Crüsemann in Bremen on 20 February 1857. It developed into one of the most important German shipping companies of t ...
. The liner boasted "enormous carrying capacity" and "excellent passenger accommodation" for all classes from first to steerage. She made her maiden voyage to Asiatic and Australian ports before commencing regularly scheduled voyages in spring 1900 between
Bremen
Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...
and New York City; these lasted until summer 1914. In winter seasons she did eight more tours to Australia on the German Empire mail route. Her last start to Australia was 7 January 1912. Over these years she was the biggest ship sailing to Australia. At this time she made some cruises for U.S. tourists.
Max Spangenberg
Max or MAX may refer to:
Animals
* Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog
* Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE)
* Max (gorilla) ...
was her captain in 1913 when she rescued passengers from the burning
SS Volturno in the Atlantic.
When
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
broke out in Europe, ''Grosser Kurfürst'' was forced to seek shelter in American waters. The United States Government interned these ships wherever they had put into port, and upon the entrance of the United States into the hostilities on the side of the
Allied and Associated Powers
The Allies of World War I, Entente Powers, or Allied Powers were a coalition of countries led by France, the United Kingdom, Russia, Italy, Japan, and the United States against the Central Powers of Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman E ...
— on 6 April 1917 — took them over for "safe keeping."
U.S. Customs
The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted ...
agents boarded ''Grosser Kurfürst'' in the port of New York, along with 30 other
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
and
Austro-Hungarian
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
vessels, and sent their crews to an internment camp on
Ellis Island
Ellis Island is a federally owned island in New York Harbor, situated within the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, that was the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States. From 1892 to 1954, nearly 12 mi ...
. However, before these sailors left their ships, they carried out a program of systematic destruction calculated to take the longest possible time to repair.
USS ''Aeolus''
The
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
inspected ''Grosser Kurfürst'' and designated her "Id. No. 3005" and earmarked her for service with the
Cruiser and Transport Force The Cruiser and Transport Service was a unit of the United States Navy's Atlantic Fleet during World War I that was responsible for transporting American men and materiel to France.
Composition
On 1 July 1918, the Cruiser and Transport Force was ...
to carry troops to France. She commissioned as ''Grosser Kurfürst'' on 4 August 1917, at the
New York Navy Yard
The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a ...
. While the ship was undergoing the repairs and alterations necessitated by the German sabotage and in light of her expected role carrying troops across the
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
, General Order No. 320 of 1 September 1917 changed her name to ''Aeolus''.
On 26 November 1917, the erstwhile luxury steamship, now wearing warpaint, departed the
Port of Embarkation at
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,690 i ...
, bound for Europe on the first of eight round-trip voyages during World War I, carrying troops to the Old World. She reached
St. Nazaire, France, on 10 December and spent Christmas in that French port before she headed home on 28 December, bringing the voyage to a close when mooring at
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...
, nine days into 1918. Shifting thence to Hoboken, ''Aeolus'' again sailed to France and returned from
Brest
Brest may refer to:
Places
*Brest, Belarus
**Brest Region
**Brest Airport
**Brest Fortress
*Brest, Kyustendil Province, Bulgaria
*Břest, Czech Republic
*Brest, France
**Arrondissement of Brest
**Brest Bretagne Airport
** Château de Brest
*Brest, ...
again to Hoboken.
Two events highlighted the ship's wartime convoy experiences. The first occurred during the beginning of what was to be the ship's third voyage to France. ''Aeolus'', in convoy, departed Hoboken on 23 April 1918. Two days out, a steering gear casualty in the transport forced that ship to leave her assigned place in the formation. ''Aeolus'', to avoid collision with ''Siboney'', altered course radically, and in so doing struck the transport at about 21:00 hours, 25 April. There were no deaths; but both transports were damaged which necessitated their turning back. ''Aeolus'' reached Hoboken on 28 April.
The second event occurred on 1 August 1918, while the ship was returning to the United States from Brest. At 06:05, lookouts spotted what looked to be the wake of a submarine periscope, some distant. Changing course, ''Aeolus'' stood to general quarters and within a minute of the sighting, her number one and three guns commenced firing. For the next few minutes, her gunners fired at the diminishing target until it pulled out of range at 06:15.
While the signing of the armistice of 11 November 1918 signalled the end of hostilities — an occasion that found the ship en route from St. Nazaire to Newport News — it only meant the beginning of the task of returning American troops from "over there." During the war, ''Aeolus'' had transported 24,770 men to the European battlefront in her eight voyages. In the postwar months, ''Aeolus'' conducted a further seven turn-around voyages, bringing back some 22,080 healthy veterans, and some 5,018 wounded and sick. Commencing her last voyage from Brest on 26 August 1919, ''Aeolus'' reached New York City on 5 September and was immediately detached from the Cruiser and Transport Force.
Decommissioned at Newport News on 22 September 1919 and turned over to the
United States Shipping Board
The United States Shipping Board (USSB) was established as an emergency agency by the 1916 Shipping Act (39 Stat. 729), on September 7, 1916. The United States Shipping Board's task was to increase the number of US ships supporting the World War ...
, ''Aeolus'' was presumably struck simultaneously from the
Navy list
A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval author ...
.
Post-war civilian service
Early in 1920, the Shipping Board let what one contemporary marine engineering journal called "one of the most extensive ship repair contracts ever awarded" in the history of the United States, to the
Baltimore Dry Dock & Shipbuilding Company, of
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, to renovate the ship. Over the next few months, ''Aeolus'' underwent massive alterations at a cost of nearly $3,000,000.
Remodelled quarters, an extensive refrigeration system to preserve cargoes of frozen meats as well as the food to be consumed during the voyage, and the conversion of the ship from coal to oil fuel, all helped to make ''Aeolus'' one of the best-equipped liners afloat.
[ Resplendent in her new livery — a battle gray hull with a white superstructure — ''Aeolus'' departed Baltimore on 20 November 1920 and proceeded to New York City where, shortly thereafter, she was turned over to her operators, the Munson Steamship Line.
]
''Aeolus'' sailed under the Munson Line's house flag, carrying passengers and freight to and from South American ports until the summer of 1922. In August of that year, she came under the flag of the Los Angeles Steamship Company
The Los Angeles Steamship Company or LASSCO was a passenger and freight shipping company based in Los Angeles, California.
Description
The company, formed in 1920, initially provided fast passenger service between Los Angeles and San Francisco. I ...
and was renamed ''City of Los Angeles''. After being thoroughly reconditioned for her new operators, the liner sailed on 11 September 1922 for her maiden voyage under her new name, bound for Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...
, in a new dazzling white paint scheme. In January 1931, the handsome liner figured in an experimental shore-to-ship air mail flight. A Ford Trimotor
The Ford Trimotor (also called the "Tri-Motor", and nicknamed the "Tin Goose") is an American three-engined transport aircraft. Production started in 1925 by the companies of Henry Ford and ended on June 7, 1933, after 199 had been made. It w ...
— flying from the Grand Central Air Terminal
Grand Central Airport is a former airport in Glendale, California. Also known as Grand Central Air Terminal (GCAT), the airport was an important facility for the growing Los Angeles suburb of Glendale in the 1920s and a key element in the deve ...
at Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...
— followed ''City of Los Angeles'' out to sea and, off the California coast, dropped a bag containing 12,527 envelopes onto the passenger liner's deck. The March 1931 issue of the ''Merchant Marine Bulletin'' speculated that this was probably the largest single consignment of airmail
Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...
ever to pass through the Honolulu Post Office.
''City of Los Angeles'' plied the Pacific between Los Angeles and Honolulu until she was sold to Japanese interests in February 1937 and cut up for scrap.
References
*
External links
*
Photo gallery
at Naval Historical Center
''City of Los Angeles'' photos
*
*
Rio de Janeiro is Now Only 11 Days Away
(United States Shipping Board advertisement/Munson Steamship Line's advertisement with ship description)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aeolus
Ships built in Danzig
Ships of Norddeutscher Lloyd
Transports of the United States Navy
World War I auxiliary ships of the United States
1899 ships
Ships built by Schichau