SS ''Vizcaya'' (ex-''Chusan'') was a steel-hulled, steam freighter that operated in the

Commonwealth of the Philippines The Commonwealth of the Philippines ( es, Commonwealth de Filipinas or ; tl, Komonwelt ng Pilipinas) was the administrative body that governed the Philippines from 1935 to 1946, aside from a period of exile in the Second World War from 1942 ...

. She was scuttled at Manila in December 1941.

History

She was built as the SS ''Chusan'' in 1890 for the benefit of Dampf Schifffahrt Gesellchäft Swatow (Swatow Steam Shipping Company) by

Blohm & Voss Blohm+Voss (B+V), also written historically as Blohm & Voss, Blohm und Voß etc., is a German shipbuilding and engineering company. Founded in Hamburg in 1877 to specialise in steel-hulled ships, its most famous product was the World War II battle ...

at their

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Germany shipyard. In 1896, she was sold to Chine Sische Kustenfahr Gesellchäft; her port of registry remained Hamburg. In 1900, she was renamed as ''Vizcaya'' after her sale to Mendezona & Cia of the Philippines; her homeport was change to

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

. In 1902, she was sold to Compania Maritima of the Philippines. In 1908, she was sold to

Ynchausti y Compañía Ynchausti y Compañía (Ynchausti and Company, also known as YCO) was a prominent Philippine conglomerate from 1816 to 1936. In 1936, the Ynchausti family completed the divestment of most of their corporate holdings with the intention of adopting ...

. In 1935, she was sold to the Manila Steamship Company. In 1938, she was sold to the Madrigal Steamship Company, one of 19 intracoastal steamers that plied the interior waterways of the Philippines delivering foodstuffs and lumber for the company. Immediately prior to the outbreak of hostilities with Japan, she arrived in Manila from the

Visayas Islands The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands ( Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao. Located in the central part of the archipelago, i ...

with a contingent of soldiers and cargo and took shelter in Manila Harbor where the

Asiatic Fleet The United States Asiatic Fleet was a fleet of the United States Navy during much of the first half of the 20th century. Before World War II, the fleet patrolled the Philippine Islands. Much of the fleet was destroyed by the Japanese by Februar ...

was sheltered. After the Japanese seized Manila, she was scuttled and beached in the north harbor to prevent capture sometime in December 1941. The Japanese were unable to refloat her for use.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vizcaya 1890 ships Shipwrecks of the Philippines Ships built in Hamburg Merchant ships of the United States