SS Delphic (1897)
SS Delphic
| |
History | |
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United Kingdom | |
Name | SS Delphic |
Owner | White Star Line |
Builder | Harland and Wolff, Belfast |
Yard number | 309 |
Launched | 5 January 1897 |
Completed | 15 May 1897 |
Maiden voyage | 17 June 1897 |
Out of service | 16 August 1917 |
Fate | Torpedoed and sunk, 16 August 1917 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Ocean liner |
Tonnage | 8,273 GRT |
Length | 475.11 ft (144.8 m) |
Beam | 55.3 ft (16.9 m) |
Installed power | 3,000 ihp |
Propulsion | Two triple expansion steam engines |
Speed | 11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph) service speed |
Capacity | 1,000 passengers |
SS Delphic was an
World War I did not disturb her service until March 1917, when she was requisitioned to serve in the war effort. It was during a crossing to South America, the following May, that the ship was torpedoed by the German submarine UC-72. Five people were killed, but the ship sank slowly enough that the rest of the crew could be evacuated, before the ship was sunk by additional torpedoes.
History
In 1884, White Star Line inaugurated its service to
In 1897, a slightly smaller version of the Gothic (although at a higher tonnage) was ordered to join the route, captained by James ‘John’ Breen who had previously worked as Chief Officer on the ‘’Gothic’’: ‘ the Delphic. Slower, she was intended for the transport of a thousand migrants as well as goods.
Her career on this new route was uneventful for nearly twenty years, with the exception of the very beginning of the 20th century. She was requisitioned on 31 March 1900 to transport 1,200 soldiers from London to Cape Town as part of the Second Boer War, after which she continued her service on the route to New Zealand. On 4 April 1901, she was again employed for this purpose, this time from Queenstown.[6]
Following the outbreak of
Characteristics
At 144.8 m in length and 16.9 m in width, Delphic was built as a smaller and slower version of the earlier liner Gothic which also served the New Zealand service, but more space was given over to passenger accommodation rather than cargo, and this gave Delphic a capacity for 1,000 steerage passengers.[4][10] She sported a classic silhouette for ships of the time, with four masts (unlike the Gothic's, the Delphic's forward mast could carry sails) surrounding a funnel in the colors of the White Star Line: brown ocher with black cuff.[11]
Powered by triple expansion machines that powered a propeller, she sailed at a speed of 11 to 12 knots, slower than her fellow ships. This speed therefore made her suitable for transporting a less affluent clientele, made up of emigrants.[6]
References
- ISBN 9780752488615.
- ^ Anderson 1964, pp. 71–72
- ^ de Kerbrech 2009, p. 58
- ^ a b c d de Kerbrech 2009, p. 64
- ^ Delphic(I) titanic-titanic.com
- ^ a b Haws 1990, p. 50
- ^ "Delphic". Uboat.net. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
- ^ "British Merchant Ships Lost to Enemy Action Part 2 of 3 - January–August 1917 in date order". Naval History. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
- ^ Eaton & Haas 1989, p. 192
- ^ Anderson 1964, p. 94
- ^ Haws 1990, p. 49
Bibliography
- Anderson, Roy Claude (1964). White Star. Prescot: T. Stephenson & Sons Ltd. OCLC 3134809.
- de Kerbrech, Richard (2009). Ships of the White Star Line. Shepperton: Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7110-3366-5.
- Eaton, John; Haas, Charles (1989). Falling Star, Misadventures of White Star Line Ships. Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-85260-084-5.
- Haws, Duncan (1990). White Star Line. Merchant Fleets. Vol. 17. Hereford: TCL Publications. OCLC 50214776.