| |
|
| Launched: |
August 13, 1853 in Baltimore as the Tennessee. |
| Length: |
210 Feet |
| Beam: |
33 feet 11" |
| Sidewheels: |
28 feet in diameter |
| Power: |
Vertical-beam engine with one 9'6" piston
Powered by the steam from a pair of double return flue boilers. |
| Shipbuilder: |
John A. Robb; engines by Charles A. Reeder & Sons, Baltimore |
| Sank: |
October 25, 1865 |
History:
- 1853: In commercial service - passengers and cargo
- 1855: First transatlantic passage by a steamer from Baltimore
- 1856: Inaugurated steamer service between U.S and South America
- 1856-57: Sailed the Nicaragua route with adventurers - Gold Rush "Californios" and soldiers of fortune following William Walker
- 1857: In commercial service - passengers and cargo New York to New Orleans
- 1861: April 21 - Captured by Confederate troops in New Orleans - pressed into service.
- 1862: April 28 - Captured by Union forces in New Orleans - pressed into service.
- 1862-64: Participated in Civil War naval Mississippi Campaign, Gulf Coast Blockade, Battle of Mobile Bay; often flagship of Adm. David Farragut
- 1864 Name changed to USS Mobile
- 1865: Bought at auction by Russell Sturgis and investment group - ship was repaired and refit, then renamed the SS Republic - returned to a New York - New Orleans run in May.
The Final Voyage of SS Republic:
- October 18, 1865 : The SS Republic leaves New York - bound for New Orleans with a reported "$400,000 in specie."
- October 23 1865: Off the Georgia coast, a storm blows in, becoming a "perfect hurricane" by evening.
- October 24, 1865: The paddlewheels stall and can't carry the engine past dead center. The SS Republic is left powerless - drifting and at the mercy of the elements. Steam is raised on the donkey boiler to start the pumps.
- October 25, 1865: At 9am, the "donkey boiler" fails and water pours into the hold. The crew begins work on a makeshift raft and preparing the lifeboats. At 1:30 pm the lifeboats and raft begin launching. At 4:00pm, when all but 21 people were in the boats, the SS Republic broke in two and sank suddenly. Different newspaper accounts later say either one or two passengers drown while trying to swim through the ship's floating debris; all others swim to safely to one of the small craft.
The Lifeboats:
- October 26, 1865: Lifeboat #1, under the command of the Republic's captain, is rescued by the brig John W. Lovitt
- October 27, 1865: Lifeboat #2 is rescued in the afternoon by the schooner Willie Dill. Lifeboat #3 is spotted and rescued late on the 27th by the barkentine Horace Beals.
- October 29, 1865: Lifeboat #4 rescued after four nights at sea by the schooner Harper
- November 2, 1865: The raft, which departed with 18 people aboard, is spotted off Cape Hatteras by the U.S. Navy steamship, USS Tioga. Only two people remained on the raft to be rescued.
# # #
The Company believes the information set forth in this Press Release may include "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Certain factors that could cause results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements are set forth in "Risk Factors," and "Business" in the Company's annual report on Form 10KSB for the year ended February 28, 2003, which has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
|
| |