THIBODAUX, La. (WAFB) – This old, decaying ship in the port of Mobile, Alabama, has an impressive past. It’s the largest passenger ship ever built in the USA and still holds the transatlantic speed record set on her maiden voyage in 1952.
“Very powerful engines and the ship had a certain vibration because of these engines,” said Jane Block.
Jane Block and her husband, Harold Block of Thibodaux, had been married a year when they crossed the Atlantic on the SS United States in the summer of 1969.
“And it was not a fancy ship like the Queen Mary or the Queen Elizabeth. No chandeliers, anything like that. It was a very utilitarian type vessel,” said Harold Block.
The cruise ship was also part of the US Naval Reserve. The plan was that it could quickly convert from luxury liner to a speedy troop carrier.
“I remember the dining room,” said Mrs. Block.
The Blocks are sharing their cruise memories with Frank Rathle of Thibodaux, who has his own connection to the famous ship.
“We arrived right here on these pictures are all July 5th, 1969,” said Rathle.
Rathle’s family packed and moved all of their belongings on the SS United States when the family immigrated from France to America, only weeks apart from the Block’s cruise.
“I was completely impressed that they had the ability, the courage, and the faith to pick up everything they’ve ever known and go to a country where it wasn’t their first language,” said Rathle.
How old were you when you got on that ship to come to America? And do you have any memories at all?
“Unfortunately, I was three years old, and no, I do not have any memories. I only have a historical memory just because I’ve been repeated the stories over and over again,” said Rathle.
Those memories include the photographs of young Frank and his family passing the Statue of Liberty. His father saved everything from that trip, a map of the state rooms, pictures of the restaurants, the showroom, and movie theater.
“One evening it was rough and the curtain swayed back and forth,” said Mrs. Block.
And the lunch and dinner menus from every day of the trip.
“July 3rd, the gala dinner. I do recall them saying it was just fantastic,” said Rathle.
Later that year, the SS United States would make its final cruise. Even her speedy engines couldn’t compete with the booming airline industry for transatlantic crossings. The old luxury ship is being gutted and cleaned of hazardous materials. It will be sunk off the coast of Florida to create the world’s largest artificial reef.
“It will be repurposed for a very good reason,” said Mr. Block.
Frank Rathle recently went to Mobile to add his own memory to the stories he heard from his parents.
“The fact that it would be a reef with all kinds of, you know, life all around. It has a beauty in it as well,” said Rathle.
These Thibodaux families have their own ties to America’s flagship, a fast and mighty ocean liner that is now destined for a new home at sea.
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