The Ocean Liner Leviathan
Introduction
The ocean liner Leviathan was one of the largest and most popularly recognizable passenger ships on the Atlantic in the 1920s. Like all ocean liners, the ship was at once a complex and powerful machine as well as a socially stratified hotel catering to different travel budgets and expectations. As such, she required a large crew in order to operate successfully. On her first peacetime crossing after World War I, that crew numbered 1,100 men and women, and they worked to ensure a comfortable, safe, and rapid five-days voyage for the ship’s 1,800 passengers.
Painting of the SS Leviathan from ship's menu
The Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany’s Hamburg-American Line. The ship had crossed the Atlantic only seven times when war broke out in Europe in 1914. She was laid up for safekeeping at her pier in Hoboken, New Jersey, but when the United States entered World War I in 1917, the American government seized the Vaterland and converted her into a troopship. Renamed Leviathan on the suggestion of President Woodrow Wilson and operated by the navy, she carried 94,000 troops to France, one-sixth the total American deployment in Europe. From 1919 to 1922, she was again laid up in New York Harbor. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, she reentered commercial service as the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated her for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. High operating costs and low passenger numbers during the Depression led to the Leviathan being laid up in New York Harbor (again) until 1938, when she sailed to Scotland and was scrapped.
The Leviathan approaching New York City
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Ship Model, Leviathan
- Description
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. This model was likely built around then. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled. This model came to the Smithsonian from the New York City offices of the United States Lines in 1952.
- date made
- ca 1914
- used date
- 1914-1938
- ID Number
- TR.314250
- catalog number
- 314250
- accession number
- 196508
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
SS Leviathan Pin
- Description
- A souvenir pin from the ocean liner Leviathan, sporting the house flag adopted by the new owners of the United States Lines in late 1931.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1932
- used date
- 1932-1934
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.33
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.33
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Menu, S.S. Leviathan
- Description
- This combined Dinner Menu and Music Program was given to the First Class passengers who were traveling aboard the Leviathan on Sunday, December 22, 1929.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1929
- Associated Date
- 1929
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.66
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.66
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Rivet, SS Leviathan
- Description
- Pounded by a large wave during an Atlantic storm in December 1929, the passenger ship Leviathan developed a serious crack. It ran across C Deck just aft the forward funnel uptakes and down the ship’s starboard (right) side. This rivet was one of 6,000 produced to fasten replacement steel plates to the ship’s hull when the crack was repaired in February 1930, while the Leviathan lay at the government pier in Hoboken, New Jersey.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1930
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.17
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.17
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Brig Key, SS Leviathan
- Description
- Although not marked, this key is reputed to be from the brig, or jail cell, of the ocean liner Leviathan. According to collector and historian Frank Braynard, the key's donor, it hung on a wood plaque for many years in the model shop of the New York naval architecture firm of Gibbs and Cox, the company that renovated the Leviathan for American passenger service in 1922-23. Presumably, it came to be there after the ship was scrapped in Scotland after 1938.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1923
- used date
- 1923-1938
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.26
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.26
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Steam Pressure Gauge, SS Leviathan
- Description
- C.A. Walters, an executive at Simpson, Spence & Young, the ship brokerage that sold the ocean liner Leviathan to the Scotish shipbreakers in 1938, acquired this condenser gauge from the ship's engine plant. He had it mounted on a wooden stand and presented it as a gift for to his daughter Katherine's boyfriend Leslie Stratton, Jr. Stratton, many years later, gave it to historian Frank Braynard, who in turn presented it to the Smithsonian.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1923
- used date
- 1923-1938
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.18
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.18
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Officer's Cap Insignia, SS Leviathan
- Description
- In 1929 the ocean liner Leviathan passed from U.S. government ownership into private hands. The red triangle emblem on this cap badge reflects the changes made by the reorganized United States Lines to its flags, uniforms, and stationery. This logo remained in use through 1931.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1930
- used date
- 1929-1931
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.19
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.19
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
SS Leviathan Crew Member Pass
- Description
- This pass was issued to machinist Alfred Boyce when the ocean liner Leviathan was in New York between crossings in June 1924.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1924
- used date
- 1924
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.22
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.22
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Playing Cards, SS Leviathan
- Description
- A souvenir from a voyage across the Atlantic on the ocean liner Leviathan. The box, card backs, and the Ace of spades all carry the emblem used by the United States Lines between 1923 and 1929.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1925
- used date
- 1923-1929
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.24
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.24
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Dog House Key, SS Leviathan
- Description
- This key opened the outside door to the Leviathan's kennel, a small wood shed on the aft boat deck in her first-class accommodation.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1923
- used date
- 1923-1938
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.27
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.27
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Chief Engineer Plaque, SS Leviathan
- Description
- This plaque from the ocean liner Leviathan probably marked the chief engineer’s cabin or sitting room.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1923
- used date
- 1923-1938
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.29
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.29
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- catalog number
- 1991. 0856.29
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Souvenir Card, SS Leviathan
- Description
- Souvenir card printed on one side with a drawing of the ocean liner Leviathan and on the other with an abstract of speed, mileage, and weather information for the ship's westboard Atlantic voyage beginning October 16, 1924. A card like this was printed and distributed at the end of every voyage on most ocean passenger ships.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1924
- used date
- 1924
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.32
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.32
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
SS Leviathan Pocket Knife
- Description
- A souvenir pocketknife sold to passengers aboard the passenger ship Leviathan.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1920s
- used date
- 1923-1938
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.34
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.34
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
SS Leviathan Master-at-Arms Badge
- Description
- In 1924 the Deck Department on the SS Leviathan included six masters-at-arms, who looked after the vessel’s security and assisted with passenger safety. The markings on this badge refer to a lifeboat station.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1920s
- used date
- 1923-1938
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.35
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.35
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
SS Leviathan Navigating Officer, Notebook
- Description
- This book was compiled by Giles C. Stedman, who joined the Leviathan's in 1927 as first officer and served aboard until 1934.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- late 1920s
- used date
- 1927-1934
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.36
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.36
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Butter Plate, SS Leviathan
- Description
- This butter dish, substantially similar to another one from Leviathan in the Smithsonian's collections (1991.0856.37), is decorated with the emblem adopted by the new owners of the United States Lines in 1929.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1929
- used date
- 1929-1931
- maker
- International Silver Company
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.38
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.38
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Souvenir Log, S.S. Leviathan
- Description
- Souvenir log written by “tourist cabin” (i.e. tourist-class) passengers on an August 1928 voyage from New York to Southampton, England, aboard the United States Lines steamship Leviathan.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1928
- used date
- 1928
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.64
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.64
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Concert Program, S.S. Leviathan
- Description
- This program describes the selections performed at a charity concert held in first class on board the ocean liner Leviathan, September 8, 1928.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1928
- used date
- 1928
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.67
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.67
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
E-Deck Plaque, S.S. Leviathan
- Description
- Brass plaque with raised letters reading “E-DECK.”
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1923
- used date
- 1923-1938
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.16
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.16
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Butter Plate, SS Leviathan
- Description
- Silver plate with stamped shield of stars and stripes in the plate’s bowl. Marked “International Silver Company” on bottom.
- The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia, in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1923
- used date
- 1923-1929
- maker
- International Silver Company
- ID Number
- 1991.0856.37
- catalog number
- 1991.0856.37
- accession number
- 1991.0856
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
