SS Taormina (1908)

The Taormina was a 1908 put into operation in Italian transatlantic passenger steamer, the succession belonged to three lines and ran between Italy and the United States. 1923, the ship was decommissioned and scrapped six years later.

The ship

The 8,282 -ton steamship Taormina was at Meadowside dock shipyard D. & W. Henderson & Company in Glasgow for the Italian shipping company Italia Società di Navigazione a Vapors ( called Italian Line ) built and ran on 15 February 1908 by stack. The 147 meter long passenger and cargo ship, which was named after the town of Taormina in Sicily, was built for passenger traffic from Italy to the United States. The Taormina had two masts, one funnel, two propellers, and was designed for a cruising speed of 16 knots. The passenger accommodations were provided for 60 travelers in the First and 2,500 in Third Class.

She had two sister ships, the set also 1908 in service and both were sunk during the First World War in the Mediterranean by the German U- boats: The Verona ( 8,240 GRT), which was sunk on May 11, 1918 service as a troop transport (880 deaths ) and Ancona ( 8188 BRT), which was sunk on November 8, 1915 with the loss of 208 civilian passengers and crew members.

After the completion in May 1908, Taormina ran on September 3, 1908 in Genoa on her maiden voyage across Naples to New York and Philadelphia from. From 1909 120 passengers could be carried in the First Class and in 1910 there were 60 in the first and 120 in the Second Class. On December 16, 1911 put the steamer on its final voyage from New York and Philadelphia. The following year, the Taormina was acquired by the shipping company founded in 1904 Lloyd Italiano and set on the route from Genoa Naples to New York. When the Lloyd Italiano was taken over in 1918 by the Navigazione Generale Italiana, changed the Taormina a third time its operators. For this shipping company they steamed from Genoa in 1919 by over Marseille to New York.

In the summer of 1918, she was chartered by the United States for a one crossing as a troop transport. On July 26, 1918, Taormina ran with 2680 soldiers and officers on board, accompanied by the U.S. carriers Finland and Kroon country to France. The convoy merged with the Navy transporters Pocahontas and Susquehanna and the Italian steamers Duca d' Aosta and Caserta, who came from Newport News. The American cruiser Colorado and Huntington as well as the destroyer Rathburne and Colhoun escort the convoy. On August 7, 1918, he arrived in Brest on 20 August Taormina was back in New York City.

On August 8, 1923, she sailed on her last voyage from Genoa to New York via Naples. Then it was launched only in 1927 and again reactivated for a single crossing. On July 27, 1929, Taormina met in Savona one has to be scrapped.