Goodbye SS United States

After being moored at her pier in South Philadelphia for almost 30 years and numerous, unsuccessful efforts to redevelop the ship, the SS United States "set sail" this afternoon along the Delaware River. Many came out and braved the sub-freezing temperatures to bid a final farewell to the Country’s former, oceangoing namesake. 

The ship will be towed through the Delaware Bay and out to the Atlantic Ocean, at which point she will head south to begin her journey to Mobile, Alabama. Once there, the United States will be cleaned, stripped, and prepped, and ultimately sunk off the gulf coast of Okaloosa County, Florida. The plan is to turn the vessel into the world's largest artificial reef.

In service from 1952 to 1969, the SS United States set a transatlantic speed record by crossing the Atlantic Ocean in just over three days, at a speed of 35 knots (41 miles per hour). A record she still holds to this day!