The Gulf Coast diving community has been abuzz the past several months. It was announced in later summer last year that the passenger liner S.S. United States was being evicted. She had sat at dockside in Philadelphia for the past 30 years. With no where to go it was uncertain what would become of the ship. Some wanted her for a floating museum and historic preservation site, perhaps a floating hotel. But those ideas require capital and there was none forthcoming. Also, the size of the ship prevented her from docking at just any ole port. She is longer than the Titanic. So after a flurry of legal battles, Okaloosa County, Florida bought the ship for $1 million dollars. The plan is to make the ship the world’s largest artificial reel off the Florida Panhandle.
After more legal wrangling and Coast Guard imposed fine of $100,000 (because it did not leave Philadelphia when ordered due to weather in the Gulf), the ship finally began it’s journey. It left Philadelphia on February 19, 2025. It’s destination was Mobile, AL, where it would spend the next year being stripped and cleaned. It arrived on March 7, Lundi Gras. The next day was Mardi Gras and the city was full of revelers. It seemed fitting that would be the last party she would attend.
Now she is sitting dockside in Mobile getting prepped for her truly final voyage back to the Florida Panhandle. It’s become a big tourist attraction even just sitting there. There’s a dinner cruise that visits it like every day. In the meantime, there are still battles going on over the ship’s fate. There’s an organization in New York which is still trying to save the ship, bring it back to that city as some kind of floating attraction. They are more than a day late and a dollar short. Factions in Okaloosa County, FL, are battling over which side of the county is gonna be where the ship rests, Destin or Fort Walton Beach. Technically, they do own it so NYC is SOL. It has been decided to bring it closer to shore so it will be more within recreational dive depths.
Stay tuned for updates.
The Red Fins 