The Morro Castle (I) was a passenger ship put into service in 1900 by the US shipping company Ward Line , which was used in regular liner service from New York to Havana ( Cuba ). The Morro Castle was sold in 1924 and scrapped in Italy in 1926 .
The ship
The 6004 gross tons large steamship Morro Castle was in 1899 at the shipyard William Cramp & Sons in Philadelphia for Plant Line (actually Canada, Atlantic and Plant Steamship Company ) keel laid. It was launched on April 14, 1900 for the Ward Line (actually New York and Cuba Mail Steamship Company ), a New York-based shipping company that has carried passengers, freight and mail between New York and various ports in the Caribbean such as Nassau since 1841 or Havana . The steamer was named after the fortress of the same name at the entrance to Havana Bay, Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro , or El Morro for short and Morro Castle in English .
The ship was 121.92 meters long and 15.24 meters wide and had two masts , two funnels and two propellers . The black painted hull was surmounted by white superstructures. The Morro Caslte was powered by triple expansion steam engines that allow a cruising speed of 18 knots. The passenger accommodations were designed for 136 passengers in the first class ( saloon class ), 62 in the second class ( cabin class ) and 44 in the third class ( steerage ).
William Cramp delivered the completed Morro Castle to its owners in October 1900. On November 10, 1900, she left New York on her maiden voyage to Havana. The command was the Ward Line commodore , Captain Cleveland Downs. Robert R. Willmott later became the ship's long-time captain. He later also took command of the second Morro Castle (built in 1930). The ship was a record holder for the Ward Line in terms of speed for several years.
On May 16, 1904, the Morro Castle rammed the schooner Pleiades of the Fulton Fish Market off the coast of New Jersey , which sank as a result. The passenger liner rescued Captain Henry Ness and the other 17 crew members of the schooner. In 1924 the Morro Castle was launched in Brooklyn and shortly thereafter sold to the Walters Navigation Company. In 1926 the ship was scrapped in Italy.
