Four Aces
Encyclopedia
Ocean liner
An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as...
Excalibur, Exochorda, Exeter, and Excambion, originally built for American Export Lines by New York Shipbuilding
New York Shipbuilding
The New York Shipbuilding Corporation was founded in 1899 and opened its first shipyard in 1900. Located in Camden, New Jersey on the east shore of the Delaware River, New York Ship built more than 500 vessels for the U.S...
of Camden, New Jersey
Camden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...
between 1929 and 1931. AEL placed the "4 Aces" in service between the US and the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, offering cruise
Cruising (maritime)
Cruising by boat is a lifestyle that involves living for extended time on a boat while traveling from place to place for pleasure. Cruising generally refers to trips of a few days or more, and can extend to round-the-world voyages.- History :...
s of up to 40 days.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, all four vessels were taken over by the U.S. Navy, renamed, and designated as AP- and APA-class troop transports
Troopship
A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...
. Excambion became USS John Penn (APA-23)
USS John Penn (APA-23)
USS John Penn was a John Penn-class attack transport that served with the US Navy during World War II. Named after John Penn, a signatory to the American Declaration of Independence, she was the only ship in her class....
, Excalibur became USS Joseph Hewes (AP-50)
USS Joseph Hewes (AP-50)
USS Joseph Hewes was a transport for the United States Navy during World War II. She was built in 1930, acquired 8 January 1942, and was assigned the task of transporting troops to and from battle areas...
and Exeter became USS Edward Rutledge (AP-52)
USS Edward Rutledge (AP-52)
USS Edward Rutledge was an Edward Rutledge-class transport. She was acquired by the U.S. Navy for use in World War II, and was assigned the task of transporting troops to and from battle areas...
. These three of the original (pre-war) 4 Aces were ultimately lost to enemy action. The pre-war Exochorda was converted to military transport USS Harry Lee, later sold to Turkish Maritime Lines and renamed Tarsus.
After World War II, American Export Lines purchased four C3-class
Type C3 ship
Type C3 ships were the third type of cargo ship designed by the United States Maritime Commission in the late 1930s. As it had done with the Type C1 ships and Type C2 ships, MARCOM circulated preliminary plans for comment...
Windsor-class
Windsor class attack transport
The Windsor-class attack transport was a class of US Navy attack transport. Ships of the class saw service in World War II.Like all attack transports, the purpose of the Windsors was to transport troops and their equipment to foreign shores in order to execute amphibious invasions using an array of...
attack transport
Attack transport
Attack Transport is a United States Navy ship classification.-History:In the early 1940s, as the United States Navy expanded in response to the threat of involvement in World War II, a number of civilian passenger ships and some freighters were acquired, converted to transports and given hull...
s built by Bethlehem Shipbuilding
Bethlehem Shipbuilding
Bethlehem Sparrows Point Shipyard was founded in 1887 as Maryland Steel in Sparrows Point, Maryland. It was acquired by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation in 1916 and renamed Bethlehem Sparrows Point Shipyard. The shipyard was sold in 1997 to Baltimore Marine Industries Inc....
Corp. at Sparrow's Point, Maryland
Sparrows Point
Sparrows Point is an unincorporated area in Baltimore County, Maryland, adjacent to Dundalk, Maryland. Named for Thomas Sparrow, landowner, it was the site of a very large industrial complex owned by Bethlehem Steel, known for steelmaking and shipbuilding....
, had them refitted as passenger-cargo liners, and placed them in service as the new "4 Aces." USS Dauphin became Exochorda, USS Dutchess
USS Dutchess (APA-98)
USS Dutchess was a Windsor-class attack transport that served with the US Navy during World War II.Dutchess was named after a county in New York State...
became Excalibur, USS Queens became Excambion and USS Shelby (APA-105)
USS Shelby (APA-105)
USS Shelby was a Windsor-class attack transport that served with the US Navy during World War II. She was commissioned late in the war and initially assigned to transport duties; consequently she did not take part in any combat operations....
became Exeter. Carrying the names of the original quartet, the new "4 Aces" sailed under the AEL flag until the 1960s.
In 1968, the post-war SS Exochorda
SS Exochorda
SS Exochorda, a 473-foot, 14,500-ton cargo liner in service with American Export Lines from 1948 to 1959. A member of the line's post-war quartet of ships, "4 Aces", Exochorda sailed regularly from New York on a Mediterranean route...
was purchased by Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology is a technological university located on a campus in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA – founded in 1870 with an 1868 bequest from Edwin A. Stevens. It is known for its engineering, science, and technological management curricula.The institute has produced leading...
in Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
to alleviate a shortage of on-campus student housing. It was refurbished at Bethlehem Steel
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...
Shipyard in Hoboken, renamed SS Stevens
SS Stevens
SS Stevens, a , 14,893-ton ship, served as a floating dormitory from 1968 to 1975 for about 150 students of Stevens Institute of Technology, a technological university, in Hoboken, NJ...
and anchored on the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
adjacent to the campus where it served a dormitory. SS Stevens remained in service until 1975, when its continued operation became prohibitive due to skyrocketing utility costs. Before it was towed away and sold for scrap, one of Stevens
In 1965, the post-war Excambion became USTS Texas Clipper
Texas Clipper
USTS Texas Clipper, 473 foot ship, served as a merchant marine training vessel with the Texas Maritime Academy at Texas A&M University at Galveston for 30 years beginning in 1965...
for service with the Texas Maritime Academy until being sunk as an artificial reef on November 17, 2007.
The company's subsidiary American Export Airlines borrowed 3 of the names (excepting Exochorda) for its Sikorsky VS-44
Sikorsky VS-44
-References:NotesBibliography** early article on VS-44 with cutaway drawing of VS-44 on of three page article.* excellent photos...
flying boats, which it used in transatlantic service. Excambian is preserved on display at the New England Air Museum
New England Air Museum
The New England Air Museum is located at Bradley International Airport, Windsor Locks, Connecticut, USA. The museum is housed in three large display buildings consisting of more than of exhibit space...
in Windsor Locks, Connecticut.http://www.landings.com/_landings/pacflyer/feb4-2002/Fn-21-Sikorsky-VS-44.html