Rivers class ocean liner
Encyclopedia
The Rivers class was a class
of eleven ocean liner
s of the Norddeutscher Lloyd
(NDL), the first class of German
express liners. The ships were built between 1881 and 1890, the first nine in Glasgow
by John Elder & Co. or the renamed Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
, the last two in Stettin by Vulcan. All were named for rivers in Germany.
introduced the first express liner on the Atlantic run, the . The new ship was larger than other Atlantic liners and with a speed of 16 knots, she cut the travel time between Southampton
and New York
from ten and a half to eight and a half days. Johann Georg Lohmann, who had at the time been director of Norddeutscher Lloyd for one year, in 1880 contracted with the Arizonas builder, John Elder & Co. of Glasgow, to build NDL's own first express liner, in accordance with the company's stated objective of always having the best ships.
The , and were ordered in summer 1885 for summer 1886, specified to be even larger and faster. These were the line's first steel ships, and with them, twice weekly service to New York could be offered. The still larger and faster was ordered in early 1887 and entered service the following year. She was the last single-screw steamer to hold the speed record for the English Channel
.
The speed of the new ships caused the United States postal service to choose NDL far more often than other carriers. It was the beginning of the contest for speed in the Atlantic. In addition, their greater size—the Elbe was half again as large as the type which had been the norm in the Atlantic trade, which had not much changed in twenty years— was accompanied by a change in layout which became the new norm. Until the Elbe, liners had almost universally had four decks, the two lowest devoted to cargo, the third to steerage
passengers, and the top deck housing cabins; second-class accommodations were forward, first-class aft, each consisting of cabins to port and starboard of a small longitudinal saloon. On the Elbe there was a fifth deck on which a smoking room and ladies' drawing room were located, and the grand saloon was located athwart the ship from one side to the other, separated from the cabins. She resembled the Guion Line's SS Alaska, but was wider and thus more comfortable. This was also the beginning of the designing of ever more luxurious liner interiors designed to cause the passengers, at least in first and second class, to forget they were aboard ship. The Elbe was the first ship to have its interior designed by Johann Poppe
, the most distinguished architect and designer in Bremen, who was to design the interiors of all NDL's liners for the next 25 years. In 1892, a voyage on , the last ship of the Rivers class, prompted Mark Twain
to call it "the delightfulest ship I ever saw" and publish an essay contrasting modern German steamships with their "dull, plain, graceless, gloomy and horribly depressing" predecessors as embodied by Cunard
's .
The final two ships in the class, and , were ordered in response to the first express liners placed in service by the rival Hamburg America Line
(HAPAG), the Augusta Victoria
class. They entered service in 1890. Unlike their predecessors, they were built in Germany, by AG Vulcan of Stettin. However, like their predecessors and unlike the HAPAG liners, they were single-screw, and therefore did not meet the expectation of being faster.
The Werra, Fulda and Ems all served a new route between Genoa
and Naples
and New York which NDL had instituted in 1891.
The Eider went aground off the Isle of Wight
on 31 January 1892, was salvaged in March but was then auctioned off to be broken up the following year. On 30 January 1895, the Elbe collided with the English collier Crathie in the Baltic and sank with the loss of 336 lives. Only twenty people in one lifeboat survived. In 1889 the Fulda rescued all 824 people aboard the Cunard liner SS Oregon
. She was to have been sold to the Canadian Beaver Line owned by Elder Dempster but was damaged in dock in 1898 or 1899 and sold to be broken up. On 30 June 1900 the Saale burnt out in the fire
at the NDL piers in Hoboken, New Jersey
, with the loss of 109 people including the captain. She was sold to the Luckenbach Steamship Company of New York and rebuilt as a freighter, renamed J. L. Luckenbach, and ultimately broken up in 1924 as SS Madison.
The Ems was sold to the Beaver Line in 1900 or 1901 and renamed Lake Simcoe; she was broken up in Genoa in 1905. The Werra was chartered for a few years until 1899, sold to Italy in 1901 and broken up in 1903. On 15 June 1887, the Aller collided with a British fishing vessel, the Willie, which sank with the loss of six men; on 27 January 1898, she rescued the crew of the sinking British ship Dago. She was sold in 1902 and broken up in 1904. The Lahn was sold to the Russian Volunteer Fleet in 1904 and renamed Russ; she later returned to passenger service as the Dniester.
The Spree rescued the crew of the burning in 1891. In 1892 and 1895 she broke her shaft and had to be towed into port. In 1897, she was converted to twin screws, lengthened, given a third funnel, and renamed Kaiserin Maria Theresia, attaining the target speed of 20 knots with ease. She replaced the rejected Kaiser Friedrich. In 1904 she was also sold to the Russians and renamed Ural; she was sunk the following year at the Battle of Tsushima
.
On 13 June 1889, the Trave collided with and sank the Russian schooner David; on 21 June 1892, she collided with and sank the American square-rigger
Fred B. Taylor, causing two deaths. She became the last of the class in NDL service. After being laid up since 1903, she sailed between Bremerhaven
and New York from March 1906 to November 1907, was sold in 1908 and broken up in 1909.
On 18 February 1892, the Havel collided with and sank the Italian barque
Mascotta off Long Island
while under mandatory pilotage. She continued on without aiding the survivors. She was sold to the Spanish Navy in 1898 and renamed Meteoro. She later returned to passenger service with the Compañía Transatlántica Española
as the Alfonso XII and was broken up in 1927.
Ship class
A ship class is a group of ships of a similar design. This is distinct from a ship-type, which might reflect a similarity of tonnage or intended use. For example, the is a nuclear aircraft carrier of the Nimitz class....
of eleven ocean liner
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...
s of the Norddeutscher Lloyd
Norddeutscher Lloyd
Norddeutsche Lloyd was a German shipping company. It was founded by Hermann Henrich Meier and Eduard Crüsemann in Bremen on February 20, 1857. It developed into one of the most important German shipping companies of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and was instrumental in the economic...
(NDL), the first class of German
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
express liners. The ships were built between 1881 and 1890, the first nine in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
by John Elder & Co. or the renamed Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company
The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy and other navies through the First World War and the...
, the last two in Stettin by Vulcan. All were named for rivers in Germany.
Background
In 1878, the British Guion LineGuion Line
The Liverpool and Great Western Steamship Company, known commonly as the Guion Line, was a British passenger service that operated the Liverpool-Queenstown-New York route from 1866 to 1894. While incorporated in Great Britain, 52% of the company's capital was from the American firm, Williams and...
introduced the first express liner on the Atlantic run, the . The new ship was larger than other Atlantic liners and with a speed of 16 knots, she cut the travel time between Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
from ten and a half to eight and a half days. Johann Georg Lohmann, who had at the time been director of Norddeutscher Lloyd for one year, in 1880 contracted with the Arizonas builder, John Elder & Co. of Glasgow, to build NDL's own first express liner, in accordance with the company's stated objective of always having the best ships.
History
The SS Elbe was delivered ahead of the contract deadline, set out on her maiden voyage to New York on 26 June 1881 and was such an immediate success that NDL at once ordered two more liners from Elder, the (delivered in autumn 1882) and the (early in 1883). The Fulda was the first NDL ship with electric lighting. The and were added in 1884 and NDL's weekly transatlantic service became known for speed. The Werra set an eastbound speed record of 7 days, 20 hours and 15 minutes. The four ships beginning with the Werra are sometimes classified as a distinct Werra class.The , and were ordered in summer 1885 for summer 1886, specified to be even larger and faster. These were the line's first steel ships, and with them, twice weekly service to New York could be offered. The still larger and faster was ordered in early 1887 and entered service the following year. She was the last single-screw steamer to hold the speed record for the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
.
The speed of the new ships caused the United States postal service to choose NDL far more often than other carriers. It was the beginning of the contest for speed in the Atlantic. In addition, their greater size—the Elbe was half again as large as the type which had been the norm in the Atlantic trade, which had not much changed in twenty years— was accompanied by a change in layout which became the new norm. Until the Elbe, liners had almost universally had four decks, the two lowest devoted to cargo, the third to steerage
Steerage
Steerage is the act of steering a ship. "Steerage" also refers to the lowest decks of a ship.-Steerage and steerage way:The rudder of a vessel can only steer the ship when water is passing over it...
passengers, and the top deck housing cabins; second-class accommodations were forward, first-class aft, each consisting of cabins to port and starboard of a small longitudinal saloon. On the Elbe there was a fifth deck on which a smoking room and ladies' drawing room were located, and the grand saloon was located athwart the ship from one side to the other, separated from the cabins. She resembled the Guion Line's SS Alaska, but was wider and thus more comfortable. This was also the beginning of the designing of ever more luxurious liner interiors designed to cause the passengers, at least in first and second class, to forget they were aboard ship. The Elbe was the first ship to have its interior designed by Johann Poppe
Johann Poppe
Johann Georg Poppe , often called Johannes Poppe by English-speaking writers, was a prominent architect in Bremen during the German Gründerzeit and an influential interior designer of ocean liners for Norddeutscher Lloyd...
, the most distinguished architect and designer in Bremen, who was to design the interiors of all NDL's liners for the next 25 years. In 1892, a voyage on , the last ship of the Rivers class, prompted Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
to call it "the delightfulest ship I ever saw" and publish an essay contrasting modern German steamships with their "dull, plain, graceless, gloomy and horribly depressing" predecessors as embodied by Cunard
Cunard
Cunard may refer to:* Grace Cunard , American silent film actress* Nancy Cunard , English writer, editor, and publisher* Samuel Cunard , British shipping magnate-Other:...
's .
The final two ships in the class, and , were ordered in response to the first express liners placed in service by the rival Hamburg America Line
Hamburg America Line
The Hamburg Amerikanische Packetfahrt Actien Gesellschaft was a transatlantic shipping enterprise established in Hamburg, Germany during...
(HAPAG), the Augusta Victoria
Augusta Victoria (ship)
Augusta Victoria, later Auguste Victoria, placed in service in 1889 and named for Empress Augusta Victoria, wife of Emperor Wilhelm II, was the name ship of the Augusta Victoria series and the first of a new generation of luxury Hamburg America Line ocean liners...
class. They entered service in 1890. Unlike their predecessors, they were built in Germany, by AG Vulcan of Stettin. However, like their predecessors and unlike the HAPAG liners, they were single-screw, and therefore did not meet the expectation of being faster.
The Werra, Fulda and Ems all served a new route between Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
and Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
and New York which NDL had instituted in 1891.
The Eider went aground off the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
on 31 January 1892, was salvaged in March but was then auctioned off to be broken up the following year. On 30 January 1895, the Elbe collided with the English collier Crathie in the Baltic and sank with the loss of 336 lives. Only twenty people in one lifeboat survived. In 1889 the Fulda rescued all 824 people aboard the Cunard liner SS Oregon
SS Oregon (1883)
The Oregon was a record breaking British passenger liner that won the Blue Riband for the Guion Line as the fastest liner on the Atlantic in 1884. She was sold to the Cunard Line after a few voyages and continued to improve her passage times for her new owner...
. She was to have been sold to the Canadian Beaver Line owned by Elder Dempster but was damaged in dock in 1898 or 1899 and sold to be broken up. On 30 June 1900 the Saale burnt out in the fire
1900 Hoboken Docks Fire
The 1900 Hoboken Docks Fire killed at least 326 persons in and around the Hoboken, New Jersey piers of the Norddeutscher Lloyd shipping company...
at the NDL piers 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...
, with the loss of 109 people including the captain. She was sold to the Luckenbach Steamship Company of New York and rebuilt as a freighter, renamed J. L. Luckenbach, and ultimately broken up in 1924 as SS Madison.
The Ems was sold to the Beaver Line in 1900 or 1901 and renamed Lake Simcoe; she was broken up in Genoa in 1905. The Werra was chartered for a few years until 1899, sold to Italy in 1901 and broken up in 1903. On 15 June 1887, the Aller collided with a British fishing vessel, the Willie, which sank with the loss of six men; on 27 January 1898, she rescued the crew of the sinking British ship Dago. She was sold in 1902 and broken up in 1904. The Lahn was sold to the Russian Volunteer Fleet in 1904 and renamed Russ; she later returned to passenger service as the Dniester.
The Spree rescued the crew of the burning in 1891. In 1892 and 1895 she broke her shaft and had to be towed into port. In 1897, she was converted to twin screws, lengthened, given a third funnel, and renamed Kaiserin Maria Theresia, attaining the target speed of 20 knots with ease. She replaced the rejected Kaiser Friedrich. In 1904 she was also sold to the Russians and renamed Ural; she was sunk the following year at the Battle of Tsushima
Battle of Tsushima
The Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the “Sea of Japan Naval Battle” in Japan and the “Battle of Tsushima Strait”, was the major naval battle fought between Russia and Japan during the Russo-Japanese War...
.
On 13 June 1889, the Trave collided with and sank the Russian schooner David; on 21 June 1892, she collided with and sank the American square-rigger
Square rig
Square rig is a generic type of sail and rigging arrangement in which the primary driving sails are carried on horizontal spars which are perpendicular, or square, to the keel of the vessel and to the masts. These spars are called yards and their tips, beyond the last stay, are called the yardarms...
Fred B. Taylor, causing two deaths. She became the last of the class in NDL service. After being laid up since 1903, she sailed between Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
and New York from March 1906 to November 1907, was sold in 1908 and broken up in 1909.
On 18 February 1892, the Havel collided with and sank the Italian barque
Barque
A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts.- History of the term :The word barque appears to have come from the Greek word baris, a term for an Egyptian boat. This entered Latin as barca, which gave rise to the Italian barca, Spanish barco, and the French barge and...
Mascotta off Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
while under mandatory pilotage. She continued on without aiding the survivors. She was sold to the Spanish Navy in 1898 and renamed Meteoro. She later returned to passenger service with the Compañía Transatlántica Española
Compañía Transatlántica Española
Compañía Transatlántica Española , also known as Spanish Line in documents in English, is a passenger ocean line that has largely ceased operations although it still exists as a company...
as the Alfonso XII and was broken up in 1927.
The ships
| Ship | Tonnage | Builder | Launch | Fate | Later names |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SS Elbe | John Elder & Co. Ltd. Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy and other navies through the First World War and the... , Glasgow |
Sank after collision, 30 January 1905 | |||
| John Elder & Co. Ltd., Glasgow | Sold to Italy, 1901; scrapped, 1903 | ||||
| John Elder & Co. Ltd., Glasgow | Sold and scrapped after being damaged in dock, 1898 | ||||
| John Elder & Co. Ltd., Glasgow | Aground, 1892; salvaged, auctioned and scrapped, 1893 | ||||
| John Elder & Co. Ltd., Glasgow | Sold to Elder Dempster Beaver Line, 1900 or 1901; scrapped 1905 | Lake Simcoe, 1900 or 1901 | |||
| Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited was a British shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Navy and other navies through the First World War and the... , Glasgow |
Sold, 1902; scrapped, 1904 | ||||
| Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co., Glasgow | Sold and scrapped, 1908 | ||||
| Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co., Glasgow | Burnt out in dock fire 1900 Hoboken Docks Fire The 1900 Hoboken Docks Fire killed at least 326 persons in and around the Hoboken, New Jersey piers of the Norddeutscher Lloyd shipping company... , 30 June 1900; sold to Luckenbach Steamship Company; scrapped, 1924 |
J. L. Luckenbach, 1900; Princess, 1922; Madison, 1923 | |||
| Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co., Glasgow | Sold to Russian Volunteer Fleet, 1904; "probably broken up about 1927." | Russ, 1904; Dniester | |||
| AG Vulcan, Stettin | Rebuilt 1897; sold to Russia, 1904; sunk at Battle of Tsushima Battle of Tsushima The Battle of Tsushima , commonly known as the “Sea of Japan Naval Battle” in Japan and the “Battle of Tsushima Strait”, was the major naval battle fought between Russia and Japan during the Russo-Japanese War... , 1905 |
Kaiserin Maria Theresia, 1897; Ural, 1904 | |||
| AG Vulcan, Stettin | Sold to Spanish Navy, 1898; transferred to Compañía Transatlántica Española Compañía Transatlántica Española Compañía Transatlántica Española , also known as Spanish Line in documents in English, is a passenger ocean line that has largely ceased operations although it still exists as a company... ; scrapped, 1927 |
Meteoro, 1898; Alfonso XII | |||
External links
- S/S Elbe at Norway Heritage
- S/S Werra at Norway Heritage
- S/S Fulda at Norway Heritage
- S/S Eider at Norway Heritage
- S/S Ems at Norway Heritage
- S/S Aller at Norway Heritage
- S/S Trave at Norway Heritage
- S/S Saale at Norway Heritage
- S/S Lahn at Norway Heritage
- S/S Spree at Norway Heritage
- Picture of S/S Kaiserin Maria Theresia at Norway Heritage
- S/S Havel at Norway Heritage