June 1, 2019
Captain John S. Tucker aboard the SS United States c. 1967-1968. Photo courtesy of Kim Sacco.
The Conservancy is deeply honored to announce an extraordinary donation to its permanent collection. The family of Captain John Tucker, relieving master of the SS United States , has entrusted us with his captain's uniform (pictured above).
Captain Tucker passed away last year, after a 37-year career with United States Lines. He proudly served on the Big U from her sea trials and triumphal maiden voyage until the ship's withdrawal from service in 1969.

Captain Tucker was a strong supporter of the Conservancy who inspired and entertained us with stories about the ship's service career. He interacted with a wide range of passengers, including the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and Salvador Dalí (who was joined on board by an entourage of flamenco dancers and his pet ocelot, Babou). He was a fount of knowledge of the ship's design, engineering, and performance. In a future blog post, we will share his story about a secret fuel tank — 17D — where the ship's engineers would "stuff fuel up their sleeves" to improve her fuel consumption statistics.
 
Captain John S. Tucker escorts former First Lady Mamie Eisenhower to a shipboard press conference in 1969. Photo from the New York Daily News , donated by Kim Sacco.
We pla to display John Tucker's donated uniform in the refurbished captain's quarters aboard the ship, along with the quarters' original furniture — which is already an important element of the Conservancy's permanent collection. We look forward to honoring Captain Tucker in our future museum and thank his family for this generous and irreplaceable donation.
Photograph courtesy of Kim Sacco.
"The effort to save the SS United States will help preserve some of the history of this great country for future generations, and I am proud to do what I can to help."   — James Mitchell, Mystic, CT.
Our Upcoming Member Appreciation Event
In our most recent e-update, the Conservancy encouraged our subscribers to join or renew their membership. In conjunction with that call for donations, we've planned a special tour of America's Flagship with Crossing on Time author David Macaulay, set for next weekend.

We'd like to congratulate the following Conservancy members, who have been randomly chosen to take part in this exclusive, member appreciation event:
Laura Embrey
Chris Stock
Pamela Wojnar
Andrew Jelonek

In addition to the above event, we also announced a unique opportunity for a younger fan of the SS United States to see the ship up close with David Macaulay. Though we received a selection of wonderful submissions, John Mark's passion for the Big U inspired David Macaulay, who personally selected him to join the once-in-a-lifetime exploration of the vessel.

While we are only able to extend this limited tour opportunity to a select few people, the Conservancy would like to take this opportunity to extend our deepest gratitude to everyone who has joined or renewed their membership over the last few weeks. Your support buoys our efforts to preserve the historic SS United States for future generations, and additional member events are planned!

If you haven't renewed your membership recently, please help us an ensure a brilliant second act for America's greatest and sole remaining ocean liner by making a generous donation .
Have you placed your order for our brand new, limited edition t-shirt , featuring artwork by Crossing on Time author-illustrator David Macaulay?We've extended this special fundraising campaign by just one week, which means this is your last chance to secure one of these t-shirts before they are never printed again. Place your order by June 5 , and your shirt(s) will be delivered by June 21.

Proudly show your support for America's Flagship by wearing this fetching shirt through the summer months (and beyond). In addition to the colorful artwork — taken from the pages of Crossing on Time — each shirt sports a facsimile of David Macaulay's signature. Best of all, proceeds from every sale support the Conservancy in our ongoing efforts to preserve the legacy of the SS United States .

And, if you haven't already, be sure to pick up your copy of David Macaulay's Crossing on Time — a must-read for fans of the Big U and history's other great steamships.
Help Us Save America's Flagship!
As feasibility studies of the SS United States ' redevelopment continue to advance, the Conservancy is redoubling its efforts to acquire unique artifacts from the ship's service career for eventual public display. To that end, we have been offered the unique opportunity to purchase the original Steinway Baby Grand piano that once graced the Big's U's Grand Ballroom. 

World-renowned piano makers Steinway & Sons built custom instruments for the SS United States , but only after a challenging skirmish with the ship's designer, William Francis Gibbs. Because of his obsession with fire prevention, Gibbs urged Steinway to custom-fabricate pianos for the Big U in aluminum. Theodore Steinway objected — insisting that aluminum would compromise the the instrument's tonal quality.
A look inside the Big U's famous Steinway Piano.
The standoff between Gibbs and Steinway became heated. Only after Steinway invited Gibbs to a demonstration in which a piano was doused in gasoline, ignited, and proven adequately fire resistant did Gibbs permit wooden Steinway pianos aboard the Big U. (Our dream is to display an original mahogany piano from the ship alongside a custom creation in aluminum. How will the sounds of the two instruments compare?)

We are seeking donors interested in helping us purchase this one-of-a-kind item for the Conservancy's permanent collection. Alternatively, a music lover could purchase the piano for their use and then pledge to donate it to the Conservancy at a later date. Are you interested in learning more? Please email us at  info@ssusc.org  with "Steinway Piano" in the subject line. This unique artifact from the Big U must be saved!
The Big U is prominently featured in this advertisement for "Opening Tap" — the kickoff event for 2019's Philly Beer Week festival. The text says:

"The SS United States is America's Flagship and the fastest ocean liner ever built. She's spent more time in Philly than even on the high seas — now she needs our help to survive. Please consider donating today at www.wearetheunitedstates.org ."
The Conservancy is always delighted to hear from former passengers and crew of the SS  United States . In recent months, we've been regaled with memories from  one of her earliest voyages , had our hearts stolen by  a soaring, shipboard love story , and even checked in with one of the very few people  born on America's Flagship .
 
We recently heard from John Rodes, who traveled aboard the Big U at age 11. Like many people not used to traveling at sea, John found himself struggling with an unfortunate bout of seasickness. However, he was able to find a cure in the most unlikely of places — the SS  United States ' swimming pool.
Passengers relax beside the SS United States ' shipboard pool.
Donated by Christie Craig; Used with permission of the Craig Family Archive.
" And so I had horrible, inescapable motion sickness. I couldn't take a Dramamine because I couldn't hold anything down, after having insisted, against the steward's kindly advice, on eating far too much of the wonderful food at my first luncheon aboard the great vessel.

Trying to sit or lie down didn't work, so I started exploring, as i'd been doing before lunch. As I traversed the companionways from one deck to another in my wanderings about, I got an inkling about the leg effort mitigating my abdominal churnings, but that was not yet the cure.

As I entered the swimming pool compartment, I saw a single unbreaking wave, near a yard high, crossing the pool from aft to fore and back the other way, moving end to end every few seconds. It was strange to see the water moving so massively in an empty pool — every empty swimming pool I'd seen before had been pristinely placid until I'd started a ripple or splash."

CLICK HERE to read the rest of John's story and learn how the pool helped cure his seasickness.
Do you have memories from aboard America's Flagship that you'd like to share? We'd love to hear from you .
"[The SS United States ] was built at a time when 'made in America’ really meant something, and that is a legacy that cannot be lost."  — H.F. “Gerry” Lenfest (1930-2018)