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SS Vestris

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Coordinates: 37°38′N 70°23′W / 37.633°N 70.383°W / 37.633; -70.383

SS Vestris
The Vestris
Postcard of SS Vestris
Career (United Kingdom)
Name: Vestris
Owner: Lamport & Holt (holding company Liverpool, Brazil and River Plate Steam Navigation Company)
Builder: Workman, Clark & Co. Ltd., Belfast, Ireland
Launched: 16 May 1912
Maiden voyage: 19 September 1912 from Liverpool to the River Plate. 26 October 1912 First sailing to New York
Fate: Sunk, 12 November 1928
Notes: Final voyage from Hoboken, New Jersey sailing from New York to Barbados and South American ports 10 November 1928 – 12 November 1928
General characteristics
Tonnage: 10,494 tons gross and 6,622 tons net
Length: 496 feet
Beam: 60 feet 6 inches
Draft: The salt water draft in 1912 by Lloyds, 26 feet 9¼ inches for summer, and 26 feet 3¼ inches for winter. Salt water draft on on her final voyage was found to have been 26 feet 11½ inches[1]
Propulsion: Twin Screw, 2 x 4 Cylinder Quadruple Expansion, 614 NHP, producing 8,000 IHP.
Speed: 15 knots
Capacity: Passengers: 280 First Class, 130 Second Class, 200 Third Class
Crew: 250
Notes: Mixed Passenger and Cargo

The SS Vestris was a 1912 steamship owned by Lamport & Holt and used in their New York to River Plate service. On 12 November 1928, she began listing about 200 miles off Hampton Roads, Virginia, was abandoned, and sank, killing more than 100. The wreck is thought to rest some 2 km (1.2 miles) beneath the North Atlantic.[2]

The sinking, which attracted much press coverage at the time, remains notable for the loss of life, particularly of women and children, after the vessel was abandoned.[3][4][5] The sinking and subsequent inquiries may also have shaped the second International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) in 1929.[6]

History[]

The Vestris was built by Workman, Clark & Co. Ltd. of Belfast, Ireland, in 1912. She was the third of a class of three vessels built by Workman, the others being the Vandyck and Vauban. These vessels were built for the New York to River Plate service. The Vestris was launched 16 May 1912 and made her maiden voyage on 19 September 1912 from Liverpool to River Plate.[7]

The Vestris was chartered as a military transport during World War I to cross the Atlantic Ocean from the United States to France. While on this service she was narrowly missed by a torpedo in the English Channel.[8][9] In 1919 the Vestris was chartered to Cunard Line and operated six circular services; Buenos Aires - Liverpool - New York - Buenos Aires.[7] According to A. A. Hoehling the Vestris was among the last ships in contact with USS Cyclops in 1918.

In September 1919, the Vestris, carrying 550, suffered damage from a fire in her coal bunkers. The crew battled to extinguish the flames for four days before either the HMS Dartmouth [7][10] or HMS Yarmouth [11] escorted the ship to Saint Lucia in the West Indies. Several days later the fire was extinguished.[11][12]

In 1922, the Vestris was briefly chartered to Royal Mail.[7] The Vestris sank 12 November 1928.

Sinking[]

Vestris listing to starboard so badly that part of the upper deck was awash

Vestris listing to starboard so badly that part of the upper deck was awash

Vestris left New York bound for the River Plate on 10 November 1928 with 325 passengers and crew. A day after leaving New York, the ship ran into a severe storm and developed a starboard list. The following day, the list worsened as cargo and coal bunkers shifted and the ship took on water through numerous leaks.[8]

On 12 November, at 9:56 am, an SOS was sent out giving her position as latitude 37° 35' N. and longitude 71° 81' [sic] W., which was incorrect by about 37 miles. The SOS was repeated at 11:04 am.[1]

Between 11 am and noon, while the ship was off Norfolk, Virginia, the order was given to man lifeboats and the ship was abandoned. Two hours later, at about 2pm, the Vestris sank at Lat. 37° 38' N, Long. 70° 23' W.[1] The rescue vessels arriving on the scene, late in the evening of 12 November and early in the morning of 13 November, were the steamships American Shipper, Myriam, Berlin and the USS Wyoming.[1][13]

Death toll[]

While estimates of the dead vary from 110 to 127, Time magazine and the New York Times reported that from the complement of 128 passengers and 198 crew on board, 111 people lost their lives.:[3][14]

  • 68 dead or missing from a total 128 passengers. 60 passengers survived.
  • 43 dead or missing from a total of 198 crew members. 155 crew survived.

None of the 13 children and only eight of the 33 women aboard the ship survived. The captain of the Vestris, William J. Carey, went down with his ship. Twenty-two bodies were recovered by rescue vessels.

Aftermath[]

Press reports after the sinking were critical of the crew and management of the Vestris. In the wake of the disaster, Lamport and Holt experienced a dramatic drop in bookings for the company’s other liners and their service to South America ceased at the end of 1929.

Many inquires and investigations were held into the sinking of the Vestris.[3] Criticism was made of:

  • overloading of the vessel
  • the conduct of the Master, officers and crew of the vessel
  • delays in issuing an SOS call
  • poor decisions made during deployment of the lifeboats, which led to the two of the first three lifeboats to be deployed (containing mostly women and children) sinking with the Vestris and another swamping
  • legal requirements governing lifeboats and out-dated life-preservers
  • lack of radio sets in nearby vessels at the time

Lawsuits were brought after the sinking on behalf of 600 claimants totaling $5,000,000.[4]

The Vestris' sinking was covered by Associated Press reporter Lorena Hickok. Her story on the event became the first to appear in the New York Times under a woman's byline.[15]

References[]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Vestris - Decision on the Merits United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, VESTRIS - DECISION ON THE MERITS, 24 May 1932
  2. ↑ Shipwrecks of the Cunard Line (2012) Sam Warwick and Mike Roussell page 145
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Catastrophe: Vestris. Time Magazine, Monday, 26 Nov. 1928
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Vestris Disaster Company's Liability U.S Courts Ruling. New Zealand, Wellington Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 69, 18 September 1931, Page 7
  5. ↑ Vestris Inquiry - Further evidence wireless messages unsolved mystery New Zealand, Wellington Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 116, 20 November 1928, Page 11.
  6. ↑ Vestris Disaster impact on International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) 1929 Ocean Transportation By Carl E. McDowell, Helen M. Gibbs, Page 431
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Lamport & Holts' S.S. "Vestris"
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 The Vestris Disaster. Blue Star on the Web, The History of Blue Star Line and Associated Companies.
  9. ↑ Faulty Coal Port Blamed In Vestris Disaster By James Donahue
  10. ↑ Lamport and Holt Line
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Liner afire 4 days with 550 aboard New York Times, 16 September 1919
  12. ↑ Fire on Liner put out New York Times, 23 September 1919
  13. ↑ MY GOD, THE BOAT IS LEAVING US Gare Maritime account of Lifeboat Number Eight and the Vestris.
  14. ↑ Death Toll is now 111 New York Times, 16 November 1928, Page 1
  15. ↑ Martinelli, Diana Knott; Bowen, Shannon A. (2009). "The Public Relations Work of Journalism Trailblazer and First Lady Confidante Lorena Hickok, 1937-45". pp. 131–40. http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.lib.uwm.edu/ehost/detail?sid=50e95656-e9c9-4fb8-b982-81b5b8300a29%40sessionmgr110&vid=1&hid=126&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#bib28. Retrieved 18 December 2012. 

External links[]

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