Many generations of our family have loved touring the vessels that anchored off St Thomas. ⚓ Watching movies on the Carla C, climbing through the USS Nimitz, posing with the Cadets on the Horst Wessel or touring the Danish ship, Danmark were highlights for all! When the great, new motorship Malakka arrived in St. Thomas on October 16, 1914, there’s no doubt that family members […]
Maritime History ⚓︎
Servicing the USS RANGER at the Railway ~ 1925
Source: Library of Congress The USS Ranger In August 1924, a deadly hurricane caused severe damage to the homes on Tortola and many in the US Virgin Islands. The USS Ranger came to the rescue! When called upon, she transported lots of workers to the outlying islands to assist those in need. Governor Philip Williams was so grateful […]
Repairing the MAMIE COYLE ~ 1929
Photo Source: Memphis Public Library and Information Center The Creque Marine Railway on Hassel Island provided hauling and marine repair services to hundreds of vessels during its ownership by the Creque family, 1910 – 1978. Historic vessels with fascinating histories routinely scheduled slots on the slip weeks in advance. Mamie Coyle’s History One such vessel was the Mamie Coyle. […]
The Most Beautiful Ship in the World Visits St. Thomas ~ 1938
When I first saw this faded photograph of an ocean liner, I thought I would never know her identity. 📷 Like most of the photographs in our ancestors albums, nothing was written on the back of the picture. As I looked closely, I realized that the ship wasn’t anchored inside the Charlotte Amalie harbor, but rather, behind Hassel Island,where all the oversized […]
How a Crew Survived their Ship’s Sinking ~ 1932
During the 1920s and 1930s, the yawl, To Windward transported mail and passengers between the islands. Its owner was Captain Christian Moller. On August 15, 1932, they departed Christiansted for Denmark by way of Portsmouth, England with a cargo of mail. The Wreck Unfortunately, five hundred miles off Lisbon, the vessel ran into trouble! Gale force winds battered the boat until most of […]
The Loss of a Loved One Aboard the SS Proteus ~ 1941
As I was flipping though the pages of an old album, a small faded photograph of a sailor in his uniform fell onto the floor! I picked it up and didn’t recognize the person. As the family historian, I feel as though I can identify everyone, regardless of age in a photograph. Curious, I contacted a relative […]
The Yacht, FLIGHT Takes Party-Goers to Tortola ~ 1946
For many years members of our family enjoyed the annual August festival in Tortola! Here is an excerpt of an article written by W. Evelyn Pickering. It appeared in the August 17, 1946, VI Daily News. Below the article is a link to the kind of music played by band, Conjuncto Tropical. Can you imagine the party-goers dancing to this and the […]
Honoring the Men of the MARION ~ 1930s
The USCG Marion was a 125-foot patrol boat. She carried 20 enlisted men. After finding this photograph of the USCG Marion’s crew in our family’s album, I was curious about their deployment in the islands. The photograph was obviously taken at the Creque Marine Railway on Hassel Island, a business our great-grandfather owned. He must have taken it while […]