Remains of SS Catalina

Mexico / Baja California / Ensenada /
 ship, interesting place
Constructed by William Wrigley in 1924 to transport passengers to and from Catalina Island, as well as used to transport troops to San Francisco during WWII. In 1976, she was placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and became a California State Historical Landmark and Los Angeles Historical Cultural Monument. Later sold, she was towed by tugboat here to Ensenada and became submerged during the 1998 El Nino season.
Salvage plans foundered and the ship fell into further disrepair. After its solid bronze propellers were removed as part of a Mexican government requirement that stripped active registration from vessels unable to move under their own power, the Catalina began to sink.
Mexican demolition workers are now (late 2008) rapidly putting an end to a three-decade campaign to preserve the once-proud steamship by cutting the 302-foot vessel apart for scrap.
Built at a cost of $1 million, the SS Catalina plied the ocean between Wilmington and Avalon daily between 1924 and 1975.
Along with a 26 mile ocean voyage, a $2.25 round-trip ticket offered 2,200 passengers big-band orchestra music for dancing, children's entertainment by clowns and magicians, and adult amenities such as a leather settees and drinks from a shipboard bar.
After its retirement (following its 9,807th Catalina Channel crossing) the ship passed through several hands and sat unused for two years until a Beverly Hills developer purchased it (as a Valentine's Day gift for his wife) at an auction. Hymie Singer's $70,000, spur-of the-moment purchase had come after the couple's 32-foot cabin cruiser sank.
High dockage fees forced Singer to move the Catalina from the San Pedro area to Newport Beach, San Diego, Santa Monica Bay, Long Beach, and finally to Mexico.

www.sscatalina.com/
www.savethecatalina.org/
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Catalina
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   31°51'2"N   116°37'16"W

Comments

  • Currently being scrapped: http://blog.allanellenberger.com/book-flm-news/catalina-steamer-to-be-scrapped/#more-5115
This article was last modified 15 years ago