The Flagship

VIII

(Top) The Oceanic of 1899, as seen by the bows. She was over ten times longer than she was wide. And she was nearly 70 feet wide.

(Bottom)  The launch of the Oceanic. Her twin screws dominate the picture

In 1899, the White Star Line launched the first truly modern Atlantic liner, the Oceanic. It was the flagship of the fleet, named for White Star's parent company, The Oceanic Steam Navigation Company. It was also the largest ship in the world when it was built. It displaced 17,272 tons, was 704 feet long, and had a beam of 68.4 feet. The ratio of length to width was such that Oceanic appeared very narrow, and with its overhanging stern and sharp bows it had a decided resemblance to a clipper ship. Many people considered its clean lines to be the most elegant of any White Star ship, ever. She could carry 1,700 passengers. Her average speed was 19 knots, and she could top out at 21 knots.

“Nothing but the very finest" was the company's policy aboard the Oceanic, and White Star adhered to this policy for the rest of its existence. The company had an unwritten rule of making its passenger accommodations one step better than they were advertised: Thus, Second Class in a White Star ship was always as good (or better) than First Class in other steamship lines, Third Class (steerage) was equivalent to Second Class, and First Class was equivalent or better than the finest luxury hotels in the world.

The First Class dining saloon aboard Oceanic. Note the frescoes and the huge glass dome

Oceanic plied The Pond for fifteen years. She was involved in several navigation accidents, the most famous being a near-collision between Oceanic, the old liner New York (formerly City of New York), and the brand-spanking-new Titanic, which was just setting out on its maiden voyage in 1912. 

 

The near-disaster between Titanic (right), Oceanic  (left), and New York (drifting, center). On April 10, 1912, just as Titanic was leaving Southampton Water for the first and last time, it passed too close to New York, which was pulled toward it by displacement. The smaller ship nearly struck both Oceanic and Titanic, missing each by scant feet. The captains of the White Star liners covered for each other and the skipper of the New York was blamed for the mishap, over which he had no control. Some passengers aboard the Titanic felt this was a bad omen for beginning a voyage and left the ship at its first and second stops, Cherbourg and Queenstown. Titanic never made it to its destination, New York. The New York had been, until 1893, The City of New York, an Inman Lines vessel that had inspired the creation of both White Star vessels

World War I interrupted her passenger service. She became a transport vessel, but wrecked at Scapa Flow off Scotland in September 1914. Her captain at the time was named Henry Smith. He was, apparently, unrelated to Captain E.J. Smith of the Titanic, though his family were all White Star Masters.