(Image: Jonathan Haeber, reproduced with permission)
Launched in 1951, SS Independence and sister ship SS Constitution were at the cutting edge of seafaring technology and elegance. Built for American Export Lines by Bethleham Steel Corporation, the liners sailed under several flags and hosted numerous celebrities. Both also had the distinction of sinking while under tow to the breakers’ yards of South Asia half a century later.
(Image: John Navas, cc-3.0)
While Constitution continues to haunt the depths of the mid Pacific, Independence was controversially scrapped by the end of 2010. Before that, however, Independence spent seven years rusting away in San Francisco. Photographer Jonathan Haeber of Bearings was allowed a nostalgic glimpse inside the decaying liner. Here we explore the ship’s history in brief, and showcase his rare photographs.
(Images: Jonathan Haeber, reproduced with permission)
Independence took to the seas on her maiden voyage – a cruise to the Mediterranean – on February 11, 1951. Her first liner service came on April 12, steaming from New York to Genoa, Italy. Hollywood soon took note, and movies starring the likes of Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr were filmed onboard. The passenger list was also an exclusive one, from Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock to King Saud and President Harry Truman.
(Images: Jonathan Haeber, reproduced with permission)
Rising competition from air travel saw trans-Atlantic liner services suspended in 1967. Renamed Oceanic Independence and Oceanic Constitution, the ships were sold in 1974 to Atlantic Far East Line Inc., Monrovia, and refitted for cruising. But by 1980, they had been returned to the United States to sail with American Hawaii Cruises.
(Images: Jonathan Haeber, reproduced with permission)
To the delight of many Americans, the ships were re-registered under their original names. Independence was refitted in 1994, while Constitution was retired in 1996 due to high operating costs. Independence thus became the last US-built ocean liner to sail under the American flag, but the ship was laid up in San Francisco in 2001 after her owner filed for bankruptcy.
(Images: Jonathan Haeber, reproduced with permission)
Norwegian Cruise Line purchased Independence in 2003, renaming her Oceanic. Amid rumours she was to be scrapped, Oceanic was sold on once again. This time renamed Platinum II, she was towed to Alang, India. But authorities turned the ship away amid accusations of falsified documents when they discovered that she was Oceanic. Her new owner, Global Marketing Systems, was later fined $518,500 for exporting the ship for scrap without removing harmful toxins like asbestos and PCBs.
(Images: Jonathan Haeber, reproduced with permission)
In a dramatic turn of events, scrapping was ultimately authorised but the ship became beached south of Alang. The former SS Independence was abandoned where she lay wrecked, but concerns over her structural integrity saw the ship scrapped on the spot throughout 2010. By January 2011, Independence was gone. All we’re left with is her proud history and these haunting photographs by Jonathan Haeber (full Flickr set).
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