SS Vedic
SS Vedic was an ocean liner for the White Star Line, built in 1917 by Harland and Wolff. She was immediately requisitioned as a troopship before she could begin passenger service due to the ongoing conflicts of World War One, for which she was extensively refitted. [1]
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History | |
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Name: | SS Vedic |
Owner: | White Star Line |
Operator: | White Star Line |
Port of registry: | Liverpool |
Route: | Belfast-Clyde-Boston |
Builder: | Harland and Wolff |
Yard number: | 461 |
Launched: | 18 December 1917 |
Completed: | June 1918 |
Maiden voyage: | 11 July 1918 |
In service: | 10 July 1918 |
Out of service: | 1934 |
Fate: | Scrapped in 1934 |
General characteristics | |
Type: | Cargo ship |
Tonnage: | 9,332 GRT |
Length: | 460.5 ft (140.4 m) |
Beam: | 58.3 ft (17.8 m) |
Decks: | 3 |
Propulsion: | Double propeller installation triple blades. |
Speed: | 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) (design service speed) |
Capacity: | 1,250 third class |
On September 19, 1919, while returning British troops home from Russia, Vedic managed to run aground near North Ronaldsay in the Orkney Islands, Scotland. Vedic was helped back to deep water by warships and tug boats.[2]
After the War, in 1920, Vedic saw passenger service as intended. She was once again refitted as an ocean liner, and immediately after travelled the Canada-to-Liverpool immigrant route. She took the Liverpool-Australia route in 1925.
In 1934, the White Star Line merged with its chief rival, Cunard Line, forming Cunard-White Star, Ltd. The newly formed company decided that the vessel was too old and needed to be retired from service. She was one of the first ships that Cunard-White Star sent to the breakers. She was sold for scrap in 1934.
References
- McCluskie 2013, p. 129.
- The Sunday Post 1919, p. 1.
- McCluskie, Tom (2013). The Rise and Fall of Harland and Wolff. History Press Limited. ISBN 9780752488615. - Total pages: 175
- The Sunday Post (21 September 1919). "Tropship's Narrow Escape". The Sunday Post. Dundee, Scotland.