SS Blücher was a Barbarossa-class ocean liner built by Blohm & Voss Shipbuilders, Hamburg, Germany, in 1902 for the Hamburg America Line, to sail under German flag. She measured 12,334 gross register tons and was 550 (bp) feet long by 62 feet wide. Steam quadruple-expansion engines powered twin screws. Her service speed was 16 knots. She originally carried 2,102 passengers, including 333 first class, 169 second class, and 1,600 third class, on four decks with a steel hull, and was served by a crew of 252. She was fitted with two masts and two funnels. She saw Hamburg-New York and Hamburg-South America service.

History
German Empire
NameBlücher
NamesakeGebhard Leberecht von Blücher
OwnerHamburg America Line
Route
  • Hamburg–New York (1901–1911)
  • Hamburg–South America (1911–1914)
BuilderBlohm & Voss, Hamburg
Launched23 November 1901
Maiden voyage7 June 1902
Fate
  • Interned at Pernambuco, Brazil, August 1914
  • Seized by Brazil, 1 June 1917
Brazil
NameLeopoldina
AcquiredBy seizure, 1 June 1917
FateSold to France, 27 February 1918
France
NameSuffren
NamesakePierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez
OwnerCompagnie Générale Transatlantique
RouteHavre - New York
Acquired
  • By charter, 11 March 1920
  • Bought, March 1923
Out of serviceSeptember 1928
RefitDecember 1920
FateScrapped at Genoa, 1929
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeBarbarossa-class ocean liner
Tonnage12,334 GRT
Length525 ft 6 in (160.17 m)
Beam62 ft 3 in (18.97 m)
Propulsion
Speed16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Capacity
  • Passengers (as built):
  • 390 × 1st class
  • 230 × 2nd class
  • 1,550 × 3rd class
  • After 1920 refit
  • 500 × cabin class
  • 250 × 3rd class

She was the sister ship to the SS Moltke.[2]

History

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The Blücher was launched on November 23, 1901. She set out on her maiden voyage on June 7, 1902, proceeding from Hamburg to Boulogne to Southampton, then finally to New York, where she arrived at Ellis Island on June 28. She serviced this route until 1911.

In 1912, she was rebuilt, with luxury suites added to her boat deck.

She was interned at Pernambuco, Brazil in August 1914. On June 1, 1917, she was seized by the Brazilian government, who renamed her Leopoldina. On February 27, 1918, she was chartered to the French government.

On March 11, 1920, she began her first voyage for Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (CGT, "French Line") from New York to Le Havre. In December 1921, she was laid up. In March 1923, she was sold to CGT and renamed Suffren, as which on May 8, 1923, she made her first voyage, Le Havre to New York. At this time, she could accommodate 500 passengers in first class and 250 in third class.

She was laid up again in 1928 and scrapped in Genoa in 1929.

References

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  1. ^ Swiggum, S.; Kohli, M. (2014). "Ship Descriptions (B)". theshipslist.com. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
  2. ^ "Arrival of the Moltke." New Haven, Connecticut: New Haven Morning Journal and Courier, March 21, 1902, p. 7 (subscription required).
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