1888–1898
On March 15, 1888, City of New York was christened by Lady Randolph Churchill. On August 1, she commenced her maiden voyage from Liverpool to New York City where she arrived on August 10. Among the prominent passengers on board for her first crossing was noted American politician and statesman James G. Blaine.[5] Unfortunately, while achieving respectable crossings, she was unable to produce records. Her sister, City of Paris entered service in April 1889 and took the westbound Blue Riband a month later. That August, White Star commissioned the twin screw Teutonic followed the next year by Majestic and the Inman and White Star pairs took turns bettering each other's times. While City of Paris proved to be the fastest of the four, in 1892 City of New York was finally able to outrun her sister for the eastbound record.[2]
On 21 August 1890, the liners Teutonic and City of New York raced from the New York pier to the Sandy Hook bar out to the bay. Hundreds of people were present to observe the famous liners as they departed. After seeing the vessels safely outside the bay, the pilots were taken off by the pilot boat Lillie, No. 8. Henderson said Teutonic crossed the bar at 9:42 AM. McEnenerny said City of New York crossed at 10:20 AM. Teutonic went at the rate of 17 kn. It was expected that the vessels would be in sight of each other for two to three days. [6]
It had been International Navigation's plan to maintain Inman's status as a British flag carrier. However, even before City of New York was completed, the British Government responded to Inman's ownership change by revoking the line's mail contract. International Navigation lobbied the US Congress to replace the subsidy and allow the Inman speedsters to register in the US despite the law that only permitted US-built ships to be registered there. After considerable controversy, Congress enacted the subsidy provided that International Navigation build two similar ships in the US and all four twin-screw liners being available to the government in the event of a crisis. In one of his last acts in office, on February 22, 1893, President Benjamin Harrison boarded the now renamed New York during a snowstorm and raised the American Flag.[4] The Inman Line was merged into International Navigation's American Line. As a part of the change, the former Inman liners now used Southampton as their UK destination rather than Liverpool, ending their direct rivalry with the White Star pair until 1907 when Teutonic and Majestic were also transferred to Southampton.[3]
On 29 February 1896 New York grounded in fog in Lower New York Bay.[7] She was refloated the next day.[8]
Spanish–American War
At the outbreak of the Spanish–American War, City of New York was chartered as an auxiliary cruiser with a civilian crew, commissioning on 26 April 1898 at New York, Captain C. S. Cotton in command and renamed Harvard. Assigned as a scout, Harvard departed New York on 30 April to cruise West Indian waters in search of the Spanish fleet. After sending back several reports on the location of Spanish units in the Caribbean, Harvard was blockaded by a larger force at Saint-Pierre, Martinique from 11–17 May, after which she proceeded to Santiago de Cuba and St. Nicholas Mole, Haiti, with dispatches from Commodore Winfield Scott Schley. Interrupting her scouting duties, Harvard returned to Newport News, Virginia, 7–26 June during which time her crew was officially taken into the Naval Service.[4]
Harvard returned to the Caribbean with troops and supplies, arriving at Altares, Cuba, about 1 July. After Rear Admiral William T. Sampson's victory at the victory off Santiago, she rescued survivors. Despite the high surf and ammunition explosions from the stricken Spanish ships, Harvard succeeded in recovering over 600 officers and men.[4]
On 4 July 1898, the 9th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry were guarding the prisoners of war inside Harvard. A guard ordered a prisoner, who was attempting to cross the line, to return.
1899–1917
New York resumed her civilian service on the New York–Southampton run in January 1899. During her first post-war crossing, one of her engines broke down and she had to return to Southampton for repairs lasting three months. In 1901, New York was taken out of service for an extensive refit that included replacing her machinery with quadruple expansion engines. Her good looks were partly spoiled when her three raked funnels were replaced with two taller ones. Her size increased to 10,798 gross register tons.[9] She resumed service on 14 April 1903.[4]
On 10 April 1912, New York was berthed in Southampton beside RMS Oceanic (1899). The three-inch steel hawsers that secured her were torn from their moorings when the much larger Titanic (leaving port to begin her ill-fated maiden voyage to New York City) passed by, creating a suction effect. A collision was narrowly avoided when Titanic's captain, Edward Smith, ordered the port propeller to reverse, turning the larger liner while the nearby tugboat Vulcan towed New York in the opposite direction.[10]
In 1913, New York was re-configured as a second and third-class only liner.
World War I
The United States entered World War I on 6 April 1917. New York was armed, and U.S. Navy gun crews were assigned to her.
On 16 January 1918, New York was in the Irish Sea during a voyage to Liverpool, England, escorted by the destroyers USS Jenkins (DD-42) and USS Shaw (DD-68). As darkness fell at around 18:00, Jenkins took station astern of New York while Shaw continued to patrol ahead. At about 19:30, the gun crews manning New York′s forward guns sighted a suspicious object on her port beam, and they fired seven rounds at it. New York swung slightly to starboard, and the guns received orders to cease firing. Meanwhile, New York′s after gun crew sighted Jenkins on New York′s starboard quarter. Believing Jenkins still to be astern of New York and not realizing that New York′s swing to starboard had placed Jenkins on her starboard quarter, the after gun mistook Jenkins for a hostile vessel and fired one shot. It hit Jenkins, killing one man and wounding four. Jenkins immediately turned on her running lights, and New York ceased fire.[11]
New York was chartered by the U.S. Navy from the International Mercantile Marine Company on 9 May 1918 and converted her into a troop transport. She was commissioned as USS Plattsburgh at New York City on 24 May 1918 and was assigned to the Cruiser and Transport Force.
Plattsburg departed New York in convoy with her first load of troops for
1920–1922
The ship reverted to the name New York, and her post-World War I reconditioning included removal of a mast. She resumed passenger service in 1920 and remained with the American Line for nine months until she was sold to the Polish Navigation Company. After one voyage, her new owner went bankrupt and New York was seized by the creditors, who sold her to the Irish American Line in 1922. She was then sold to the United Transatlantic Line and again to the American Black Sea Line. Her last Atlantic crossing was on 10 June 1922 from New York to Naples and Constantinople. Later that year, she was sold for scrap.[4]
