M/V Doulos, the World’s Oldest Ocean-going Passenger Ship to Be Retired

November 24, 2009 · Filed Under Current, Lore of the Sea, Ships 

MV_Doulos_2004_at_SouthamptThe MV Doulos, built in 1914, the world’s oldest active ocean-going passenger ship, will be retired  by the end of 2009.  She is now owned by the German charity Gute Bücher für Alle (English: Good Books for All), and is used as a floating bookshop and ministry.  The ship has previously been known as the SS Medina, the SS Roma, and the MV Franca C.

World’s oldest ocean-going passenger ship to stop sailing

The Medina was built in 1914 by Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company for the Mallory Steamship Company of the United States. She was a freighter serving the Atlantic; during World War II she served with the United States Coast Guard.

The Panamanian company Naviera San Miguel SA acquired the Medina in 1948; they renamed the ship the Roma, and converted her into a passenger ship with cabins for 287 people, and dormitories for an additional 694 people.

In 1952 Naviera San Miguel resold the Roma to Linea Costa, an Italian company. At this time the SS Roma, a steamship, was converted into a motor vessel and renamed the MV Franca C. She carried passengers between Italy and Argentina. In 1959, the Franca C was adapted into a cruise liner, principally cruising the Mediterranean.

In 1977, Gute Bücher für Alle acquired the Franca C, and renamed her the Doulos (Greek for servant). Her first director was George Miley (1977-1978) followed by Dale Rhoton (1978-1981). In her current role, she is manned by a volunteer crew and visits sea ports world-wide.

The MV Doulos currently holds the biggest floating library in the world. Normally there is somewhere around 3000 to 5000 books on the shelf and half a million in the hold.

Sudden end for Doulos

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