Anwar Ali was standing in a truck bed along Columbus Boulevard holding his camera with a telephoto lens to capture the departure of the SS United States, a ship his father embarked when he emigrated from the Middle East in the 1960s.
"This has been something that my family has come and waved to as we go to a sporting event or any Philadelphia event," Ali said. "So the idea that it's leaving and moving is kind of the next step of saying goodbye to my dad, who passed away a couple of years ago."
MORE: How to stream the SS United States as it leaves Philadelphia and heads down the Delaware River
Ali, 45, of Philadelphia, was one of many onlookers who stopped outside Pier 82 to see the SS United States one last time in South Philly. During its maiden voyage in 1952, the ship set the transatlantic speed record, and it carried celebrities and U.S. presidents during its prime. But the historic ocean liner was retired in 1969 and has been docked in Philadelphia since 1996.
After a lengthy legal battle about its future, the ship was bought by Okaloosa County, Florida, last year so it could be sunk and turned into an artificial reef off the Gulf Coast. After several delays to its departure due to weather and complications with the removal process, the vessel left around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday to begin a two-week journey to Mobile, Alabama, where it will spend the next year being prepped and cleaned before it heads to the depths.
Along Columbus Boulevard, some observers pressed their noses and cameras against the chain link fence, others stood on top of cars to get a better look and a group took over the nearby IKEA cafeteria, watching through the windows and clapping as the ocean liner moved out of site under the Walt Whitman Bridge.
Elliot Lopez, 70, who had worked with the ship's conservancy to try to save the vessel from sinking, took in the spectacle from the roadway and let a few people, including Ali, stand in his truck bed for a better view.
Lopez, who was born and raised in Brooklyn, said he once took a school trip to see the SS United States when it was docked in New York City when he was 9 years old. He got to tour the inside and received a postcard souvenir with a photo of the ship, though he said that's long gone.
"I was in awe when I first went on that ship and saw it from the outside. You're a little kid, and you're like 'Wow!'" he said. "It's sad to see what's happening (to it)."
For Louis Lafferty, 29, of Ardmore, the ocean liner's history is important to remember. He got to the pier at 5 a.m. Wednesday to watch the departure, but it was far from the first time he's been there. Since April, he's regularly come down to Pier 82 with some friends to memorialize the ship by painting it on canvases and nearby poles.
"It would be nice if we didn't destroy our history," Lafferty said. "It's kind of metaphorical for the state of the country, that we're sinking the United States. Fits in with what's going on right now."
Michaela Althouse/PhillyVoice
Louis Lafferty's paintings of the SS United States.
Michaela Althouse/For PhillyVoice
The 29-year-old filled his car with art after painting the ship almost daily since April.
His mom, Ilene Pearlman, who accompanied him, said she wished that those involved could have found a different future for the ship.
"I think it would have been cool if they did something, anything – not necessarily restoring it to sailing, but it could have been restaurants, places to live," Pearlman said.
Others weren't quite so dedicated to the vessel, but still took a moment to appreciate it. Elisa Winder, 40, and her son, Lennox, 9, were at an eye appointment nearby when they saw the SS United States pulling out of the pier. They decided to stop across the street for a few minutes to watch.
"We just saw history as it was happening," Winder said. "… It's been here since I was a kid, so it's interesting to see it ship out."
Linda and Matthew Carrafiello, a retired couple who live in South Philadelphia, were among the crowd that watched from the dining room at IKEA, which overlooks the ship's former home at Pier 82. They had only intended to have lunch at the furniture chain, but when they realized it was the day the SS United States was leaving, they decided to stick around.
"We've been neighbors here for so many years, and I was one of the people that was hoping to see it be refurbished and be a Philadelphia landmark instead of becoming a gigantic artificial reef," Matthew Carrafiello said.
Although he was disappointed about the ship's next journey, the 78-year-old noted that there was a silver lining as the vessel made its way down the river.
"At least it has a useful existence," he said.
Here's a look at its final journey down the Delaware River:
Colleen Claggett/For PhillyVoice
Onlookers in Gloucester City, New Jersey.
Colleen Claggett/For PhillyVoice
Taking selfies with the ship.
Colleen Claggett/For PhillyVoice
The ship passed under the Walt Whitman Bridge as it headed down the Delaware River.
Colleen Claggett/For PhillyVoice
A viewer snaps a final photo as the vessel goes by.
Colleen Claggett/For PhillyVoice
Multiple tugboats, like the one seen above, were needed to move the ocean liner.
