One of the giant smokestacks from the SS United States was removed from the historic ship Monday as plans to build a museum honoring the ocean liner's legacy move forward.
The boat's remaining smokestack — its aft funnel — is expected to be removed shortly, too. Their removal is part of a larger process to clean and prepare the ocean liner to be sunk off the Florida coast and transformed into an artificial reef. They will feature prominently in the museum being built in Okaloosa County.
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The smokestacks are each 65-feet tall — the height of a six-story building — and lean backward to give the impression that the vessel is in motion. Renderings of the museum, released Monday, show them positioned as they were atop the SS United States.
The ship was docked along the Delaware River in South Philadelphia from 1996 until February, when it was tugged to Mobile, Alabama, where it is being prepared to be sunk in late 2025 about 20 nautical miles south of Florida's Destin-Fort Walton Beach.
Okaloosa County purchased the ship last year for $1 million following a lengthy legal battle. It is spending $10 million to turn the ship into an attraction for both novice and experienced SCUBA divers and create a museum that tells the boat's rich history.
The SS United States set the transatlantic speed record during its maiden voyage in 1952 and spent years transporting VIPs before it was retired in 1969. Its passengers include four presidents — Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John Kennedy and a young Bill Clinton — and celebrities Marlon Brando, Sean Connery, Walt Disney, Duke Ellington, Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, John Wayne and Bob Hope.
On Monday, the SS United States Conservancy, the ship's former owner, said Monday that it is working with Thinc Design to plan and develop the museum. The New York-based firm's past projects include the National September 11 Memorial Museum and the Empire State Building Observatory. In addition to the smokestacks, the museum will showcase one of the ship's propellers, its radar mast and an original cocktail bar. It will also feature photographs, video footage and other small artifacts.
"We are deeply committed to celebrating the enduring legacy of America’s Flagship, and we have assembled an extraordinary team to help us realize our vision," said Susan Gibbs, president of the conservancy. "By incorporating iconic components from the historic ocean liner into an architecturally stunning land-based museum, the SS United States will continue to excite and inspire future generations."
Provided Image/Okaloosa County
This is the inside of one of the smokestacks from the SS United States. Both funnels will be featured in a Florida museum that honors the historic ocean liner.
The exact location where the ocean liner will rest has yet to be determined, but the bottom of the boat will sit 180 feet below the surface. Its upper deck will be 55 below the surface. Crews from contractor Coleen Marine and the Natural Resources Team at Destin-Fort Walton Beach have been working to prepare the vessel.
Okaloosa County Board Chairman Paul Mixon called the smokestack's removal "a massive next step toward an environmental effort that will benefit our local marine habitat and build upon our robust tourism industry in Destin-Fort Walton Beach."
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