The Steamship Historical Society of America

Join Bay area members and friends as our Golden Gate Chapter visits the Mare Island Museum, Railroad Avenue at 8th Street, Mare Island in Vallejo, California from 1PM to 3PM  - Admission / donation suggested is $4 per person. The Chapter will also visit nearby on Mare Island the newest museum vessel to open in the region; the 165-foot, LCS-type landing craft support vessel from World War II known as the "Mighty Midget".  For further information contact Chapter Chairman Norman Freitag at 510-276-7520.

Merle Thomsen will discuss Ocean Liner place settings, china and silver. SSHSA West Coast Office onboard Queen Mary.

Click on this link to access SSHSA's Image Porthole http://www.sshsa-db.org

In 1933, Congress designated May 22 as National Maritime Day.  This year we celebrated by launching a new interactive web-based site sharing over 40,000 lost, forgotten or deteriorating photos. Here's the official congressional verbage:

Whereas on May 22, 1819, the steamship The Savannah set sail from Savannah, Geaorgia, on the first successful transoceanic voyage under steam propulsion, thus making a material contribution to the advancement of ocean transportation: Therefore be it

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That May 22 of each year shall hereafter be designated and known as National Maritime Day, and the President is authorized and requested annually to issue a proclamation calling upon the people of the United States to observe such National Maritime Day by displaying the flag at their homes or other suitable places and Government officials to display the flag on all government buildings on May 22 of each year.

This year is very special as SSHSA launched its "Image Porthole" containing an initial 40,000 or so pictures of ships, ports, and people that have been preserved and digitized.  SSHSA Members have the ability to interact with the database and help us identify these forgotten images.