{{short description|British cargo liner sunk in 1918}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2025}} {{Use British English|date=July 2025}} {{for|the SS Mesaba built in 1918|SS Delphic (1925)}} {{Infobox ship |section1={{Infobox ship/image |image= Mesaba 1898 Gravesend Reach.jpg |image_caption= ''Mesaba'' at anchor in [[Gravesend]] Reach }}
|section2={{Infobox ship/career |hide_header= |country= United Kingdom |flag= {{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|civil}} |name= *1898: ''Winifreda'' *1898: ''Mesaba'' |namesake= 1898: [[Mesabi Range]] |owner= *1898: [[File:Red flag.svg|20px]] [[Leyland Line]] *1898: [[File:Atlantic Transport Line house flag.svg|20px]] [[Atlantic Transport Line]] |operator= |registry= [[Port of Liverpool|Liverpool]] |route= [[Port of London|London]] – [[Port of New York and New Jersey|New York]] |ordered= |builder= [[Harland & Wolff]], [[Belfast]] |original_cost= |yard_number= 319 |laid_down= 1897 |launched= 11 September 1897 |sponsor= |completed= 17 February 1898 |maiden_voyage= 3 March 1898 |refit= |identification= *UK [[official number]] 109392 *[[code letters]] PWSL *{{ICS|Papa}}{{ICS|Whiskey}}{{ICS|Sierra}}{{ICS|Lima}} *by 1913: [[Maritime call sign|call sign]] MMV |fate= sunk by torpedo, 1 September 1918 |status= |notes= }}
|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics |hide_header= |header_caption= |class= |type= [[livestock]] and [[passenger ship]] |tonnage= {{GRT|6833}}, {{NRT|4423}} |displacement= |length= {{cvt|482.1|ft|abbr=on}} |beam= {{cvt|52.2|ft|abbr=on}} |draught= |depth= {{cvt|31.6|ft|abbr=on}} |decks= 3 |sail_plan= 4-masted [[schooner]] |power= *1 × [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|triple-expansion engine]];<br>772 [[Horsepower#Nominal horsepower|NHP]]; 4,300 [[Horsepower#Indicated horsepower|ihp]] |propulsion= 1 × [[Propeller|screw]] |speed= {{convert|14|kn|km/h|0}} |capacity= *120 × [[First class travel|1st class]] passengers *plus 800 × cattle *plus {{convert|24569|cuft|0}} [[Reefer ship|refrigerated cargo]] |crew= |armament= |sensors= by 1910: [[Submarine signals|submarine signalling]] |notes= one of five [[sister ship]]s }} }}
'''SS ''Mesaba''''' was a [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|UK]] [[Transatlantic crossing|transatlantic]] [[cargo liner]]. She was launched in Ireland in 1897 as '''''Winifreda''''', and made her maiden voyage to [[Port of New York and New Jersey|New York]] in 1898. Later that year she changed owners, and was renamed ''Mesaba''.
The ship was designed to carry 120 [[First class travel|first class]] passengers and 800 cattle, and to cross the North Atlantic in ten days. She was built for [[Leyland Line]], for use in the [[Thomas Wilson Sons & Co.|Wilson]] and [[Christopher Furness, 1st Baron Furness|Furness]]-Leyland Line (W&FL) joint service. However, within months of her completion, [[Atlantic Transport Line]] (ATL) bought her. She spent almost her entire career in ATL ownership.
In 1909, ATL took delivery of the new liner {{SS|Minnewaska|1908|2}}, and relegated ''Mesaba'' to be held in reserve. In 1912, ''Mesaba'' sent a [[Wireless telegraphy|wireless telegraph]] signal to RMS ''[[Titanic]]'', warning her of sea ice. On three occasions between 1912 and 1914, ATL loaned ''Mesaba'' to [[Red Star Line]].
In 1918, a [[German Empire|German]] [[U-boat]] sank ''Mesaba'' by torpedo in the [[Irish Sea]], killing 20 members of her crew.
==A class of five cargo liners== The ship was the third of a [[Ship class|class]] of five single-[[Propeller|screw]] [[steamship]]s built for members of the Wilson and Furness-Leyland Line (W&FL) in 1897 and 1898. Previous W&FL ships had all been purely [[cargo ship]]s to carry livestock. The five new ships were each designed to carry more than 100 passengers, all in [[First class travel|first class]] berths.
The first ship was ''Alexandra'', launched by [[Alexander Stephen and Sons]] in [[Glasgow]] on 3 August 1897.<ref>{{cite web |title=Alexandra |work=Scottish Built Ships |publisher=Caledonian Maritime Research Trust |access-date=9 July 2025 |url= https://www.clydeships.co.uk/view.php?&ref=23801}}</ref> Next was ''Victoria'', launched by [[Furness Withy|Furness, Withy & Co]] in [[West Hartlepool]] on 31 August.<ref>{{cite web |title=Victoria |work=Tees Built Ships |publisher=Shipping and Shipbuilding Research Trust |access-date=9 July 2025 |url= http://www.teesbuiltships.co.uk/view.php?&ref=168767}}</ref> The third was built by [[Harland & Wolff]] in [[Belfast]] as yard number 319, on slipway number 7. She was launched on 11 September 1897 as ''Winifreda'', and completed on 17 February 1898.<ref name=H&W>{{cite web |title=Winifreda |work=The Yard |publisher=Harland & Wolff |access-date=9 July 2025 |url= https://www.theyard.info/ships/ships.asp?entryid=319}}</ref> A Stephen and Sons also built ''[[SS Marquette (1897)|Boadicea]]'', which was launched on 25 November 1897.<ref>{{cite web |title=Boadicea |work=Scottish Built Ships |publisher=Caledonian Maritime Research Trust |access-date=9 July 2025 |url= https://www.clydeships.co.uk/view.php?&ref=23802}}</ref> The final ship of the class to be built was ''[[SS Mohegan|Cleopatra]]'', which was launched by [[Earle's Shipbuilding]] in [[Kingston upon Hull|Hull]] on 6 April 1898.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cleopatra |work=Shipping and Shipbuilding |publisher=Shipping and Shipbuilding Research Trust |access-date=9 July 2025 |url= http://www.shippingandshipbuilding.uk/view.php?&ref=200289}}</ref>
==Building and registration== ''Winifreda''{{'}}s registered length was {{cvt|482.1|ft|abbr=on}}, her [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] was {{cvt|52.2|ft|abbr=on}}; and her depth was {{cvt|31.6|ft|abbr=on}}.{{sfn|''Lloyd's Register'' 1898|loc=WIN–WIS}} She had first class berths for 120 passengers, and her [[Hold (compartment)|holds]] could accommodate 800 head of cattle.{{sfn|Burrell|1992|p=26}} Her [[tonnage]]s were {{GRT|6833}} and {{NRT|4423}}. She had a single [[Propeller|screw]], driven by a three-cylinder [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|triple-expansion engine]] that was rated at 772 [[Horsepower#Nominal horsepower|NHP]]{{sfn|''Lloyd's Register'' 1898|loc=WIN–WIS}} or 4,300 [[Horsepower#Indicated horsepower|ihp]],{{sfn|Haws|1979|p=164}} and gave her a speed of {{convert|14|kn|km/h|0}}.{{sfn|Burrell|1992|p=26}} She had four [[Mast (sailing)|masts]], and was rigged as a [[schooner]].{{sfn|''Lloyd's Register'' 1898|loc=WIN–WIS}}
The ship was built with {{convert|24569|cuft|0}} of her holds [[Reefer ship|refrigerated]]. She had two [[De La Vergne]] single refrigerating plants, and one [[Carl von Linde|Linde]] duplex refrigerating plant. Both used [[ammonia]] as a coolant.{{sfn|''Lloyd's Register'' 1911|loc=Vessels Fitted with Refrigerating Appliances}} As early as 1899, she was recorded as loading cargo including "3,284 quarters of beef".<ref>{{cite news |title=Live Stock Market |newspaper=[[New-York Tribune]] |page=21 |date=30 July 1899 |via=[[Chronicling America]] |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1899-07-30/ed-1/seq-21/}}</ref>
''Winifreda''{{'}}s owner was Leyland Line, who registered her in [[Port of Liverpool|Liverpool]]. Her UK [[official number]] was 109392, and her [[code letters]] were PWSL.{{sfn|''Lloyd's Register'' 1898|loc=WIN–WIS}} She began her maiden voyage on 3 March 1898.<ref name=ET>{{cite web |title=Atlantic Transport Line: Mesaba |year=1996 |work=Encyclopedia Titanica |access-date=19 July 2023 |url= https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/titanic/ships/mesaba.html}}</ref> Her regular route was between [[Port of London|London]] and [[Port of New York and New Jersey|New York]].<ref name=H&W/>
==From ''Winifreda'' to ''Mesaba''== While ''Winifreda'' was entering service, Atlantic Transport Line (ATL) was negotiating to buy her and all of her sisters from W&FL, including the uncompleted ''Cleopatra''. Negotiations gained impetus after 21 April 1898, when the [[Spanish–American War]] began. ATL sold seven of its ships to the United States Government, and donated another as a [[hospital ship]]. In order to replace them, it increased its offer to W&FL to £968,000 for the five ships. The sale of the five ships, plus the W&FL's office in London and berth in New York, was finalised on 21 July.{{sfn|Burrell|1992|p=27}} After the sale, ''Winifreda'' made one more transatlantic trip to New York and back, before her new owners renamed her.{{sfn|Haws|1979|p=164}}
ATL renamed all of the ships it bought from W&FL. ''Alexandra'' became ''Menominee''; ''Victoria'' became ''Manitou''; ''Winifreda'' became ''Mesaba''; ''Boadicea'' became ''Marquette''; and ''Cleopatra'' became ''Mohegan''.{{sfn|Haws|1979|pp=163–164}} The [[Menominee Range]], [[Mesabi Range]], and [[Marquette Iron Range]] are all iron ore deposits around [[Lake Superior]]. All five ships remained registered in the UK.{{sfn|Burrell|1992|p=27}}{{sfn|''Mercantile Navy List'' 1899|p=242}} ''Mohegan'' was wrecked and lost in October 1898.{{sfn|Haws|1979|p=164}}{{sfn|Burrell|1992|p=27}} The remaining four ships continued to run between London and New York, where they served a pier at the foot of West [[Houston Street]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Atlantic Transport Line Steamship |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=IV–11 |date=24 December 1898 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1898-12-24/ed-1/seq-85/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Steamship of the Atlantic Transport Company. |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=IV–22 |date=24 December 1898 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1898-12-24/ed-1/seq-40/}}</ref>
==''Catania''== At 11:00 hrs on 29 December 1899, on an eastbound voyage from New York to London, ''Mesaba'' sighted the US-registered steamship ''Catania'' in distress in a gale at position {{coord|48|N|38|W|display=inline}}.<ref name=Tribune-1899-0105>{{cite news |title=Probable Disaster at Sea |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=7 |date=5 January 1899 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1899-01-05/ed-1/seq-7/}}</ref><ref name=Sun-1899-0105>{{cite news |title=Has the Catania Been Lost? |newspaper=[[The Sun (New York City)|The Sun]] |place=New York |page=1 |date=5 January 1899 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1899-01-05/ed-1/seq-1/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Steamer Catania in Distress. |url-access=subscription |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |page=1 |date=4 January 1899 |via=Times Machine |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1899/01/04/102407483.html?pageNumber=1}}</ref>
A giant wave, estimated to be {{convert|50|ft}} high, had hit ''Catania'' two days previously. It had carried away from everything from her decks, including her funnel and boats, and damaged part of her [[superstructure]]. It poured down ventilators and broke through hatches; reached her [[Fire room|stoke hold]]; and put out the fires in her furnaces.<ref name=Sun-1899-0201>{{cite news |title=Under a Giant Comber. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=1 |date=15 February 1899 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1899-02-15/ed-1/seq-1/}}</ref> ''Catania'' signalled ''Mesaba'' to take her in tow. A boat from ''Mesaba'', commanded by her [[Chief mate|Chief Officer]] and crewed by five men, tried to take a tow line from ''Mesaba'' to ''Catania'', but was defeated by the heavy sea. The boat crew then tried to take a line from ''Catania'' to ''Mesaba'', but was defeated by the weight of the line. Night then fell, preventing further attempts to secure a line between the two ships.<ref name=Tribune-1899-0105/><ref name=Sun-1899-0105/><ref>{{cite news |title=Steamer Catania in Distress. |url-access=subscription |newspaper=The New York Times |page=1 |date=4 January 1899 |via=Times Machine |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1899/01/04/102407483.html?pageNumber=1}}</ref>
''Mesaba'' continued to stand by overnight, in order to try again at first light. However, the next day, ''Catania'' was no longer in sight. ''Mesaba'' searched until 09:00 hrs without finding ''Catania'', and then resumed her eastbound voyage to London.<ref name=Tribune-1899-0105/><ref name=Sun-1899-0105/> However, ''Catania''{{'}}s crew pumped the water out of her holds; jury-rigged a temporary funnel from wood, sheet steel and canvas; and got her furnaces re-lit.<ref name=Sun-1899-0201/> She resumed her voyage under her own power, and on 6 January 1899 reached [[São Miguel Island]] in the [[Azores]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Catania Makes the Azores. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=4 |date=7 January 1899 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1899-01-07/ed-1/seq-4/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=The Catania Safe in Port. |url-access=subscription |newspaper=The New York Times |page=7 |date=7 January 1899 |via=Times Machine |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1899/01/07/117909448.html?pageNumber=7}}</ref> There she spent more than a month receiving repairs, including a better improvised funnel, made mostly from ships' hull plates. On 14 February she reached New York under her own power.<ref name=Sun-1899-0201/>
[[File:jsj-750-Columbia Shamrock 1899.jpg|thumb|upright|{{ship||Columbia|1899 yacht|2}} and {{ship||Shamrock|yacht|2}}, rivals in the [[1899 America's Cup]].]] ==''Shamrock''== In August 1899, ''Mesaba'' brought to New York some of the sails and wooden spars for the new racing [[yacht]] {{ship||Shamrock|yacht|2}}, which was to compete against {{ship||Columbia|1899 yacht|2}} in the [[1899 America's Cup]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Shamrock Soon to Sail. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=4 |date=29 August 1899 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1899-08-29/ed-1/seq-4/}}</ref> The sails and spars were transferred to [[Erie Basin (Brooklyn)|Erie Basin]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Outing for Shamrock's Crew. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=5 |date=28 August 1899 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1899-08-28/ed-1/seq-5/}}</ref>
==''Martello'' and ''Zeta''== On 22 September 1900, ''Mesaba'' was leaving New York for London when she was involved in a collision with Wilson Line's {{GRT|3721}} steamship ''Martello''. ''Mesaba'' sustained only slight damage, but ''Martello'' had to return to port to be [[dry dock]]ed for extensive repairs.<ref name=NYT-1900-1004>{{cite news |title=The Mesaba in Collision Again. |url-access=subscription |newspaper=The New York Times |page=2 |date=4 October 1900 |via=Times Machine |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1900/10/04/102615559.html?pageNumber=2}}</ref>
Later in the same voyage, ''Mesaba'' was involved in a second collision, this time with the {{GRT|2343}} steamship ''Zeta''. ''Zeta''{{'}}s [[Port and starboard|port]] quarter was damaged. Both ships reached London safely on 3 October.<ref name=NYT-1900-1004/>
==''Amanda''== On 1 February 1905, ''Mesaba'' sighted the British three-masted wooden schooner ''Amanda'' off the [[Grand Banks of Newfoundland]], heavily encrusted with ice, and flying her [[Red Ensign]] inverted as a [[distress signal]]. ''Amanda'' had left [[St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador|St John's, Newfoundland]] on 24 January with cargo for [[Port of Salvador|Salvador]], [[Bahia]]. A northwesterly gale had swept ''Amanda'' off course, and she had sprung a leak. Her crew had worked for five days to pump the water out of her holds by hand, but the water level had risen. In addition, ice formed on her, so thick that it weighed her down along with the water entering her holds. The crew jettisoned her cargo, two anchors, and her anchor chains, but she had continued to sink.<ref name=Tribune-1905-0207>{{cite news |title=Messaba's Passengers See Rescue. |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=8 |date=7 February 1899 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1905-02-07/ed-1/seq-8/}}</ref><ref name=Sun-1905-0207>{{cite news |title=Set Fire to Frozen Ship. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=2 |date=7 February 1905 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1905-02-07/ed-1/seq-2/}}</ref><ref name=NYT-1905-0702>{{cite news |title=Five Days in Peril on Ice-Coated Vessel |url-access=subscription |newspaper=The New York Times |page=16 |date=7 February 1905 |via=Times Machine |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1905/02/07/101407900.html?pageNumber=16}}</ref>
When ''Mesaba'' approached ''Amanda'', there was a heavy sea, but the steamship launched two of her port boats, directed by her Chief Officer, and rescued ''Amanda''{{'}}s captain and crew. The schooner would have formed a hazard to navigation, so ''Amanda''{{'}}s [[Master mariner|Master]], [[Sea captain|Captain]] William Fitzgerald, set his ship on fire before being last to leave her and transfer to ''Mesaba''. The steamship landed the schooner crew at New York on 6 February.<ref name=Tribune-1905-0207/><ref name=Sun-1905-0207/><ref name=NYT-1905-0702/>
==Modernisation== In April 1909, ATL took delivery of the new {{GRT|14000}} passenger liner ''Minnewaska''. Thereafter, ''Mesaba'' was held in reserve.{{sfn|Haws|1979|p=164}} In April 1910, {{SS|Minnehaha||2}} was damaged by running aground in the [[Isles of Scilly]]. ''Mesaba'' replaced her until her repairs were completed.<ref name=H&W/>
By 1910, ''Mesaba'' was equipped with [[Submarine signals|submarine signalling]] and [[Wireless telegraphy|wireless telegraph]]. The [[Marconi Company]] supplied and operated her wireless equipment.{{sfn|''Lloyd's Register'' 1910|loc=MES–MEX}} By 1913, her [[Maritime call sign|call sign]] was MMV.{{sfn|The Marconi Press Agency Ltd|1913|p=256}}
==''Titanic''== [[File:Jack George Phillips.jpg|thumb|upright|''Titanic''{{'}}s senior wireless officer, [[Jack Phillips (wireless operator)|Jack Phillips]], in [[Marconi Company]] uniform]] On 14 April 1912, ''Mesaba'' was making a westbound crossing of the North Atlantic. That evening, her Marconi [[Radio operator|wireless officer]], Stanley Adams, transmitted a sea ice and weather report to RMS ''Titanic'': <blockquote>To Titanic<br>In Lat. 42 N. to 41.25 Long 49 W to Long – 50.30 W saw much heavy pack ice and great number large icebergs also field ice.<br>Weather good, clear<ref name=ET/></blockquote>
''Titanic''{{'}}s senior Marconi wireless officer, [[Jack Phillips (wireless operator)|Jack Phillips]], received the signal about 21:40 hrs that evening; it is unclear, however, whether or not the message reached ''Titanic''{{'}}s [[Bridge (nautical)|bridge]].<ref name=ET/> It was one of a number of ice warnings transmitted to ''Titanic'' that evening. Two hours later, ''Titanic'' collided with an iceberg, gashing her side below the waterline, and causing herself to sink.
The transmission range of shipborne wireless telegraphy at that time was relatively short. ''Mesaba''{{'}}s was only {{convert|300|km|nmi}},{{sfn|The Marconi Press Agency Ltd|1913|p=256}} which was typical for many ships of her era. Wireless-equipped ships compensated for this by relaying signals from ship to ship. ''Mesaba''{{'}}s wireless signal to ''Titanic'' was one of numerous ice and weather reports that ships in the area had been passing to each other that day. At one time during the day on 14 April, ''Mesaba'' was about {{convert|50|nmi|km}} ahead of the [[Allan Line]]r {{SS|Parisian||2}}, which in turn was a similar distance ahead of the Leyland Liner {{SS|Californian||2}}. ''Titanic'' was about {{convert|125|nmi|km}} astern of ''Parisian''. At about 12:00 noon, ''Mesaba'' transmitted an ice warning to ''Parisian'', which relayed it to the [[Cunard Line]]r {{RMS|Carpathia}}.<ref>{{cite news |title=Told Titanic of Ice and Night was Clear |newspaper=The New Haven Union |place=[[New Haven, Connecticut|New Haven, CT]] |page=8 |date=18 April 1912 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn92051126/1912-04-18/ed-1/seq-8/}}</ref> At another time on the same day, ''Mesaba'' was astern of ''Parisian'' and ahead of ''Titanic''. Early that evening, ''Parisian'' sighted "huge icebergs", and transmitted a warning, which ''Mesaba'' relayed to ''Titanic''.<ref>{{cite news |title=Wireless Operator Asleep Parisian Missed S. O. S. Cry |newspaper=[[Bridgeport Evening Farmer]] |place=[[Bridgeport, Connecticut|Bridgeport, CT]] |page=9 |date=18 April 1912 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84022472/1912-04-18/ed-1/seq-9/}}</ref>
==Final peacetime years== Between 1912 and 1914, ''Mesaba'' made three round trips for Red Star Line between [[Port of Antwerp|Antwerp]] and [[Port of Philadelphia|Philadelphia]] via [[Port of Boston|Boston]].<ref name=H&W/> One of these voyages seems to have been in June 1912.<ref>{{cite news |title=Nice European Trip |newspaper=The Fulton County News |place=[[McConnellsburg, Pennsylvania|McConnellsburg, PA]] |page=1 |date=4 June 1912 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86081889/1912-06-04/ed-1/seq-1/}}</ref> From November 1912 until May 1913, ''Mesaba'' worked almost continually between London and New York.<ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=17 |date=14 November 1912 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1912-11-14/ed-1/seq-17/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=15 |date=13 December 1912 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1912-12-13/ed-1/seq-15/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=15 |date=18 December 1912 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1912-12-18/ed-1/seq-15/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=15 |date=10 January 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1913-01-10/ed-1/seq-15/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=18 |date=19 January 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1913-01-19/ed-1/seq-18/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Shipping News |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=14 |date=26 January 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1913-01-26/ed-1/seq-14/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=13 |date=24 February 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1913-02-24/ed-1/seq-13/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Shipping News |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=16 |date=2 March 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1913-03-02/ed-1/seq-16/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=The Sun |place=New York |page=18 |date=28 March 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1913-03-28/ed-1/seq-19/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Shipping News |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=11 |date=17 April 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1913-04-17/ed-1/seq-11/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Marine Intelligence. |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=6 |date=8 May 1913 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1913-05-08/ed-1/seq-6/}}</ref> She worked between London and New York again in May 1914.<ref>{{cite news |title=Shipping Information and Marine News of the World. |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=8 |date=8 May 1914 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1914-05-08/ed-1/seq-10/}}</ref>
==First World War== Within days of the [[World War I|First World War]] starting in August 1914, the [[Admiralty (United Kingdom)|Admiralty]] was reported to have requisitioned ''Mesaba'' for "transport service".<ref>{{cite news |title=Many Liners Now Nearing Safety |newspaper=New-York Tribune |page=3 |date=8 August 1914 |via=Chronicling America |url= https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1914-08-08/ed-1/seq-3/}}</ref>
On 11 August 1918, ''Mesaba'' was involved in a collision in fog with the {{GRT|1176}} steamship ''Lizard''. An inquiry found the two ships equally to blame.<ref name=ET/> 20 days later, on 31 August 1918, ''Mesaba'' left Liverpool for Philadelphia in ballast in [[convoy]] OL32/OE21. Her Master was Captain Owen Percy Clarke. The next day, {{SMU|UB-118}} torpedoed her {{convert|21|nmi|km}} east of the [[Tuskar Rock, Ireland|Tuskar Rock]] in the Irish Sea. 20 of her crew were killed, including Captain Clarke<ref name=H&W/> and her Chief Officer. The gunboat ''Kildini'', commanded by Lieutenant FJ Silva RNR, rescued 78 survivors.<ref name=ET/>
==Wreck== In September 2022, researchers from [[Bangor University]] and [[Bournemouth University]], using multibeam [[sonar]] aboard the [[research vessel]] ''Prince Madog'', identified a wreck at {{coord|52|17|N|5|38|W|display=inline,title}} as that of ''Mesaba''. She lies at a depth of {{convert|96|m|ft|disp=flip}}, and her [[Bow (watercraft)|bow]] is broken off.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Kuta |first=Sarah |date=30 September 2022 |title=The Ship That Tried to Warn the Titanic Has Been Found |magazine=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]] |access-date=19 July 2023 |url= https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-ship-that-tried-to-warn-the-titanic-has-been-found-180980870/ }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=SS Mesaba: The Ship That Sent an Iceberg Warning to Titanic Discovered in Irish Sea |magazine=[[Old Moore's Almanac]] |date=3 February 2023 |access-date=19 July 2023 |url= https://oldmooresalmanac.com/ss-mesaba-titanic-discovered-in-irish-sea-ship/}}</ref> Hitherto, the wreck was believed to be that of {{SS|City of Glasgow|1906|2}}, a passenger ship from the same convoy, which was sunk on the same day, and by the same U-boat.{{citation needed|date=July 2025}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==Further reading== *{{cite book |last=Burrell |first=David |year=1992 |title=Furness Withy 1891–1991 |place=Kendal |publisher=[[World Ship Society]] |isbn=0-905617-70-3}} *{{cite book |last=Haws |first=Duncan |year=1979 |title=The Ships of the Cunard, American, Red Star, Inman, Leyland, Dominion, Atlantic Transport and White Star lines |series=Merchant Fleets in Profile |volume=2 |place=Cambridge |publisher=Patrick Stephens Ltd |isbn=0-85059-324-7}} *{{cite book |year=1898 |title=Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping |volume=I.–Steamers |place=London |publisher=[[Lloyd's Register]] of Shipping |via=[[Internet Archive]] |ref={{sfnref|''Lloyd's Register'' 1898}} |url= https://archive.org/details/HECROS1899ST/page/n853/mode/1up}} *{{cite book |year=1910 |title=Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping |volume=I.–Steamers |place=London |publisher=Lloyd's Register of Shipping |via=Internet Archive |ref={{sfnref|''Lloyd's Register'' 1910}} |url= https://archive.org/details/HECROS1911ST/page/n697/mode/1up}} *{{cite book |year=1911 |title=Lloyd's Register of British and Foreign Shipping |volume=I.–Sailing Vessels, &c. |place=London |publisher=Lloyd's Register of Shipping |via=Internet Archive |ref={{sfnref|''Lloyd's Register'' 1911}} |url= https://archive.org/details/HECROS1912SV/page/n364/mode/1up}} *{{cite book |author=The Marconi Press Agency Ltd |author-link=Marconi Company |year=1913 |title=The Year Book of Wireless Telegraphy and Telephony |place=London |publisher=The St Katherine Press}} *{{cite book |last=McCartney |first=Innes |author-link=Innes McCartney |year=2022 |title=Echoes From The Deep |place=Leiden |publisher=Sidestone Press |isbn=978-9464261165}} *{{cite book |year=1899 |title=Mercantile Navy List |place=London |publisher=Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen |via=Crew List Index Project |ref={{sfnref|''Mercantile Navy List'' 1899}} |url= https://www.crewlist.org.uk/data/viewimages?name=Mesaba&year=1899&submit=Enter}}
==External links== *{{cite web |date=27 September 2022 |title=Finding the Ship That Sent Out a Warning to the Titanic |publisher=[[Bangor University]] |url= https://www.bangor.ac.uk/news/2022-09-27-finding-the-ship-that-sent-out-a-warning-to-the-titanic}}
{{1899 shipwrecks}} {{1900 shipwrecks}} {{1905 shipwrecks}} {{August 1918 shipwrecks}} {{September 1918 shipwrecks}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Mesaba}}
[[Category:1898 ships]] [[Category:Cargo liners]] [[Category:Maritime incidents in 1918]] [[Category:Ocean liners of the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Passenger ships of the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Ships built by Harland & Wolff]] [[Category:Ships built in Belfast]] [[Category:Ships of the Leyland Line]] [[Category:Ships sunk by German submarines in World War I]] [[Category:Shipwrecks in the Irish Sea]] [[Category:Steamships of the United Kingdom]] [[Category:World War I merchant ships of the United Kingdom]] [[Category:World War I shipwrecks in the Irish Sea]] [[Category:Ships of the Atlantic Transport Line]]