The ship was built in Germany in 1925 for a New York millionaire. No expense was spared to make this yacht one of the most palatial type ever built. It sailed around the globe, and many foreign dignitaries, including members of the royal family, accepted a ride on the "Caritas," the original name of the ship.
In 1941 the US Government bought the ship and retrofitted for use as a naval ship in World War two. It was stationed in Hawaii until 1946, when the ship was decommissioned. She made the rounds of different harbors in the next few years, eventually becoming a floating restaurant, gift shop, museum and motel office in the waters off of Smith River.
In 1965, 12 tractors were hitched to the boat, and she was dragged a quarter mile to her current resting place along Route 101. The trip took 10 hours, but she made it intact, and is now a prominent landmark in the area.
Unfortunately, the boat was closed for repairs when I arrived, with no re-opening date announced. Still , it was worth a quick stop for a picture.
I have been looking for pictures of this vessel for some time. It was owned by J. Percy Bartram who also built a home for his family on the water on in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport Ct in 1904. He had a wharf built and docked the vessel there for some time, so the records show. My girl friends Uncle bought the house over 50 years ago, I spent a lot of time there. He past away in 2009 and the house was sold last year. I can't believe this vessel was moored or docked at that location. I would love to see a picture of it in the water at that location. Take a look on Google earth, the house is next door to Black Rock Yacht Club in Bridgeport Ct. The house was called the Anchorage.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info! I wish I could've seen the inside of the boat, but sadly it was closed. I will load up Google earth and take a look at the house!
ReplyDeleteI plan to take my children to the museum in the near future. I will get you some pictures of the inside. Sander actually killed 5 people and badly injured one more. The murders happened in the actual motel located down the road from the ship. The whole area has a rather eerie feel. I had heard the place was haunted and I love that kind of stuff. So I had my husband take me to the restaurant for our weekly date night. It did feel haunted but I had no idea why. Then today I happen upon all these blogs about Sander! Well! No wonder it's haunted. Should you ever make it back to our area you should take a jaunt around the whole area. And the prime rib at the restaurant is great. 35 bucks and that's for two meals.
ReplyDeleteI plan to take my children to the museum in the near future. I will get you some pictures of the inside. Sander actually killed 5 people and badly injured one more. The murders happened in the actual motel located down the road from the ship. The whole area has a rather eerie feel. I had heard the place was haunted and I love that kind of stuff. So I had my husband take me to the restaurant for our weekly date night. It did feel haunted but I had no idea why. Then today I happen upon all these blogs about Sander! Well! No wonder it's haunted. Should you ever make it back to our area you should take a jaunt around the whole area. And the prime rib at the restaurant is great. 35 bucks and that's for two meals.
ReplyDeleteI plan to take my children to the museum in the near future. I will get you some pictures of the inside. Sander actually killed 5 people and badly injured one more. The murders happened in the actual motel located down the road from the ship. The whole area has a rather eerie feel. I had heard the place was haunted and I love that kind of stuff. So I had my husband take me to the restaurant for our weekly date night. It did feel haunted but I had no idea why. Then today I happen upon all these blogs about Sander! Well! No wonder it's haunted. Should you ever make it back to our area you should take a jaunt around the whole area. And the prime rib at the restaurant is great. 35 bucks and that's for two meals.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if anyone will see this since I'm writing this 8 years after Joe posted it but 2 of the victims are very close relatives of mine. I never met them as I was born in 1977 but Gordon Knott is the brother of my Grandmother (the mom of my mom). Gordon would have been my moms uncle. He and his wife were managing the Ship Ashore Motel at the time this happened. A fun fact, Gordon is also a direct relative the the Family who started Knotts Berry Farms. I don't know if this info means anything to anyone, just thought I'd share.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing! It's always good to get a little more of the story!
DeleteDear "unknown "... Thank you for the information. Im sorry your family delt with such loss at that time.
DeleteWhen I was younger, my dad took us up to Crescent City several times. Ship A Shore was always a stopping point. I remember all the memorabilia inside the museum. The last time there was around 1992 or '93. The Northern Coast is a beautiful place. Majestic, mysterious and beautiful.
I happened to stumble on this page because I was just talking with my husband about the memories there and hoping that I would find it still open. It saddens me that it's not.
Wow my wife and I stopped to see and take a picture of the ship on our way to Heceta Head Oregon in Sept.2012 had no idea 😑.
ReplyDeleteAte there with my family back in the '50's, I wasn't even in school yet! At that time it was floating in the Smith River, just a few hundred yards from where it is now.
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