1954 ALASKA CRUISE from CRUISINGTHEPAST.COM on Vimeo.

Our own Cruising The Past video featuring the Alaska Steamship Line and their flagship SS ALASKA.  Sailing to the Inside Passage and into northern waters during the 1950s.  Clips from family films along with documentaries on this famous American flag carrier.

The Alaska Steamship Company was formed on August 3, 1894. Charles Peabody, one of the six founding members, served as president of the company from its creation until 1912. While it originally set out to ship passengers and fishing products, the Alaska Steamship Company began shipping mining equipment, dog sleds, and cattle at the outbreak of the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897.

In 1898, the Puget Sound Navigation Company was formed as a subsidiary, serving as means of putting the Alaska Steamship Company’s more obsolete vessels to use in the Puget Sound routes. The Alaska Steamship Company was purchased by the Alaska Syndicate and merged with the Northwestern Steamship Company in 1909. The Alaska Steamship Company retained its name through the merger, and the fleet was expanded to 18 ships. The company greatly benefitted from the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, which forced two Canadian shipping companies out of the Alaska market.

Shortly after midnight on October 27, 1940, on a southbound voyage to Seattle, the S.S. Alaska ran aground at full speed on the rocky shores of Elliott Bay between Ketchikan and Prince Rupert, British Columbia. The captain feared a puncture in the ship’s hull, and ordered the 278 passengers ashore. After the passengers evacuated into lifeboats, the S.S. North Coast brought them to Prince Rupert. The ship was re-floated two days later, inspected at Kennedy Island, and arrived in Seattle under its own power on November 1st. [Read more...]