Getting there, Part 2 - May 16, 2011

There has been an SS Rotterdam in the Holland America Line since 1872 when the first, rigged for both steam and sail, entered service. Fourteen years later a shiny new SS Rotterdam replaced the original but this one too was sold off eleven years later to make way for number three in 1897. This third version in turn was sold in 1906 to another line and was ultimately sunk by a German U-Boat in 1918.
Its replacement, the fourth SS Rotterdam, was commissioned in 1908 and served until WWII before being scrapped in 1940.
There was then a hiatus until 1958 when Rotterdam the fifth sailed onto the scene - still as an SS (Steam Ship). Number five went on to roam the oceans of the world for almost forty years before being retired to make way for number six in 1997. This latest in the line was the MS (Motor Ship) Rotterdam which quickly became our favorite boat ever. More snaps are right here.