CALIFORNIA, VIRGINIA, and PENNSYLVANIA (1928, 1929)

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Conceived for New York-San Francisco service, in 1937, the ships were sold to the US Maritime Commission. President Franklin D. Roosevelt wanted a South America service. After a quick remodeling, which included the removal of the aft (dummy) stack, the addition of air-conditioning, and an outdoor pool, California, Virginia, and Pennsylvania were renamed Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina, respectively. The public areas remained unchanged.

 

The ships proved quite popular, and there was talk of a larger trio to join them. World War II intervened, and the plan came to naught. After the war, the ships were given modern makeovers, and you can read more on that here.

 

ARTIST ROSTER

Charles V. John, Aldo Lazzarini, Carola Spaeth, Stuart Travis

 

BASIC STATS - CALIFORNIA

Length: 601'  |  Beam: 80'  |  Passengers: 747  |  20,325 gross tons  |  Speed: 17 knots

 

BASIC STATS - VIRGINIA, PENNSYLVANIA

Length: 613'  |  Beam: 80'  |  Passengers: 750  |  20,526 gross tons  |  Speed: 17 knots