Conservancy Executive Director Susan Gibbs Speaks in Greenport, Long Island

The story of the SS United States is also the story of a brilliant marine engineer and naval architect who brought her into being. To say that William Francis Gibbs had a long-running love affair with a ship would be, quite frankly, an understatement. Salty-tongued, superstitious, and with no formal training in the field, he quit his job in real-estate law in 1916 to devote himself to designing the world’s fastest ship.

On August 25th, SS United States Conservancy Executive Director Susan Gibbs, granddaughter of ship designer William Francis Gibbs, presented on "The History and Preservation of 'America’s Flagship'” at the Peconic Landing Community Center in Greenport, Long Island.

Conservancy supporter and former SS United States passenger Rita Sharkey speaks into the mic at Conservancy Executive Director Susan Gibbs' recent talk in Greenport, Long Island.

The exciting talk was well attended by both SS United States supporters in the region and Peconic Landing residents eager to learn more about our nation's greatest and sole remaining ocean liner. Attendees also included former SS United States passengers and employees of Gibbs & Cox — the firm responsible for the design of the record-breaking vessel — who shared generously from their own memories of working and traveling aboard America's great flagship.

The Conservancy extends our sincere thanks to the Brecknock Hall Foundation and the Peconic Landing Community Center for coordinating this fantastic event, and to the talk's attendees for their interest and enthusiasm.

Conservancy Executive Director Susan Gibbs with supporter Nelia Salvati, wife of former Gibbs & Cox employee Anthony Salvati, and with former Gibbs & Cox employee Harry Thurber.

With your support, we're striving to secure a bright future of our nation's greatest and sole remaining ocean liner, the SS United States. In the meantime, the SS United States Conservancy is also hard at work preserving and celebrating the legacy of this extraordinary vessel through our curatorial initiatives and educational outreach.