My post two weeks ago was titled Final Voyage, and while the subject talked about the last journey the historic SS United States was going to take, I don’t think any of us following this voyage could have foreseen the outpouring of affection for this legendary liner.

From the moment the tugboat Vinik 6 arrived to begin the tow, the crowds gathered, the media arrived and before we all knew it, a flurry of outstanding images and video began to surface online.  As the SS United States hadn’t moved from her pier in decades, many of us never saw her majestic lines and profile that provided her the ability to be the fastest ocean liner in the world. But more than just speed, there was a modernity to her look then that still resonates today.

While her engines, from what I’ve researched, haven’t been turned over since she was retired from service in 1969, one could clearly imagine the speed she would convey on her own. Even under tow, she stood proudly in the water as if to say, “I’ve still got it.”  And got it, she does. To say they don’t make them like this anymore, would be a vast understatement.

The SS United States was built largely for two reasons, to provide the fastest transatlantic crossings between Southampton and New York and for conversion to a troop ship in times of conflict. Thankfully the latter was never required, but she proved the former again and again. Even in her retired state, she is offering all of us a final command performance one that will live long after she’s retired from the surface.

It was last week when she came close enough to the Florida shore, to show us all why she is America’s Flagship. The attention bestowed upon her at this stage of her life was reflective of the same attention she received when she was first launched. When a modern-day cruise ship changed course to give its passengers a closer look, that alone demonstrated not only an act of respect but was history in the making when the 20^th Century met the 21^st. Never again will such a chorus of transportation happen again on the open sea. Why—because the SS United States is the last of her kind. There will never be one like her again.

Ever since I first wrote SOS United States several years ago, I have been enamored by the SS United States. Yes, I’m an ocean liner aficionado, but even more so this great liner from the 1950s reminds me of a time when the United States was in a building and technology mode like no other country in the world.

While we may not all agree on her final disposition, let us give thanks that she was honored with the attention she so richly deserves. The SS United States will still be with us but in a different state. She will serve a different purpose, but one that is just as deserving for future generations to enjoy. We can take comfort in the fact that the SS United States will not end up like her sister the SS America when her tow line snapped and was beached or suffer the indignation of fire and capsizing like SS Normandie. No, the SS United States will have a new home along with a dedicated museum.

If the SS United States was alive, one could see that America’s Flagship was enjoying her final days at sea. No matter the light or the angle, she has always stood and sailed proudly. She may not be shining new like she was on her day of launch in 1952, but we know it’s not about the paint but the essence of what she represents.

Thank you, Big U!