Princess Anne

Launched by the Sun Shipbuilding and Drydock Company in Chester, Pennsylvania, on May 18, 1936, the Princess Anne was originally 246 feet long, 59 feet wide, and displaced 1,587 tons. Designed by Raymond Loewy, a master of streamline style, she resembled a miniature ocean liner with art deco-inspired features. In early 1954, the Princess Anne underwent significant modifications. She was cut in half and lengthened to 335.5 feet overall, increasing her displacement to 2,366 tons. Serving on the Chesapeake Bay until 1964, she then changed hands and became the New Jersey, operating between Cape May, New Jersey, and Lewes, Delaware. Later, as the Greenport, she navigated between Fire Island, New York, and Block Island, Rhode Island. In the early 1980s, investors considered transforming her into an offshore casino ship, but financial and legal challenges halted those plans. Abandoned at a shipyard in Newport, Rhode Island, the neglected Greenport eventually sank during a storm but was later patched and raised by Resolve Marine Group. Her final chapter led her to a new purpose: serving as an artificial reef. Towed to Palm Beach County, she regained her original name, the Princess Anne, providing habitat for marine life beneath the waves.