SS Marathon

Last updated
StateLibQld 1 145831 Marathon (ship).jpg
Marathon prior to 1912, at harbour
History
Civil Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
Name
  • Marathon (1904–1920)
  • Oruba (1920–1925)
Operator
Builder Alexander Stephen and Sons
Yard number402
Launched18 November 1903
Maiden voyage27 January 1904
In service1904
Out of service1923
FateScrapped in 1925
General characteristics
Type Cargo liner
Tonnage6,765  GRT
Length454.9 ft (138.7 m)
Beam55.1 ft (16.8 m)
Depth30 ft (9.1 m)
Installed powerTwo triple expansion steam reciprocating engines
PropulsionTwo screws
Speed15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Capacity
  • 89 first class
  • 158 third class
  • 150 first class (from 1912)
  • 170 third class (from 1912)
NotesEnlarged in 1912

SS Marathon was a passenger and cargo steamship built for the Aberdeen Line. She was involved in shipping between the United Kingdom and Australia for most of her career.

Contents

Background

Marathon was built for the Aberdeen Line in 1903 in Scotland at Alexander Stephen and Sons, she had an identical older sister ship Miltiades. Both ships were built for the United Kingdom to Australia via South Africa route. [1]

Features

Marathon was measured at 6,765  gross register tons  (GRT), and was 454.9 feet (138.7 m) long by 55.1 ft (16.8 m) wide. [2]

She was a combined passenger and cargo ship, and her cargo holds were refrigerated for the transport of frozen food products from Australia to the United Kingdom. [1] Her passenger accommodation was built to accommodate 89 passengers in first class, and 158 in third class. [3]

Marathon and her sister were among the last ships of any size to be built with a clipper bow (or Aberdeen bow) which gave them a striking appearance. [1]

Career

Marathon set out on her maiden voyage from London on 27 January 1904, arriving at Sydney on 8 March. [1]

Marathon following her lengthening StateLibQld 1 189379 Marathon (ship).jpg
Marathon following her lengthening

In July 1912 Marathon was sent to the Alexander Stephen and Sons shipyard to be cut in half and then lengthened. [1] When this work was completed in September, Marathon had gained a second funnel, and had been lengthened to 504.3 ft (153.7 m), with an increased tonnage of 7,814 GRT. She now had capacity for 150 first class passengers, and 170 passengers in third class. [2]

In 1915 Marathon was requisitioned for use as a troopship for the duration of the First World War: she gained the designation HMAT (His Majesty's Australian Transport) A74. She transported countless Australian troops and medical staff from Australia to the UK for the war effort. After the war ended she was used to repatriate Australians back from Europe. [2]

In 1920 Marathon and her sister Miltiades were purchased by the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company, Miltiades was renamed Orcana whilst Marathon was renamed Oruba. In 1921 she was transferred to the Pacific Steam Navigation Company, and put onto their "Round South America" service, that departed Liverpool, visited Montevideo, then Valparaíso, the Panama Canal then back to Liverpool. However, she was found to be too expensive to operate, and she was therefore laid up in 1922 at Liverpool, then Dartmouth, where she remained until she was sold for scrap to Schweitzer & Oppler of Berlin on September 19, 1924. She was taken Hamburg Germany where she was broken up in 1925. [1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "SS Miltiades & Marathon". SSmaritime.com. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "Marathon". Scottish Built Ships. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
  3. ↑ "SS Miltiades / Orcana". mfo.me.uk. Retrieved 8 June 2025.
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