Some Notable Early Cruise Ships from Miami
Pioneers of the Cruise Industry from 1954 to 1973
The Early Years: Passenger ships sailing from the old Port of Miami (ABOVE) in the 1950's and early 1960's were built for practical transportation and repurposed as cruise ships. Simple as they were by today's standards, they were popular in their own limited way. Starting from top left at Pier 1 in this 1963 view are ss Yarmouth; then at Pier 2 is ss Florida; next on the far side of Pier 3 is ss Jerusalem and on the near side are ss Evangeline (left) and ss Bahama Star. ss Ariadne was not in port, but would normally have been at Pier 3. Also note Biscayne Boulevard in the lower left corner and the new Miami Herald building
The Car Ferries: During the transition to contemporary cruising, modern European car ferries served as cruise ships of a sort. The era started with mv Bilu in 1964 and mv Nili in 1965. In 1966, ms Sunward began sailing from the new port on Dodge Island and in 1967, mv Jamaica Queen (formerly mv Nili) inaugurated car ferry sailings to Jamaica. With its stern to the causeway below
The New Generation: Left to right on a Saturday in this 1972 view (ABOVE) at the new passenger terminals on Dodge Island are Norwegian Caribbean Lines' ms Skyward, ms Starward and ms Southward, Commodore's ms Boheme, Royal Caribbean's ms Song of Norway and either ms Nordic Prince or ms Sun Viking. Carnival Cruise Lines' tss Mardi Gras was not in service yet. The ships and the Miami skyline have
Right to left on a Friday in this circa 1973 scene (BELOW) Eastern Steamship Lines' ss Emerald Seas and ss New Bahama Star (formerly ss Jerusalem) and Costa Line's ts Flavia, all preparing for three day cruises to Nassau. In the foreground is Bahama Cruise Line's ss Freeport II (formerly ss Ariadne)
