CRUISING TO JAX

(Source of image: Florida Collection, Main Public Library, Jacksonville)

Sleek and majestic, here's the steamer Shawnee in about 1930, approaching the River City.  The vessel measured 408 feet in length and up to 62 feet in width.  Propelled by oil-burning turbines, it could cruise at an average speed of 10 knots, or roughly 11 mph.  The ship could accommodate 530 passengers, while the officers and crew members numbered an additional 175.  As big as it was, the vessel could never compare to the real behemoths.  Today, for instance, the two largest passenger ships are the Voyager of the Seas and the Explorer of the Seas, which measure 1,020 feet long and 158 feet wide, with a capacity for roughly 3,000 passengers and 2,000 crew members.

YOU COULD BE PART OF A NEW JAX BOOK! The website manager of JacksonvilleStory.com is currently writing a history book, and you or your relatives could play a part in it.  The book will describe how Jim Crow (segregation) affected the lives of local African Americans.   From segregated ambulances to whites-only benches in Hemming Park, African Americans used to face the trials & tribulations of Jim Crow nearly everyday.  Do you have any stories or memories that you could contribute?  Do you know someone else who might?  Please feel free to email the website manager, Glenn Emery!   The tentative title of the history is From Cradle to Grave: Jim Crow Jacksonville.  Thanks!