History of the United States Lines

History of the United States Lines. Hudson River Pk. , The United States Lines was a transatlantic shipping company started in 1921 with three ships repurposed from the failed United States Mail Steamship Company. Throughout the next few decades, United States Lines acquired more ships, naming most after American presidents. The ships carried passengers and mail back and forth across the Atlantic. During World War II, many of the company's ships were used by the government as troop transports., In 1961, the United States Lines signed a twenty-year lease with New York City which prompted development of the new Pier 76. The $2 million in annual rent made this company the city's highest paying tenant on the waterfront. By the end of 1964, the United States Lines occupied seven of New York City's piers, with freighters docking at Pier 76 and passenger liners at piers to the north., [Captions:] , United States lines also offered passenger service to Europe. The United States (pictured here) originally sailed under a German flag but was seized by the United States during World War I and became a flagship for the United States Lines., United States Lines commissioned a series of "racer" ships, which allowed it to compete in the lucrative new shipping method that used large steel containers to move goods across the Atlantic Ocean., The first United States Lines ship to dock at Pier 76 was the newly commissioned American Racer. One of the earliest automated ships, it represented state of the art ship construction at the time and was the first container ship to cross the Atlantic Ocean.