Events in 2008
U.S. “Liberty Ship” Coming to Greece as Museum
June 4, 2008
The transfer to Greece of the last remaining U.S. “Liberty Ship,” the Arthur M. Huddell, for use here as a floating museum, advanced today in a high-level ceremony on the margins of the Posidonia 2008 international shipping exhibition.
The top American maritime official, Maritime Administrator Sean Connaughton, signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the transfer of the ship in the Piraeus offices of Greece’s Minister of Merchant Marine George Voulgarakis, accompanied by U.S. Ambassador Daniel V. Speckhard.
“We are all very pleased to be here today to celebrate a project that, once complete, will serve as a lasting legacy of the friendship, history and maritime interests that bind our two nations,” the Ambassador noted after the ceremony. “This has truly been a public-private partnership, which would not have been possible without the support of our two governments and individuals from the Greek shipping community and the American Bureau of Shipping.”
Also present at today’s signing was Rhode Island State Senator Leonidas Raptakis, a prominent Greek-American who has championed the “Liberty Ship” project for the past several years. In addition, several Greek officials and ship-owners who have played vital roles in advancing the project were recognized, including Deputy Minister Panos Kammenos, Spyros Polemis and Vasilis Konstantakopoulos.
Also: Click here to view U.S. Maritime Administration Press Release