View source for SS Kroonland

{{short description|American steamship (1902–1927)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2014}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=SS Kroonland, Antonio Jacobsen, 1903 (adjusted).jpg
|Ship caption=SS ''Kroonland'', painted in 1903 by [[Antonio Jacobsen]] (1850–1921)
}}{{Infobox ship career
|Ship name=* SS ''Kroonland''
|Ship country=[[United States]]
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United States|civil}}
|Ship owner=[[International Mercantile Marine]]
|Ship operator=* 1902–1914: [[Red Star Line]]
* 1914–1915: [[American Line]]
* 1915: [[Panama Pacific Line]]
* 1915–1917: American Line
|Ship registry=* 1902–1908: New York
* 1908–1911: Antwerp
* 1911–1918: New York
|Ship route=* 1902–1914: New York – Antwerp
* 1914–1915: New York – Liverpool
* 1915: New York – Panama – San Francisco
* 1915–1917: New York – Liverpool
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=*[[William Cramp & Sons]]
* [[Philadelphia]]
|Ship original cost=
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=20 February 1902
|Ship sponsor=Mrs. Rodman Griscom
|Ship christened=
|Ship yard number=311
|Ship completed=
|Ship acquired=
|Ship maiden voyage=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship refit=
|Ship fate=Chartered to USA
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United States|naval}}
|Ship name=USS ''Kroonland'' (ID-1541)
|Ship acquired=22 April 1918
|Ship commissioned=22 April 1918
|Ship decommissioned=1 October 1919
|Ship struck=1 October 1919
|Ship fate=Returned to International Mercantile Marine
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship name=SS ''Kroonland''
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United States|civil}}
|Ship acquired=Returned by USSB, 1 October 1919
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship owner=[[International Mercantile Marine]]
|Ship operator=* 1920–1923: Red Star Line
* 1923: American Line
* 1923–1925: Panama Pacific Line
* 1925–1926: American Line
|Ship registry=New York
|Ship route=* 1920–1923: New York – Antwerp
* 1923: New York – Hamburg
* 1923–1925: New York – Panama – San Francisco
* 1925–1926: New York – Miami
|Ship fate=Scrapped, 1927
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=(as built)
|Ship tonnage={{GRT|12,760}}
|Ship length=*{{convert|560|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} [[Length between perpendiculars|pp]]
* {{convert|580|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} [[Length overall|oa]]
|Ship beam={{convert|60|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship depth={{convert|42|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} [[molded depth]]
|Ship propulsion=*2 × [[triple-expansion steam engine]]s {{convert|10200|hp|abbr=on}}
* twin [[screw propellers]]
|Ship speed={{convert|17|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship capacity=*Passengers:
* 342 first-class
* 194 second-class
* 626 third-class
* Cargo:{{convert|11000|LT|MT|lk=in}}
|Ship crew=257<ref>{{cite news | title = Red Star Line canal service may open May 1 | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 15 August 1914 | page = 23 }}</ref>
|Ship notes=Sister ship of {{SS|Finland||2}}; Near sister ship of {{SS|Vaderland|1900|2}}, {{SS|Zeeland|1901|2}}
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Header caption= (as USS ''Kroonland'')
|Ship displacement={{convert|22000|LT|MT}}<ref name=Gleaves-246>Gleaves, p. 246.</ref>
|Ship draft={{convert|31|ft|1|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship speed={{convert|16|knots}}
|Ship troops=*3,300
* 3,800 after [[Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)|Armistice]]<ref name=Gleaves-246 />
|Ship complement=414
|Ship armament=*4 × {{convert|4|in|mm|adj=on}} guns
* 2 × [[1-pounder gun]]
* 2 × [[Lewis gun|Lewis]] machine guns
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=(postwar civilian service)
|Ship class=
|Ship type=
|Ship tonnage={{GRT|12,241}}
|Ship capacity=*Passengers, 1919:
* 242 first-class
* 310 second-class
* 876 third-class
* Passengers, 1925:
* 500 first-class
}}
|}

'''SS ''Kroonland''''' was an [[ocean liner]] for [[International Mercantile Marine]] (IMM) from her [[Ship naming and launching|launch]] in 1902 until she was scrapped in 1927. ''Kroonland'' was the [[sister ship]] of {{SS|Finland||2}} and a near sister ship of {{SS|Vaderland|1900|2}} and {{SS|Zeeland|1901|2}} of the same company. ''Kroonland'' sailed for IMM's [[Red Star Line]] for 15 years, and also sailed for IMM's [[American Line]] and [[Panama Pacific Line]]. During [[World War I]], the ship served as [[United States Army]] transport '''USAT ''Kroonland''''' through April 1918, and as the [[United States Navy|Navy]] [[auxiliary ship|auxiliary]] '''USS ''Kroonland'' (ID-1541)''' from April 1918 to October 1919.

Announced by the Red Star Line in 1899, ''Kroonland'' was completed in 1902 by [[William Cramp & Sons]] of [[Philadelphia]]. When launched, she was the largest steamship ever built in the United States. ''Kroonland'' sailed from New York City to [[Antwerp]] on her maiden voyage in June 1902, beginning service on the route she would sail for the next twelve years. According to ''[[The New York Times]]'', ''Kroonland'' became the first ship to issue a wireless distress call at sea when she radioed for help during a storm in 1903. In another radio first, ''Kroonland'' heard the "first real broadcast of history" in December 1906.<ref name=Bliss-3>Bliss, p. 3.</ref> ''Kroonland'' was one of ten ships that came to the aid of the burning liner {{SS|Volturno|1906|2}} in the mid-Atlantic in October 1913. Despite stormy seas, ''Kroonland'' was able to take aboard 89 survivors, for which captain and crew received accolades that included U.S. [[Congressional Gold Medal]]s.

When the [[outbreak of World War I]] in August 1914 disrupted service to Belgium, ''Kroonland'' shifted to alternate routes. On a trip to the Mediterranean in October 1914, ''Kroonland'' was detained by British authorities at [[Gibraltar]], and part of her cargo was confiscated amidst diplomatic wrangling between the then-neutral United States and the United Kingdom. During a [[chartering (shipping)|chartered]] circumnavigation of South America in February 1915, ''Kroonland'' became the largest passenger ship to have transited the [[Panama Canal]] during that time. ''Kroonland'' was placed in New York – Panama Canal – San Francisco service until a landslide temporarily closed the canal to navigation. Returned to transatlantic service, ''Kroonland'' was one of the first U.S. ships armed by the Navy for defense against German submarine attacks. In May 1917 ''Kroonland'' was struck by a torpedo, which failed to detonate and only slightly damaged the ship.

After the [[American entry into World War I|United States entered World War I]], ''Kroonland'' served as a troopship for the U.S. Army and Navy. She made six trips carrying troops to France before the [[Armistice with Germany|Armistice]] and eight voyages after, transporting nearly 38,000 troops in total. Returned to IMM in late 1919, ''Kroonland'' was scorched in a shipyard fire in January 1920 while she was being refitted for passenger service. The liner resumed North Atlantic service in April, remaining there until returning to New York – San Francisco service in 1923. ''Kroonland'' inaugurated IMM's winter New York – Miami service from December 1925 to March 1926, but was laid up in [[Hoboken, New Jersey]], when IMM did not resume the Miami service the following year. The ship was sold and scrapped at [[Genoa]] in 1927.

== Design and construction ==
In July 1899, the [[Red Star Line]] announced plans for the construction of four large ocean liners. Two ships, ''Kroonland'' and {{SS|Finland||2}}, were to be built at [[William Cramp & Sons]] in [[Philadelphia]], and the others, {{SS|Vaderland|1900|2}} and {{SS|Zeeland|1901|2}}, at [[John Brown & Company]] of [[Clydebank]] in Scotland.<ref name=Bonsor-2-840>Bonsor, p. 840.</ref> By April 1901, the two Scottish-built ships were completed and in service for Red Star,<ref name=Bonsor-2-840 /> with the construction of the American pair well underway.

''Kroonland'' and the virtually identical ''Finland'',<ref>{{cite web | author = [[Naval Historical Center]] | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-k/id1541.htm | title = Online Library of Selected Images: U.S. Navy ships: USS ''Kroonland'' (ID # 1541), 1918–1919 | date = 9 March 2008 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070829121141/http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-k/id1541.htm | archive-date = 29 August 2007 | df = dmy-all }}</ref> at {{GRT|12,760|disp=long}} each,<ref name=Bonsor-2-856>Bonsor, p. 856.</ref> were slightly larger than ''Vaderland'' and ''Zeeland''.<ref name=Bonsor-2-855>Bonsor, p. 855.</ref> The American pair were the largest steamships built in the United States at the time of their launch,<ref name=SciAm-1902>{{cite journal | title = Marine Transportation | journal = [[Scientific American]] | volume = LXXXVII | issue = 24 | page = 388 | date = 13 December 1902 | location = New York | publisher = Munn and Company | issn = 0036-8733 | oclc = 1775222 }}</ref> and were the highest tonnage civilian ships ever built by William Cramp.<ref>{{cite web|last=Colton |first=Tim |title=William Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Co., Philadelphia PA |url=http://www.shipbuildinghistory.com/history/shipyards/2large/inactive/cramp.htm |work=Shipbuildinghistory.com |publisher=Colton Companies |access-date=21 June 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141220082203/http://www.shipbuildinghistory.com/history/shipyards/2large/inactive/cramp.htm |archive-date=20 December 2014 }} U.S. Navy ships listed are by displacement.</ref> ''Kroonland'' was {{convert|560|ft|m|1}} long ([[length between perpendiculars|pp]]) and {{convert|60|ft|m|1|adj=on}} [[beam (nautical)|abeam]], with a [[molded depth]] of {{convert|42|ft|m|1}}.<ref name=SciAm-1902 /> Her [[hull (watercraft)|hull]] was steel and nearly all the rivets were set with pneumatic [[rivet gun]]s.<ref>Pollack, p. 109.</ref>

''Kroonland'' was propelled at up to {{convert|17|kn|km/h}} by twin [[triple-expansion steam engine]]s. The engines were each rated at {{convert|5100|ihp}} and had cylinders of {{convert|32.5|in|cm}}, {{convert|54|in|cm}}, and {{convert|89.5|in|cm}} with a {{convert|42|in|cm|adj=on}} stroke. There were nine single-ended coal-fired [[Scotch boiler]]s with a heating area of {{convert|22400|sqft}}, a grate area of {{convert|643|sqft}}, and an operating pressure of {{convert|170|psi}}.<ref name=SciAm-1902 /> ''Kroonland'' had eleven watertight compartments with reinforced bulkheads, and was designed to remain afloat with up to two compartments flooded. ''Kroonland''{{'}}s coal bunkers surrounded the boilers, to offer limited protection in case the ship was used in wartime.<ref name=Cramp-133>William Cramp, p. 133.</ref>

[[Image:Rsl 18 crop mod.jpg|thumb|left|The first-class passengers [[smoking room]] on SS ''Kroonland'', c. 1909]]
The area below the main deck could carry up to {{convert|11000|LT|MT}} of freight and stores. ''Kroonland''{{'}}s water tanks could carry {{convert|200|LT|MT}} of fresh water. Refrigerated storage was provided for meats and other perishables.<ref name=Cramp-134>William Cramp, p. 134.</ref>

Third-class passenger accommodations were located on the main deck: three compartments for men located forward, and a single compartment for families at the rear. The family compartment had [[state room]]s containing either two, four, or six bunks. All compartments had well-lighted dining areas and wide hallways that led to lavatories and sanitary facilities on the upper deck.<ref name=Cramp-134 />

The upper deck housed facilities for officers and first- and second-class passengers. A long [[forecastle]] contained the accommodations for the crew and [[petty officer]]s, as well as a hospital and the third-class lavatories.<ref name=Cramp-135>William Cramp, p. 135.</ref> First-class staterooms for 106 passengers were located close to the middle of the ship. To their rear, between the [[steamship funnel|funnels]], was the first-class passenger dining room, spanning the width of the ship. With seating for 208, it featured [[mahogany]] furniture and [[Chloroxylon|satinwood]] paneling with inlays, and a glass skylight ceiling that extended up through two decks.<ref name=Cramp-134 /> Beyond this area were the [[galley (kitchen)|galleys]], [[scullery (room)|sculleries]], and pantries that served all passenger classes. Moving further aft, the second-class passenger dining room, which could accommodate 120 diners, was next. It, too, spanned the width of the ship and featured mahogany furniture, but was paneled with tapestry upon a cream-colored ground. Beyond the dining area were cabins for 76 second-class passengers.<ref name=Cramp-135 />

A {{convert|220|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} [[Deck (ship)#Common names for decks|bridge deck]] amidships contained state rooms for another 204 first-class and 120 second-class passengers. In the rear was a deck house that contained a social room for third-class passengers. A [[promenade deck]] was located above and was permanently enclosed by a [[boat deck]],<ref name=Cramp-135 /> where ''Kroonland''{{'}}s 20 steel [[Lifeboat (shipboard)|lifeboats]] were stowed.<ref name=Cramp-136>William Cramp, p. 136.</ref> The promenade deck housed the library and smoking room for first-class passengers.<ref name=Cramp-135 />

''Kroonland'' was [[ship naming and launching|launched]] on the afternoon of 20{{nbsp}}February 1902 in a small, informal ceremony. Mrs. Rodman Griscom christened the ship, but ''Kroonland'' did not budge on the [[slipway#Slipways in ship construction|launching way]]; cold weather had frozen the [[tallow]] used to grease the timbers. [[Hydraulic jack]]s eventually freed the ship for her plunge into the [[Delaware River]].<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1902/02/21/101937377.pdf | title = Huge steamship launched | work = The New York Times | date = 21 February 1902 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 13 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030022/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1902/02/21/101937377.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

== Red Star Line service, 1902–1914 ==
''Kroonland'' sailed on her maiden voyage from New York to Antwerp on 28{{nbsp}}June 1902. ''Kroonland'' remained on New York – Antwerp service for the next twelve years.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> In these early years of service, she was involved in two radio firsts. After the steering gear failed {{convert|130|nmi|km}} west of [[Fastnet Rock]] during a moderate gale in early December 1903, the ship's crew was able to communicate their predicament via the [[Wireless telegraphy|Marconi wireless]] system,<ref name=Williams-27>Williams, p. 227.</ref> becoming, according to one contemporary news account, the first ship in distress ever to use wireless.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1903/12/09/105068591.pdf | title = The Kroonland disabled | work = The New York Times | date = 9 December 1903 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 1 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030145/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1903/12/09/105068591.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> ''Kroonland'' put in at [[Queenstown, Ireland|Queenstown]], Ireland, for repairs,<ref name=Williams-27 /> and transferred her passengers and freight to ships of the [[White Star Line]], another IMM subsidiary.<ref group=Note>''Kroonland''{{'}}s first- and second-class passengers were transferred to [[SS Teutonic (1889)|RMS ''Teutonic'']] and third-class passengers were transferred to another, unreported steamer. See: {{cite news | title = Get money at sea | work = [[Chicago Daily Tribune]] | date = 10 December 1903 | page = 1 }}<br /> Cargo was transferred onto {{RMS|Bovic||2}}. Freight customers ended up paying twice for the shipments because [[Red Star Line|Red Star]] and [[White Star Line|White Star]], even though both subsidiaries of [[International Mercantile Marine]], were separate companies. See: {{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/01/26/106704094.pdf | title = Made consignees pay twice for freight | work = The New York Times | date = 26 January 1904 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 16 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030025/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/01/26/106704094.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> The other radio first came on 24{{nbsp}}December 1906, when the ship's wireless operator heard—rather than the expected dots and dashes of morse code—the voice of a woman singing. The singing was followed by a recording of [[Handel's Largo|Handel's "Largo"]], a poetry reading, and more music played from [[phonograph]]s. The steamer was on the receiving end of what journalist and author [[Robert St. John]] called the "first real broadcast of history", originated by early radio pioneer [[Reginald Fessenden]] from [[Brant Rock]] in [[Massachusetts]].<ref name=Bliss-3 />

During her time on the New York – Antwerp route, ''Kroonland'' was frequently battered by the storms that were typical in the North Atlantic. In November 1904, a [[Brussels]] news agency reported a rumor that the ship had foundered in a mid-ocean storm. The report—proved false when ''Kroonland'' safely docked in New York<ref name=WP-1904-11-22>{{cite news | title = Kroonland safe in port |newspaper=The Washington Post | date = 22 November 1904 | page = 2 }})</ref>—received wide coverage in the American press.<ref>{{cite news | title = Kroonland foundered? |work=Los Angeles Times | date = 20 November 1904 | page = 1 }} Also, {{cite news | title = Great steamship may have foundered in midocean | work = Chicago Daily Tribune | date = 20 November 1904 | page = 1 }}</ref> While in a heavy December gale, the ship was struck by what contemporary news accounts referred to as a "[[rogue wave|tidal wave]]" as high as the tops of her funnels. The wave crashed over the deck, and brought the ship to a standstill. A Belgian passenger's leg was broken when he was thrown into a wall, and a crewman on watch in the [[crow's nest]] was sent tumbling to the deck {{convert|40|ft|m}} below with only minor injuries.<ref>{{cite news | title = Struck by tidal wave | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 22 December 1904 | page = 1 }}</ref>

In another December gale in 1907, one of the two [[propeller shaft]]s on ''Kroonland'' broke while the liner was off the [[Isles of Scilly]]. Using the lone remaining propeller, the liner was able to make her way back to [[Southampton]], where two tugs brought her into port. Passengers were transferred to {{SS|Majestic|1890|2}} to continue their transit to New York,<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1907/12/11/106114511.pdf | title = Kroonland towed to port | work = The New York Times | date = 11 December 1907 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030136/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1907/12/11/106114511.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> while ''Kroonland'' entered drydock at Southampton. Fitted with a new shaft, she sailed—without passengers and cargo—for New York, where she arrived on 2{{nbsp}}January 1908.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/01/03/104713635.pdf | title = Ship in without passengers | work = The New York Times | date = 3 January 1908 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 6 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030139/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/01/03/104713635.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> In February 1910, severe winter storms on the North Atlantic extended one of ''Kroonland''{{'}}s westbound trips, delaying her arrival in New York by three days.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/02/25/101228239.pdf | title = Liners delayed by gales | work = The New York Times | date = 25 February 1910 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 8 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030150/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/02/25/101228239.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> In May, ''Kroonland'' broke another propeller shaft, and again headed to Southampton for repairs.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/05/16/104935184.pdf | title = Kroonland's shaft broken | work = The New York Times | date = 16 May 1910 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 1 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030026/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/05/16/104935184.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

Not all of the ship's mishaps were storm-related. In late April 1911, ''Kroonland'' hit the breakwater in [[Dover Harbour]], disabling the steering gear and delaying the ship by a day.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1911/05/01/105025671.pdf | title = Kroonland slightly disabled | work = The New York Times | date = 1 May 1911 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030715/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1911/05/01/105025671.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> On 8{{nbsp}}January 1913, ''Kroonland'' ran aground in [[Ambrose Channel]] during a heavy fog while outbound from New York. It took more than six hours for tugs to free the liner from the soft mud.<ref>{{cite news | title = Kroonland stuck in mud | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 9 January 1913 | page = 1 }}</ref>

The Red Star Line changed ''Kroonland'' from American to Belgian registry on 6{{nbsp}}November 1908 in Antwerp. One reason given for the change was to allow Red Star to hire non-American crews at lower cost.<ref>{{cite news | title = American flag is lowered | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 6 November 1908 | page = 1 }}</ref> She made her maiden voyage under the [[Belgian flag]] the next day.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> In May 1911, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s crew, acting on rumors of an impending British mariner's strike, refused to sign on for the ship's next voyage, forcing Red Star to hire a replacement crew.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1911/05/28/105028084.pdf | title = Kroonland's crew quits | work = The New York Times | date = 28 May 1911 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 1 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030721/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1911/05/28/105028084.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref><ref group=Note>Typically, crew members had no contracts and had to "sign on" after each voyage. See: Coons and Varias, p. 125.</ref>

International Mercantile Marine submitted a bid for a ten-year contract for ''Kroonland'' and ''Finland'' to carry U.S. mail between New York and San Francisco after the opening of the [[Panama Canal]]. By law, only U.S.-flagged ships could carry U.S. mail under contract. It was also anticipated that U.S.-flagged vessels would receive preferential treatment for canal tolls.<ref>Vose, p. 425</ref> In a short ceremony aboard the liner in New York Harbor on 27{{nbsp}}December 1911,<ref>Vose, p. 418.</ref> the Belgian flag was lowered and the American flag was raised to the playing of "[[The Star-Spangled Banner]]" by the steamer's band, shortly before she sailed for Antwerp.<ref>{{cite news | title = Red Star Line ships added to the U.S. Merchant Marine | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 27 December 1911 | page = 1 }} ''Finland''{{'}}s registry was changed on 3{{nbsp}}January 1912.</ref>

=== ''Volturno'' rescue ===
At about 06:00 on 9 October 1913, {{SS|Volturno|1906|2}}, a Royal Line ship under charter to the Uranium Line, caught fire in a gale on the North Atlantic. The crew fought the fire for about two hours, but, realizing the severity of the fire and the limited options for dousing it in the high seas, Captain Francis Inch of ''Volturno'' had his wireless operator send out [[SOS]] signals. The westbound ''Kroonland'', already beyond ''Volturno''{{'}}s location, turned east to aid the burning liner.<ref name=NYT-1913-10-17>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/10/17/100653634.pdf | title = Inch gives his dog to Capt. Kreibohm | work = The New York Times | date = 17 October 1913 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030528/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/10/17/100653634.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> In the meantime, several of ''Volturno''{{'}}s lifeboats with women and children aboard were launched with tragic results: all those aboard the lifeboats were killed as the boats capsized or were smashed by the hull of the heaving ship.<ref name=WP-1913-10-12>{{cite news | title = 135 perish when ship burns at sea | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 12 October 1913 | page = 1 }}</ref>

In all, ten ships heeded the distress calls, arriving throughout the day and into the next.<ref name=WP-1913-10-12 /> ''Kroonland'' arrived at about 17:00, and by 20:00 had launched a lifeboat with a volunteer crew. The boat was unable to get close to the burning liner. ''Kroonland''{{'}}s lifeboat returned at 22:30 with an exhausted crew and the one person who had dared to brave the jump into the stormy water.<ref name=NYT-1913-10-17 /> Captain J. C. Barr of {{RMS|Carmania|1905|2}}, the first ship to arrive, took command of the rescue effort. Barr had the vessels form a "[[battle line]]" of sorts and slowly circle the burning ship, while his ship kept a searchlight on ''Volturno'' and another sweeping the ring of rescue ships to help them avoid collisions.<ref name=WP-1913-10-12 /> Despite ''Carmania''{{'}}s efforts, ''Kroonland'' and the [[Compagnie Générale Transatlantique|French Line]] steamer {{SS|La Touraine||2}} almost collided, coming—according to one passenger—within {{convert|15|ft|m}} of impact.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/10/19/100654108.pdf | title = Ships near a crash in aiding Volturno | work = The New York Times | date = 19 October 1913 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 8 | archive-date = 9 September 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210909034810/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/10/19/100654108.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

[[Image:Paul H. Kreibohm retouched.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|For his part in helping to rescue victims of the {{SS|Volturno|1906|2}} fire, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s captain, [[Paul H. Kreibohm]], was made a [[Order of the Crown (Belgium)|Chevalier of the Order of the Crown]], and received a gold watch, a [[Congressional Gold Medal]], and a [[Sea Gallantry Medal|Silver Sea Gallantry Medal]].]]
''Kroonland''{{'}}s lifeboat, manned by a fresh crew, headed back out and returned with 13 steerage passengers.<ref name=NYT-1913-10-17 /> On board ''Volturno'', the crew and some of the male passengers, unable to extinguish the fire, were at least able to keep it from spreading to the aft cargo holds, over which the others on board were gathered. Shortly before dawn, a large explosion—probably of her [[boiler]]s—rocked ''Volturno'', and the rescuers felt that the ship, which had not been in imminent danger of sinking up to this point, might founder at any time. The [[Tanker (ship)|tanker]] ''Narragansett'' turned on her pumps and sprayed lubricating oil on the sea to help calm the surface.<ref name=WP-1913-10-12 /> The combined effect of the oil and the lessening of the storm allowed many more lifeboats to be sent to ''Volturno''{{'}}s aid. ''Kroonland'' launched two more boats herself and saved 75 more, including Captain Inch, the last person to leave the stricken ship.<ref name=NYT-1913-10-17 /> In all, some 520 passengers and crew were rescued by the ten ships—89 on ''Kroonland'' alone. The loss of life was limited to around 130, mostly women and children from the early lifeboat launchings.<ref name=WP-1913-10-12 />

With all boats recovered by 09:00, the liners resumed their original courses.<ref name=WP-1913-10-12 /> ''Kroonland'' turned west and continued on to the United States, hampered by a cracked crankshaft that slowed her to {{convert|12|kn|km/h}}. During her slow passage to New York, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s cabin passengers drafted a resolution honoring Captain Kreibohm and the crew for their actions during the rescue, and raised $700 for the benefit of the ''Volturno'' survivors. ''Kroonland'' finally docked in New York on 16{{nbsp}}October.<ref name=NYT-1913-10-17 />

The crew, like those of the other nine ships involved, received many accolades for its rescue efforts. After sending the ship a congratulatory telegram at the time of the rescue,<ref>{{cite news | title = King of the Belgians and the rescuers |work=The Times  | date = 17 October 1913 | page = 5 }}</ref> [[Albert I of Belgium|King Albert]] of Belgium made Capt. Kreibohm a Chevalier (Knight) of the [[Order of the Crown (Belgium)|Order of the Crown]] in January 1914.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/01/05/100079903.pdf | title = Decorated for Volturno heroism | work = The New York Times | date = 5 January 1914 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 3 | first = Marconi | last = Transatlantic | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030649/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/01/05/100079903.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> At the same time, the Belgian government awarded its [[Civic Decoration (Belgium)|Third Class Civic Cross]] to ''Kroonland''{{'}}s third officer, and [[Civic Decoration (Belgium)|First Class Civic Medals]] to six crewmen and a steward.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/01/09/100080360.pdf | title = Honors Kroonland men | work = The New York Times | date = 9 January 1914 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | first = Marconi | last = Transatlantic | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030649/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/01/09/100080360.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> In March, [[King George V]] of the United Kingdom, on recommendation of the [[Board of Trade]], awarded 39 of the ship's crew the [[Sea Gallantry Medal|Silver Sea Gallantry Medal]], along with a £3 award. Crewmen from all ten ships received Sea Gallantry Medals, but no other ship had more medals awarded than ''Kroonland''.<ref name=Sea_Gallantry>{{cite news | title = Gallantry at sea |work=The Times  | date = 11 March 1914 }} (Convenience copy located [http://www.searlecanada.org/volturno/volturno43.html here] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130108150625/http://www.searlecanada.org/volturno/volturno43.html |date=8 January 2013 }}.)</ref> Later in March, the [[United States Congress]] honored Kreibohm with a gold watch,<ref name=NYT-1914-03-14>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/03/14/101754031.pdf | title = Congress honors heroes | work = The New York Times | date = 14 March 1914 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 2 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030722/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/03/14/101754031.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> ''Kroonland''{{'}}s officers—including Kreibohm—with [[Congressional Gold Medal]]s,<ref>Stathis, p. 17.</ref><ref group=Note>It is not entirely clear from contemporary sources whether Kreibohm actually received both a watch and a gold medal. Stathis (p. 17) indicates Kreibohm did, in fact, receive a gold medal.</ref> and other crewmen with five silver and 25 bronze medals.<ref name=NYT-1914-03-14 /> In April, the Life Saving Benevolent Association of New York awarded its Life Saving Medal to Kreibohm, four officers, and 35 crewmen.<ref>{{cite news | title = Hero medals for Kroonland men | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 11 April 1914 | page = 7 }}</ref> In June 1916, Kreibohm was presented with the [[American Cross of Honor]] by Congressman [[Henry Bruckner]].<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1916/06/26/104679113.pdf | title = Honor cross to Kreibohm | work = The New York Times | date = 26 June 1916 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 13 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505030735/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1916/06/26/104679113.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

''Kroonland'' resumed her normal New York – Antwerp service until 11{{nbsp}}August 1914,<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> when she arrived at New York with passengers that had narrowly escaped the hostilities beginning to engulf the European continent.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/08/12/101923998.pdf | title = Fled on Kroonland as the war started | work = The New York Times | date = 12 August 1914 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031034/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/08/12/101923998.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

=== Notable passengers ===
During her pre-war New York – Antwerp sailings, ''Kroonland'' carried some notable and interesting passengers. On 1{{nbsp}}August 1904, one of the ship's passengers arrived in New York as somewhat of a mystery woman. She recounted that she had gone out for dinner in Antwerp and awakened to find herself at sea with only the white silk evening gown she was wearing. Having no money or luggage, she was barred from entering the United States and was compelled to remain on board the ship.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/08/03/100473797.pdf | title = Woman crosses ocean in an evening gown | work = The New York Times | date = 3 August 1904 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 1 | archive-date = 26 December 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231226192631/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/08/03/100473797.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> After her predicament was reported in ''[[The New York Times]]'', she received letters and telegrams that included marriage proposals. Her background story and a letter of credit eventually verified her identity, but she was deported after a New York doctor pronounced her insane.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/08/04/100474694.pdf | title = Curious go to gaze at one-gowned traveler | work = The New York Times | date = 4 August 1904 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 7 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031035/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/08/04/100474694.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> Later the same month ''The New York Times'' reported on first-class passengers' complaints over privileges for their dogs and the conditions in the kennel aboard the liner. One passenger was determined to have her dog in her state room, and after others joined her in removing canine companions from the kennel, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s crew took all the dogs back to the kennel. Many of the dog owners refused to speak to the others involved for the duration of the voyage.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/08/30/117947214.pdf | title = Sea dogs make 1,000 leagues of trouble | work = The New York Times | date = 30 August 1904 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 7 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031036/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1904/08/30/117947214.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

On 27 May 1905, American author [[Molly Elliot Seawell]] sailed for Europe on ''Kroonland'' on a day when six liners, with over 1,500 passengers, departed New York.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1905/05/27/101758499.pdf | title = 1,500 in liners' cabins to sail abroad to-day | work = The New York Times | date = 27 May 1905 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 8 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031036/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1905/05/27/101758499.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> In October, [[Helen Taft]] returned from Europe on ''Kroonland'' and was met by her husband, Secretary of War [[William Howard Taft]].<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1905/10/09/101420264.pdf | title = Government to buy Fort Hamilton land | work = The New York Times | date = 9 October 1905 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 2 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031037/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1905/10/09/101420264.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> The next August, [[Henry Yates Satterlee]], the first [[Episcopal Bishop of Washington]], returned on ''Kroonland'' from a six-week tour of cathedrals of Europe, during which he noted both good and bad design elements of cathedrals in preparation for the building of the [[Washington National Cathedral]]. Also returning on the same voyage were Admiral [[Charles Stillman Sperry|Charles Sperry]] and Lieutenant Daniel W. Wurtsbaugh of the U.S. Navy, and Brigadier General [[Robert Maitland O'Reilly|Robert O'Reilly]], the [[Surgeon General of the U.S. Army]]; all were American delegates to the [[Second Geneva Convention]].<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1906/08/14/101427470.pdf | title = Bishop Satterlee's return | work = The New York Times | date = 14 August 1906 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 7 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031038/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1906/08/14/101427470.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> It was not the first trip on ''Kroonland'' for either Satterlee and O'Reilly. Satterlee had traveled on the liner the previous May to visit the spa town of [[Bad Nauheim]] in Hesse;<ref>Brent, p. 290.</ref> O'Reilly had been on the November 1904 trip in which ''Kroonland'' had been reported as sunk.<ref name=WP-1904-11-22 />

''Kroonland'' was the scene of an attempted [[murder-suicide]] in October 1908. Two acquaintances in steerage had an argument over a young female second-class passenger that both men knew. One man threw a knife at the other—only slightly wounding him—and then fled and jumped over the railing into the English Channel near [[Dover]]. U.S. Senator [[Benjamin Tillman]] and his wife were aboard the liner at the time and saw the young man jump overboard. Although the ship lowered a boat to look for him, no trace of him was found, and he was presumed drowned.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/10/21/105013522.pdf | title = Fight and suicide at sea | work = The New York Times | date = 21 October 1908 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 16 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031040/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1908/10/21/105013522.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

American actresses [[Kitty Cheatham]] and [[Isabel Irving]]—each married to a different man named "W. H. Thompson"—traveled on ''Kroonland'' in May 1910. Alerted to each other's presence when mail addressed to "Mrs. W. H. Thompson" was confused, the actresses—old friends, having both worked in the theatre company of [[Augustin Daly]]—shared a state room for the voyage.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/05/01/104931900.pdf | title = Mrs. W. H. Thompsons sail | work = The New York Times | date = 1 May 1910 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 11 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031745/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1910/05/01/104931900.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> Later that month, the ship was the official "World Missionary Conference Steamship" for delegates and representatives on their way to the [[World Missionary Conference]] in Edinburgh, Scotland.<ref>Grant, p. 375</ref> Honda Yoitsu, said to be the only Japanese [[Methodist Episcopal]] bishop, was among those on the liner when she sailed on 31{{nbsp}}May.<ref>{{cite news | title = World Missionary Conference to see a Japanese bishop | work = [[The Christian Science Monitor]] | date = 31 May 1910 }}</ref> News accounts reported on some of the unusual activities aboard ''Kroonland'' during this trip. Among them were morning devotional services held daily in the ship's dining room, and the spontaneous singing of [[hymn]]s on deck every evening.<ref>{{cite journal | title = A peculiar voyage | journal = [[Zion's Herald]] | volume = 88 | issue = 25 | date = 22 June 1910 | location = Boston | publisher = Boston Wesleyan Association | page = 777 | issn = 0098-9282| oclc = 9346491 }}</ref>

''Kroonland'' was tangentially involved in a more sinister affair in July 1910. American physician [[Hawley Crippen]] and his lover, Ethel La Neve, had fled England after the circumstances around his wife's death were questioned. After a body was found in the basement of Crippen's North London residence, [[Scotland Yard]] Chief Inspector [[Walter Dew]] sought the couple for murder charges.<ref name=AC-1910-11-23>{{cite news | title = Crippen hanged in London jail at dawn of day | work = [[The Atlanta Constitution]] | date = 23 November 1910 | pages = 1–2 }}</ref> One theory had the couple sailing from Dover on ''Kroonland'', but when inspected in New York on arrival, Crippen and Le Neve were not to be found.<ref>{{cite news | title = Saw Crippen in train | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 20 July 1910 | page = 3 }}</ref> The fleeing couple had instead sailed from Antwerp on the [[Canadian Pacific Steamship Company|Canadian Pacific]] liner {{SS|Montrose|1897|2}}. Crippen, identified during ''Montrose''{{'}}s crossing, was arrested, convicted of his wife's murder, and hanged; La Neve was acquitted.<ref name=AC-1910-11-23 />

The American novelist [[Theodore Dreiser]], returning from an extended European tour in April 1912, briefly considered returning on {{RMS|Titanic}}, but instead sailed two days later on the American-flagged—and less expensive—''Kroonland''. Dreiser recounted the gloomy mood of ''Kroonland''{{'}}s passengers after hearing the news of ''Titanic''{{'}}s sinking, observing that the "terror of the sea had come swiftly and directly home to all".<ref>Loving, pp. 214–15.</ref> On ''Kroonland''{{'}}s next return trip to New York, [[Horst von der Goltz]], a self-described German secret agent, eluded German authorities by working as a steward in steerage aboard the liner.<ref>von der Goltz, p. 112.</ref>

== American Line service, 1914–1915 ==
With the German invasion of Belgium in early August 1914, ''Kroonland'' was switched to New York – Liverpool service. After two circuits on that route, IMM announced that the ship would be moved to service in the Mediterranean to attract business to offset that lost because of the war.<ref name=NYT-1914-09-25>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/09/25/101925817.pdf | title = International Line puts off interest | work = The New York Times | date = 25 September 1914 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 14 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031511/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/09/25/101925817.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> Sailing from New York on 15{{nbsp}}October for [[Gibraltar]], [[Naples]], and [[Piraeus]],<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> ''Kroonland'' became what IMM called the first large, American-flagged steamer "to engage in trade with the far corners of the Mediterranean".<ref name=NYT-1914-09-25 /> Along with passengers, the ship carried a cargo of rubber and {{convert|1500|LT|MT|-1}} of copper destined for Italy.<ref name=McMaster>McMaster, p. 53.</ref>

[[Image:Kroonland in Panama Canal, 1915.jpg|thumb|left|SS ''Kroonland'' sails in the [[Culebra Cut]] of the [[Panama Canal]] on 2 February 1915. ''Kroonland'' was the largest passenger ship to transit the canal to that date.]]
On 28 October, British authorities detained the ship at Gibraltar. Because neutral Italy did not restrict the shipment of copper (which could be used in war munitions) to Germany or [[Austria-Hungary]],<ref name=McMaster /> the British claimed the right to detain the ship<ref name=CDT-1914-11-08>{{cite news | title = Britain frees American ship | work = Chicago Daily Tribune | date = 8 November 1914 | page = 2 }}</ref>—a claim disputed by the [[U.S. State Department]].<ref>{{cite news | title = Kroonland detained |work=The Wall Street Journal | date = 29 October 1914 | page = 4 }}</ref> ''Kroonland'' was allowed to resume her journey on 8{{nbsp}}November after the copper and rubber were unloaded and taken to a [[prize court]].<ref name=CDT-1914-11-08 /><ref>{{cite news | title = Copper removed from Kroonland | work = The Wall Street Journal | date = 5 November 1914 | page = 7 }}<!--date cargo unloaded--></ref> The ship arrived at Naples on 11{{nbsp}}November,<ref>Fess, p. 260.</ref> then completed the rest of her Mediterranean trek. Returning to New York, she carried the new minister from [[Bulgaria]] to the United States, arriving on 4{{nbsp}}December.<ref>U.S. Dept. of State, pp. 32–33.</ref> IMM had advertised that ''Kroonland'' would sail the Mediterranean route again in December,<ref>{{cite news | title = American Line, under the American Flag… |quote= display ad | work = The New York Times | date = 4 November 1914 | page = 9 }}</ref> but the liner was removed from the route.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 />

In late January 1915,<ref name=NYT-1915-04-15>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/04/15/104645275.pdf | title = Long fair weather cruise | work = The New York Times | date = 15 April 1915 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 9 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031500/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/04/15/104645275.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> ''Kroonland'' departed on a business tour of South America under charter to the American Trade Tour Company.<ref name=NYT-1914-03-09>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/05/20/100089938.pdf | title = {{'}}Movies{{'}} to show U.S. shops | work = The New York Times | date = 20 May 1914 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 19 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031500/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/05/20/100089938.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> The tour was designed as a showcase for American companies hoping to expand into South America,<ref name=NYT-1914-03-08>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/03/08/100302142.pdf | title = Exposition ship to South America | work = New York Times | date = 8 March 1914 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031500/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1914/03/08/100302142.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> and ''Kroonland'' circumnavigated that continent, traveling over {{convert|15000|nmi|km}} in 82 days.<ref name=NYT-1915-04-15 /> During the voyage, the liner docked at various ports where businessmen or trade representatives, like the [[Babson Statistical Organization]],<ref>{{cite magazine | title = Babson South American Service |quote= display ad | magazine = [[Life (magazine)|Life]] | location = New York | publisher = [[John Ames Mitchell]] | volume = 65 | issue = 1681 | pages = 49 | date = 14 January 1915 | oclc = 1755893 }}</ref> made sales pitches and showed films of factories to potential customers aboard ''Kroonland''.<ref name=NYT-1914-03-09 /> During this South American foray, the ship sailed westbound through the [[Panama Canal]] on 2{{nbsp}}February, becoming the largest passenger ship to transit the canal to that date.<ref>Direction of travel: {{cite news | title = The Kroonland (at right)… |quote= photo caption | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 17 February 1915 | page = 1 }} Date, largest to-date: {{cite journal | title = Panama Canal | journal = Information Annual | volume = 1915 | pages = 433 | location = New York | publisher = [[R. R. Bowker Co.]] | year = 1916 | oclc = 1771591 }}</ref><ref group=Note>The smaller {{SS|Great Northern||2}} of the Northern Pacific Line transited the canal on the same date.</ref> Also on the trip, while transiting the [[Straits of Magellan]] in late February, ''Kroonland'' passed British cruiser {{HMS|Bristol|1910|2}} refueling from a [[collier (ship)|collier]],<ref name=NYT-1915-04-15 /> and, on 26{{nbsp}}February, when entering the harbor of [[Punta Arenas, Chile]], passed the departing {{HMS|Glasgow|1909|6}}, on the hunt for the German cruiser {{SMS|Dresden|1907|2}}.<ref>Jones and Hollister, p. 41.</ref> ''Kroonland'' returned to New York on 14{{nbsp}}April.<ref name=NYT-1915-04-15 />

== Panama Pacific Line service, 1915 ==
In May 1915, ''Kroonland'' and sister ship ''Finland'' were chartered to the [[Panama Pacific Line]] for the long-planned service between New York and San Francisco via the Panama Canal. ''Kroonland'' departed from New York for California on 22{{nbsp}}May and counted 50 honeymooning couples and a large cargo of flour from [[St. Paul, Minnesota]], among her payload.<ref>{{cite news | title = 50 brides on steamer | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 23 May 1915 | page = 13 }}</ref> The intercoastal trip took about 17 days each way and the ships called at either Los Angeles or San Diego on eastbound and westbound trips.<ref>{{cite book | author = Panama Pacific Line | title = Panama Pacific Line Passenger List | date = 22 May 1915 | page = 2 }} Convenience copy of relevant page can be found [http://auctionwagon.s3.amazonaws.com/G2SM7101861a-f6f3-41d3-92d6-9779f30321ec-10585.jpg here] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225123525/http://auctionwagon.s3.amazonaws.com/G2SM7101861a-f6f3-41d3-92d6-9779f30321ec-10585.jpg |date=25 February 2009 }}. Retrieved 13 May 2008.</ref> With two ships on the route, one ship departed from either New York or San Francisco about every three weeks.<ref name=PPL_ad>{{cite news | title = The ideal trip and time… |quote= display ad | work = The New York Times | date = 18 March 1915 | page = 17 }}</ref> The service was marketed as the ideal manner to visit the [[Panama–California Exposition]] in San Diego and the [[Panama–Pacific International Exposition]] in San Francisco.<ref name=PPL_ad /> At the San Francisco exhibition, a detailed model of ''Kroonland'' was one of ten that comprised a part of IMM's {{convert|6500|sqft|adj=on}} exhibit in the Palace of Transportation.<ref>Todd, pp. 243–45.</ref>

Frequent and progressively worse landslides in the canal disrupted ''Kroonland''{{'}}s and ''Finland''{{'}}s service. In August 1915, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s arrival in New York was delayed a day by a [[Gaillard Cut]] slide.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/08/22/104016328.pdf | title = Kroonland due here today | work = The New York Times | date = 22 August 1915 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 14 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031500/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/08/22/104016328.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> In early September, both ships were delayed ten days while waiting for the canal to be dredged after another slide.<ref>Length of delay: {{cite news | title = Visitors come on Kroonland |work=Los Angeles Times | date = 23 September 1915 | page = II-7 <!-- a hyphen [-] is the proper manner for a single page -->}} Both ships affected: {{cite news | title = Panama Canal is blocked by slide | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 6 September 1915 | page = 1 }}</ref> In early October, another landslide in the Gaillard Cut<ref>{{cite news | title = Slide in Gaillard Cut blocks waterway traffic and canal may be closed for months to come |quote= photo caption | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 19 December 1915 | page = R-9 }}</ref>—this one in excess of {{convert|1000000|cuyd}} of mud and dirt<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/10/05/105041298.pdf | title = Must close canal for rest of month | work = The New York Times | date = 5 October 1915 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | archive-date = 19 April 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220419132139/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/10/05/105041298.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>—closed the canal, and it was expected that it might remain closed for as long as ten months.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/10/14/105043056.pdf | title = Goethals tackles long canal fight | work = The New York Times | date = 14 October 1915 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 3 | archive-date = 20 April 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220420011853/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/10/14/105043056.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> ''Kroonland'' was en route to the canal from San Francisco, while ''Finland'' was at the canal's eastern terminus, [[Colón, Panama|Colón]]. After ''Kroonland'' arrived at the canal's western end at [[Balboa, Panama|Balboa]], the two liners exchanged passengers—including former First Lady [[Helen Taft]]<ref group=Note>Helen Herron Taft had sailed on ''Kroonland'' ten years before, in October 1905</ref> and her daughter, [[Helen Taft Manning|Helen]]—by rail across the [[Isthmus of Panama|isthmus]].<ref>{{cite news | title = Mrs. Taft and daughter on ship held up by slides at the canal | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 6 October 1915 | page = 4 }}</ref>

== American Line service, 1915–1917 ==
[[Image:Liverpool Pier Head by night.jpg|thumb|right|During ''Kroonland''{{'}}s time on New York – Liverpool service, she would have been greeted by The Three Graces of [[Liverpool]]'s [[Pier Head]].]]
The delay caused by the October slide in the Panama Canal created uncertainty for the immediate future of ''Kroonland''. Her sister ship ''Finland'' was transferred to a New York – London route almost immediately after the canal's closure, but ''Kroonland'' was "trapped" on the west side of the continent.<ref>{{cite news | title = Steamer Finland, in canal service, to go to Europe | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 23 October 1915 | page = 8 }}</ref> By early November, ''Kroonland''—loaded with cargo destined for the United Kingdom, and sailing under the banner of the [[American Line]]—departed San Francisco for London, via the Straits of Magellan. On 21{{nbsp}}December, the liner arrived at [[Rio de Janeiro]] after having run aground, but was found to be undamaged.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/12/22/105049869.pdf | title = Steamer Kroonland safe | work = The New York Times | date = 22 December 1915 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 6 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031501/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1915/12/22/105049869.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> Continuing on to London, ''Kroonland'' departed for New York on 30{{nbsp}}January 1916.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> Although plans were announced in mid 1916 for the two sister ships to return to the Panama Pacific Line, and to add the Hawaiian port of [[Honolulu]] to the canal route,<ref>{{cite news | title = New traffic for this port soon | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 28 June 1916 | page = I-5 }}</ref> both ships remained in North Atlantic service.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 />

On 20 February, ''Kroonland'', continuing to sail for the American Line, returned to New York – Liverpool service after an absence of 18 months.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> As a ship of the still-neutral United States sailing in a war zone, ''Kroonland'' had her name painted in large letters on each side of her hull. The name was flanked on either side by large American flags and kept illuminated at night.<ref name=WP-1917-02-12>{{cite news | title = Saw Dutch ship sunk | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 12 February 1917 | page = 2 }}</ref> In June, she carried US$1,500,000 of [[Argentina|Argentine]] gold from London for deposit with the [[Guaranty Trust Company of New York]].<ref>{{cite news | title = Argentine gold deposited here | work = The Wall Street Journal | date = 28 June 1916 | page = 8 }}</ref> On late 1916, a cook aboard ''Kroonland'' was arrested for smuggling feathers, wings, and heads of [[birds of paradise]] and [[crowned pigeons]]. The man, who was paid $300 for each load of feathers, smuggled in at least three loads of the avian contraband before his arrest.<ref>{{cite journal | title = ''United States v. One Bag of Paradise and Ghoura Feathers'' | journal = United States Circuit Courts of Appeals Reports | volume = 167 | pages = 473–74 | year = 1920 | location = [[St. Paul, Minnesota]] | publisher = [[West Pub. Co.]] | oclc = 5224408 }}</ref> In January 1917, a [[jumble sale]] held in the saloon on ''Kroonland'' raised £73 15s 11d for ''The Times'' Fund, for the benefit of the [[British Red Cross]] and the [[Order of Saint John (chartered 1888)|Order of St. John]].<ref>{{cite news | title = The Times Fund |work=The Times  | date = 3 January 1917 | page = 11 }}</ref>

[[Image:American Line steamers laid up in New York, February 1917.jpg|thumb|left|Five [[American Line]] steamers are seen [[:wikt:laid up|laid up]] in New York in February 1917 after Germany resumed [[unrestricted submarine warfare]].]]
While returning from Liverpool in early February 1917, passengers and crew on ''Kroonland'' witnessed the German U-boat {{SMS|UC-46||2|sub=y}} sink the Dutch ship ''Gamma'' off the Irish coast.<ref name=NYT-1917-02-12>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/02/12/118134277.pdf | title = Kroonland here; saw U-boat raid | work = The New York Times | date = 12 February 1917 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 2 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031501/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/02/12/118134277.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last = Helgason | first = Guðmundur | url = http://uboat.net/wwi/ships_hit/7043.html | title = Ships hit during WWI: Gamma | work = The U-boat War | publisher = Uboat.net | access-date = 21 June 2008 | archive-date = 24 January 2016 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160124002631/http://uboat.net/wwi/ships_hit/7043.html | url-status = live }} According to the source, there was only one Dutch ship sunk on 1{{nbsp}}February 1917, ''Gamma'', which was sunk off the coast of Ireland.</ref> On 1{{nbsp}}February 1917, at around 15:30, passengers and crew saw the German submarine overtake and stop the Dutch [[cargo ship|freighter]]. At about 16:15, the U-boat, by then on the far side of the Dutch ship and out of view from ''Kroonland'', fired three shots from her deck gun. ''Gamma'' immediately began listing to port and sank within five minutes. ''Kroonland'' was less than {{convert|5|nmi|km}} away, and was prepared to rescue the crew of the sunken ship, but stopped when the German submarine took ''Gamma''{{'}}s lifeboat in tow.<ref name=NYT-1917-02-12 /> Four days later, a suspected submarine was seen {{convert|5|nmi|km}} off ''Kroonland''{{'}}s port side, and there were other reports of a ship that passengers took to be a German [[commerce raider]] or [[submarine tender]].<ref name=WP-1917-02-12 />

Because Germany had [[U-boat Campaign (World War I)#1917: Resumption of unrestricted submarine warfare|resumed unrestricted submarine warfare]] again on 1{{nbsp}}February, ''Kroonland'' was laid up for almost two months at the American Line piers in New York, along with sister ship ''Finland'' and three other vessels.<ref>{{cite news | title = Five in from war zone | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 23 February 1917 | page = 3 }}</ref><ref name="DANFS">{{cite DANFS | title = Kroonland | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k5/kroonland.htm | short = on}}</ref> During this forced downtime, ''Kroonland'' was converted from coal burning to oil burning, a long-awaited modification that had been announced in October 1915.<ref name=NYT-1917-02-24>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/02/24/98241536.pdf | title = Kroonland will use oil | work = The New York Times | date = 24 February 1917 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 13 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031501/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/02/24/98241536.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | title = Ships and Shipping: Oil Burners | journal = Information Annual | volume = 1915 | page = 536 | location = New York | publisher = [[R. R. Bowker Co.]] | year = 1916 | oclc = 1771591 }}</ref> The conversion reduced the number of [[stoker (occupation)|stokers]] needed from 75 to 12, lowering ''Kroonland''{{'}}s payroll. Because fuel oil was stored inside the [[double bottom]] of her hull, her cargo capacity was increased through the elimination of her coal bunkers.<ref name=NYT-1917-02-24 /> The labor savings and the additional freight revenues from the increased cargo space resulted in a net gain of $25,000 income per trip.<ref>Burling, p. 445.</ref>

== Troopship duties ==
''Kroonland'' served as a [[troopship]] for about the next year.<ref group=Note>Sources are unclear under what purview ''Kroonland'' sailed. Bonsor (p. 856) simply lists "1917 US troopship". ''Kroonland'' is recorded as being a [[United States Army]] transport ship from mid-February 1918 by the ''[[Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships]]'' (See entry [http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k5/kroonland.htm here] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070819040512/http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k5/kroonland.htm |date=19 August 2007 }}).</ref> In early March, U.S. Navy ordnance officers inspected ''Kroonland'' and took measurements in preparation to arm her for defense against submarine attacks.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/03/04/102319486.pdf | title = Detain Manchuria to put guns on her | work = The New York Times | date = 4 March 1917 | page = 3 | access-date = 13 June 2018 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031501/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/03/04/102319486.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> On 13{{nbsp}}March, she was assigned guns by the Navy, becoming one of the first seven ships to be armed.<ref name=BurOrd>Bureau of Ordnance, p. 40. The other six were steamers {{SS|Manchuria|1903|2}}, {{SS|Mongolia|1903|2}}, {{SS|New York|1892|2}}, {{SS|Philadelphia|1888|2}}, {{SS|St. Louis|1894|2}}, and {{SS|St. Paul|1895|2}}.</ref> With her arming complete, and carrying an [[Naval Armed Guard|armed naval guard]] to man the guns, ''Kroonland'' sailed for Liverpool on 25{{nbsp}}March 1917.<ref name="DANFS" /> Twelve days later, the United States formally declared war on Germany.

[[File:Naval gun, U.S. flag on USS Kroonland, March 1919.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|A {{convert|4|in|mm|0|adj=on}} gun on ''Kroonland'', one of the first seven defensively armed American merchant ships]]
On the morning of 20 May, while the liner steamed toward Liverpool through a heavy fog, a torpedo struck her without exploding.<ref name="DANFS" /> Two minutes later her lookouts spotted a submarine bearing down on ''Kroonland'' so close alongside the liner that her guns could not be depressed enough to open fire on the raider. Although the U-boat, apparently also taken by surprise, reversed her screws and tried to turn to avoid a collision, she lightly struck the liner's hull and scraped along her side before diving out of sight. Meanwhile, two more torpedoes came within some {{convert|20|ft|m|0}} of hitting ''Kroonland''{{'}}s stern. That afternoon the liner sighted another submarine, surfaced some {{convert|1000|yd|m}} off her port quarter. ''Kroonland'' immediately began shelling the U-boat, forcing the submarine to dive for safety.<ref name="DANFS" /> In early June, this failed torpedo attack on the ship made front-page news in American newspapers.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/06/04/102349789.pdf | title = Says two torpedoes hit the Kroonland | work = New York Times | date = 4 June 1917 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 1 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031501/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1917/06/04/102349789.pdf | url-status = live }} {{cite news | title = Torpedoes graze Kroonland as two submarines attack | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 4 June 1917 | page = 1 }} {{cite news | title = Four torpedoes fired at U.S. liner Kroonland by two German U-boats | work = The Atlanta | date = 4 June 1917 | page = 1 }}</ref>

In September, elements of the [[42nd Infantry Division (United States)|U.S. 42nd Infantry Division]] sailed from New York to [[City of Halifax|Halifax]] on ''Kroonland''.<ref name=T-F>Thompson and Ferrell, pp. 5–8.</ref> The ship sailed from Halifax on 30{{nbsp}}September in an Allied convoy with the American ship {{SS|Mongolia|1903|2}} and Commonwealth ships {{RMS|Carmania|1905|2}} (which had led the ''Volturno'' rescue in 1913), ''Anchises'', ''Canada'', ''Grampian'', ''Ionican'',<ref group=Note>This may actually be ''Ionian'', a steamer with the Allan Line that was engaged in troop transport around this time. See Bonsor, vol. 1, p. 322.</ref> ''Themistocles'', ''Victoria'', {{RMS|Carpathia||2}}, ''Medic'', ''Miltiades'', ''Mokoia'', and ''Ruahine''.<ref name=Chambers>{{cite web|last=Chambers |first=Lawrence Dudley |title=Corporal Lawrence Dudley Chambers |format=World War I diary |url=http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/~dchamber/chambersld%20ww1diary.htm#panama |publisher=Dawn Chambers |date=17 July 2005 |access-date=21 June 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070211121602/http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/~dchamber/chambersld%20ww1diary.htm |archive-date=11 February 2007 }}</ref><ref group=Note>Several of these ships were carrying Australian and New Zealand troops, and had been the first transports loaded with troops to use the Panama Canal. See {{cite web | url = http://cas.awm.gov.au/privaterecord/PR91/118 | title = AWM Collection Record: PR91/118 | publisher = [[Australian War Memorial]] | date = 29 May 2008 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120209100728/http://cas.awm.gov.au/privaterecord/PR91/118 | archive-date = 9 February 2012 | df = dmy-all }}</ref> Two days out from Halifax, the last five ships split off from the convoy and headed to Scotland;<ref name=Chambers /> ''Kroonland''{{'}}s group sailed to Liverpool.<ref name=T-F />

On 15 October 1917, the [[United States Shipping Board]] (USSB) requisitioned all American passenger ships over {{GT|2,500}} for use by the government in the war effort. Though it is not clear what immediate impact this had on ''Kroonland'',<ref name=CW-319>Crowell and Wilson, p. 319.</ref> it is known that the liner was operating as a U.S. Army transport (under the name USAT ''Kroonland'') by February 1918, when she was loaded with [[materiel]] and departed New York for [[Saint-Nazaire]], France.<ref name="DANFS"/>

In February 1918, the USSB assigned ''Kroonland'' to the transport fleet as a U.S. Army Chartered Transport (USACT),<ref name=CW-320>Crowell and Wilson, pp. 320, 647.</ref> and after her return from France on 9{{nbsp}}April, she was converted to a troop transport in New York by the William J. Kennedy Company.<ref name="DANFS"/> A typical conversion from passenger liner to troop transport involved having all of the second- and third-class accommodations ripped out and replaced with berths for troops. Cooking and toilet facilities also had to be greatly expanded to handle the large numbers of men aboard.<ref>Crowell and Wilson, p. 316.</ref>

== U.S. Navy transport duties ==
After problems with crew discipline aboard Army transports {{USAT|Antilles||2}} and {{USAT|Finland||2}} when they were torpedoed, the U.S. Navy, led by the recommendations of Rear Admiral [[Albert Gleaves]], insisted that all troop transports be manned entirely by Navy personnel. This was accomplished soon after, to avoid the need for what Gleaves called "ignorant and unreliable men" who were "the sweepings of the docks".<ref>Gleaves, pp. 108–10.</ref> Accordingly, ''Kroonland'' was handed over to the Navy on 22{{nbsp}}April and [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] the same day.<ref name="DANFS"/>

=== Transporting troops to France ===
USS ''Kroonland'' was assigned to the [[Cruiser and Transport Force]] after being commissioned.<ref>Gleaves, p. 240.</ref> The ship departed New York on 30{{nbsp}}April with the transports {{USS|Matsonia|ID-1589|2}}, {{SS|Manchuria|1903|2}}, and ''Finland''. {{USS|Martha Washington|ID-3019|2}} and {{USS|Powhatan|ID-3013|2}}—two transports that sailed from [[Newport News, Virginia]]—rendezvoused with ''Kroonland''{{'}}s group. {{USS|South Dakota|ACR-9|2}} provided the convoy with protection until its arrival in France on 12{{nbsp}}May. ''Kroonland'' returned to New York on 1{{nbsp}}June.<ref>Crowell and Wilson, p. 608.</ref>

''Kroonland'' next left New York on 15 June with ''Finland'', {{USS|DeKalb|ID-3010|2}}, {{USS|George Washington|ID-3018|2}}, {{USS|Covington|ID-1409|2}}, {{USS|Rijndam|ID-2505|2}}, the Italian steamer {{SS|Dante Alighieri||2}}, and the British steamer ''Vauban'' and met up with the Newport News portion of the convoy—consisting of {{USAT|Lenape||2}}, {{USS|Wilhelmina|ID-2168|2}}, {{USS|Princess Matoika|ID-2290|2}}, {{USS|Pastores|AF-16|2}}, and the British troopship {{HMT|Czar||2}} (another fellow ''Volturno'' rescuer)<ref name=Sea_Gallantry />—the next morning and set out for France. The convoy was escorted by the cruisers {{USS|North Carolina|ACR-12|2}} and {{USS|Frederick|CA-8|2}}, and the destroyers {{USS|Stevens|DD-86|2}} and {{USS|Fairfax|DD-93|2}}; the battleship {{USS|Texas|BB-35|2}} and several other destroyers joined in escort duties for the group for a time. The convoy had a false alarm when a floating barrel was mistaken for submarine, but the otherwise uneventful trip concluded at Brest on the afternoon of 27{{nbsp}}June.<ref>List of ships, date of arrival in Brest: Crowell and Wilson, pp. 610–11. Battleship ''Texas'' and other convoy details: Cutchins and Stewart, pp. 67–68.</ref>

[[Image:Heavy seas aboard USS Kroonland, March 1919.jpg|thumb|left|''Kroonland'' pitches in heavy seas during a transatlantic crossing while in Navy service.]]
On 10 July,<ref>Gleaves, on p. 170, reports the date as 20{{nbsp}}July.</ref> as ''Kroonland'' steamed homeward from France, a lookout spotted a periscope rising from the water about {{convert|200|yd|m|-1}} away. ''Kroonland'' opened fire and the fourth shot from her No. 4 gun "burst with a tremendous cloud of dirty blue smoke" exactly on the periscope. The submarine zig-zagged "erratically back and forth until she was directly in the disturbed water" of ''Kroonland''{{'}}s wake. The transport continued firing until the submarine disappeared, leaving an oil slick which could be seen for at least 15 minutes.<ref name="DANFS"/><ref group=Note>On her return journey, ''Covington''{{'}}s encounter with a submarine had a decidedly different outcome. She was torpedoed by ''[[SM U-86|U-86]]'' on 1{{nbsp}}July and sank the next afternoon. See: {{cite DANFS | title = Covington | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/c14/covington-ii.htm | access-date = 21 June 2008 | short = on }}</ref> ''Kroonland'' arrived safely in New York on 13{{nbsp}}July.<ref>Crowell and Wilson, pp. 610–11.</ref>

On 26 July, ''Kroonland'', loaded with 3,248 officers and men,<ref>Crowell and Wilson, p. 555.</ref> departed on her next trip to France. In the company of ''Finland'' and the Italian steamer {{SS|Taormina|1908|2}}, she met up with {{USS|Pocahontas|ID-3044|2}}, {{USS|Susquehanna|ID-3016|2}}, and the Italian steamers {{SS|Duca d'Aosta||2}} and {{SS|Caserta||2}} from Newport News.<ref name=C&W-614>Crowell and Wilson, p. 614.</ref> The cruisers {{USS|Pueblo|CA-7|2}}, {{USS|Huntington|CA-5|2}}, and destroyers {{USS|Rathburne|DD-113|2}} and {{USS|Colhoun|DD-85|2}} escorted the transports.<ref name=CW-Colhoun>Crowell and Wilson list the destroyer as "''Calhoun''". The only {{USS|Calhoun|1851|6}} ever was a former [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] steamer captured during the [[American Civil War]].</ref> Gordon Van Kleeck, a private in Company F of the U.S. 51st Pioneer Infantry, one of the units aboard ''Kroonland'' on this trip, recorded his day-to-day activities in a journal. He stated that the soldiers wore overalls rather than uniforms, and were required to wear life jackets at all times. During the early mornings, the most dangerous time for submarines according to Van Kleeck, the soldiers had to stand by their life rafts until the sun was completely up. Bathing facilities were too small, so several times during the trip the soldiers gathered on deck for salt water baths, which consisted of a hose turned on them by the ship's crew. On 2{{nbsp}}August, ''Finland'' developed engine trouble and fell back from the convoy, but by the next day, she and a destroyer that stayed with her had rejoined the convoy.<ref>{{cite web | last = Van Kleeck | first = Gordon | url = http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~treebz65/momside/vankleeck/gordonvk/gvkjournal/gvkjournal2.html | title = Pvt. Gordon Van Kleeck, Co. F. 51 Pioneer Inf., American Expeditionary Forces | work = Ancestral Photographs of Upstate New York | publisher = Roxy Triebel | access-date = 21 June 2008 | archive-date = 19 May 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110519082332/http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~treebz65/momside/vankleeck/gordonvk/gvkjournal/gvkjournal2.html | url-status = live }}</ref> The convoy arrived in Brest on 7{{nbsp}}August, and ''Kroonland'' arrived back in the United States on 19{{nbsp}}August.<ref name=C&W-614 />

After embarking 3,334 soldiers, ''Kroonland'' began her next crossing on 30{{nbsp}}August when she sailed from New York with ''Susquehanna'', {{USS|Harrisburg|ID-1663|2}} and {{USS|Plattsburg|ID-1645|2}} to join the Newport News contingent of ''Duca d'Aosta'', ''Caserta'', and {{USS|America|ID-3006|2}}. ''Kroonland''{{'}}s convoy was escorted by ''Frederick'' and ''Colhoun''.<ref name=CW-Colhoun /><ref name=CW-557-616>Crowell and Wilson, pp. 557, 616.</ref> As with other Navy ships throughout 1918,<ref>[[Naval Historical Center|NHC]], ''Personal account by Rear Admiral William B. Caperton''; Gleaves, p. 190.</ref> ''Kroonland'' was not immune to the worldwide [[Spanish flu]] pandemic. On this particular crossing, two of her crewmen were felled by the disease as her convoy reached France on 12{{nbsp}}September.<ref name=CW-557-616 /><ref name=Officers>Bureau of Naval Personnel, ''Officers and Enlisted Men…'', pp. 242, 328. The source did not provide information on whether there were any deaths among Army personnel aboard.</ref> ''Kroonland'' returned to New York on 27{{nbsp}}September.<ref name=CW-557-616 />

[[Image:Troops loading on USS Kroonland, 11 March 1919.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|Troops board ''Kroonland'' at [[Saint-Nazaire]], France, on 11{{nbsp}}March 1919 to return to the United States.]]
At 20:00 on 7 October, ''Kroonland'' departed New York on her fifth Navy voyage with 2,567 men. She joined ''Caserta'' and the British steamer ''Euripides'' in rendezvousing with {{USS|Tenadores|1913|2}}, ''Susquehanna'', ''America'', and ''Czar'' from Newport News.<ref name=CW-618>Crowell and Wilson, p. 618</ref><ref>Crowell and Wilson, p. 561</ref> The cruisers {{USS|Seattle|ACR-11|2}} and {{USS|Rochester|ACR-2|2}} and the destroyers {{USS|Murray|DD-97|2}} and ''Fairfax'' served as convoy escorts for the group, which arrived in France on 20{{nbsp}}October. ''Kroonland'' arrived in New York on 3{{nbsp}}November,<ref name=CW-618 /> and was in port when the [[Armistice with Germany|Armistice]] was signed on 11{{nbsp}}November. In total, ''Kroonland'' carried 14,125 troops to France during the five trips of her Navy career.<ref name=Gleaves-246-247>Gleaves, pp. 246–47.</ref>

=== Returning troops home ===
At war's end, the task of bringing home American soldiers began almost immediately.<ref name=Gleaves-31>Gleaves, p. 31.</ref> ''Kroonland'' did her part by carrying home 26,152 passengers in eight trips.<ref name=Gleaves-246-247 /> The ship departed from Brest in late November with her first load of nearly 2,000 wounded and convalescing soldiers, many of whom were from the [[76th Infantry Division (United States)|U.S. 76th Infantry Division]]. The former liner arrived at the [[New York City Quarantine Station|Quarantine Station]] on 10{{nbsp}}December 1918, and docked in New York the next day. One of the men aboard was Captain Walter Camp who had been wounded and gassed in the [[Meuse-Argonne Offensive]]; Camp was the son of the [[Yale University]] [[American football|football]] coach of [[Walter Camp|the same name]].<ref>Location of departure: {{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/12/07/118143988.pdf | title = Shipping and Mails | work = The New York Times | date = 7 December 1918 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 21 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032546/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/12/07/118143988.pdf | url-status = live }} All other details: {{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/12/12/97050344.pdf | title = 8,000 more troops arrive in harbor | work = The New York Times | date = 12 December 1918 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 7 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031502/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/12/12/97050344.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> Another passenger on board was Sarah Wilmer, an American [[YWCA USA|YWCA]] front-line worker who had become lost in the [[Forest of Argonne|Argonne forest]] and gassed when a German shell exploded nearby.<ref>{{cite news | title = Chicago girl, gassed in war, arrives in US | work = Chicago Daily Tribune | date = 12 December 1918 | page = 3 }}</ref> Before departing on her next voyage, ''Kroonland'' hosted a party for 150 newsboys from New Jersey at her Hoboken, New Jersey, pier on Christmas Day. With a Christmas tree in the troops' mess, the newsboys were treated to a dinner and entertainment by the ship's band, and all received presents.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/12/26/97056148.pdf | title = Sailors act as hosts | work = The New York Times | date = 26 December 1918 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 3 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505031503/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/12/26/97056148.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

''Kroonland'' arrived at Newport News on 18{{nbsp}}February with 2,805 passengers, including units from the [[36th Infantry Division (United States)|U.S. 36th Infantry Division]], after a rough trip from Saint-Nazaire.<ref>Nature of trip: White, pp. 210–11. Number of troops, destination: {{cite news | title = 5,805 Yanks land at Newport News | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 19 February 1919 | page = 10 }}</ref> On her next voyage, she carried another 2,943 officers and men from Saint-Nazaire to Newport News, arriving there on 24{{nbsp}}March.<ref>{{cite news | title = 6,801 arrive at Newport News | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 25 March 1919 | page = 4 }}</ref> The 132nd Regiment of the 61st Field Artillery Brigade returned on the ship, and brigade historian Rex F. Harlow called ''Kroonland'' "probably the best vessel on which any units of the brigade returned to America".<ref>Harlow, p. 191.</ref>

[[Image:Removing deck gun from USS Kroonland, 1919.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|left|After her Navy service ended, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s {{convert|4|in|mm|adj=on}} guns were removed before she was returned to her owners, [[International Mercantile Marine]].]]

On 18 April, ''Kroonland'' began her next homeward journey, embarking several companies of the [[111th Infantry Regiment (United States)|111th Infantry Regiment]] of the [[28th Infantry Division (United States)|U.S. 28th Infantry Division]] among the 3,100 troops carried. Though the fighting was over, the men still wore life jackets for the first three days at sea amidst fears of striking floating [[naval mine|mines]]. George W. Cooper, historian of the 2nd Battalion of the 111th Infantry, reported that some of the men had to serve as stokers during the trip because of a "shortage of help". In the middle of the crossing, the ship "sprung a leak" and took on {{convert|10|ft|m}} of water; she had a list for a day or so, until repairs were made. The troops later disembarked at New York on 29{{nbsp}}April.<ref>Composition, number of troops: {{cite news | title = 10,000 Yanks reach New York | work = Chicago Daily Tribune | date = 30 April 1919 | page = 4 }} Other voyage details: Cooper, p. 176.</ref>

''Kroonland'' returned to Saint-Nazaire in May and loaded Major General Joseph E. Kuhn and some 3,000 men of his [[79th Infantry Division (United States)|U.S. 79th Infantry Division]], which included the 304th Engineer Regiment, and departed France on 18{{nbsp}}May. The band of the 304th Engineers gave concerts on deck every evening on the voyage home to entertain the men. Though initially bound for Newport News, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s crew received orders in mid ocean to head instead to New York, where they arrived on 29{{nbsp}}May.<ref>Number, identity of troops:{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1919/05/30/96314045.pdf | title = Gen. Kuhn arrives with 3,000 of 79th | work = The New York Times | date = 30 May 1919 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 7 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032003/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1919/05/30/96314045.pdf | url-status = live }} Other trip details: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ''Official History…'', pp. 242, 247, 283.</ref> After completing another passage to Newport News in late June,<ref>{{cite news | title = Stowaway lost father at Thierry | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 29 June 1919 | page = 18 }}</ref> ''Kroonland'' sailed on 19{{nbsp}}July with 3,642 passengers—including officers, men, thirteen [[war bride]]s, and one war baby—from Saint-Nazaire, in the final transport departure from that port before it was closed as a port of embarkation by U.S. military authorities. Among the passengers was Brigadier General Samuel D. Rockenbach, the founder of the [[United States Tank Corps]].<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1919/07/31/97110107.pdf | title = 3,642 of A.E.F. return | work = The New York Times | date = 31 July 1919 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 8 | archive-date = 20 November 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231120143935/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1919/07/31/97110107.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

On 21 August, the USSB announced that ''Kroonland'' would be released from government service after surveys for repairs had been completed.<ref>{{cite news | title = Liners to be released | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 22 August 1919 | page = 2 }}</ref> After leaving New York on 10{{nbsp}}August, the ship was in the middle of what would be her final trip returning soldiers. After arriving at Brest, 1,532 officers and men boarded ''Kroonland'' for New York, where the transport arrived on 10{{nbsp}}September. Also on board was Michael Gilhooley, a 15-year-old stowaway making his fourth unsuccessful attempt to sneak into the United States aboard a Navy transport.<ref>Departure location, date: {{cite web | url = http://www.maritimematters.com/aeolus-memory-jm.html | title = WWI troopers Aeolus, Danube, Kroonland, 1917–1919 by J. McSherry | work = Preserved Memory Project | publisher = Maritime Matters | year = 1999 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070107054917/http://www.maritimematters.com/aeolus-memory-jm.html | archive-date = 7 January 2007 }} Composition of troops, return date, stowaway details: {{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1919/09/11/118158219.pdf | title = Gilhooley here again | work = The New York Times | date = 11 September 1919 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 16 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032005/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1919/09/11/118158219.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

The ship was decommissioned and returned to the USSB on 13{{nbsp}}September, and returned to International Mercantile Marine shortly thereafter.<ref name=Gleaves-246-247 /> In her eight trips returning troops, ''Kroonland''—affectionately called the "Empress of the Seas" by her crew<ref>Nixon (see subtitle of book).</ref>—averaged just under 39 days per turnaround, beating the overall average of all ships by almost a full day, and edging out sister ship ''Finland'' by less than that.<ref name=Stats>{{cite web | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h82000/h82951.jpg | format = image file | title = The Original U.S. Troop Transports | date = 16 August 1919 | author = [[United States Navy]], Statistical Department | access-date = 21 June 2008 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070206015056/http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h82000/h82951.jpg | archive-date = 6 February 2007 | df = dmy-all }}</ref>

== Red Star Line service, 1920–1923 ==
After her return to International Mercantile Marine (IMM), the ship underwent a refit at the [[W. & A. Fletcher Company|W. & A. Fletcher Marine Works]] yard in Hoboken that outfitted her for 242 first-, 310 second-, and 876 third-class passengers.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> On 8{{nbsp}}January 1920, while ''Kroonland'' was still under repair, the American Line ship {{SS|St. Louis|1894|2}}, berthed next to her at the Fletcher yard, caught fire. In the multi-alarm fire, firefighters believed that ''St. Louis'' was a lost cause, and so focused their efforts on saving ''Kroonland''. At one point, ''St. Louis'' heeled over and leaned on ''Kroonland'' but the only resulting damages were scorch marks on her side.<ref name=NYT-1920-01-09>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/01/09/102735269.pdf | title = Steamer St. Louis burns at Hoboken | work = The New York Times | date = 9 January 1920 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 22 | archive-date = 3 March 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240303090037/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/01/09/102735269.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref><ref group=Note>''St. Louis'' was never rebuilt and her hull was scrapped in Italy in 1925. (See {{cite DANFS | title = St. Louis | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/s17/st_louis-iii.htm | short = on }})</ref>

''Kroonland'' resumed her civilian career in April 1920, sailing once again for the Red Star Line on the New York – Antwerp route.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> She sailed from [[Chelsea Piers|Pier 61]] on the [[North River (New York-New Jersey)|North River]] opposite sister ships ''Finland'' and ''Zeeland'' and the newer {{SS|Lapland||2}} until early 1923.<ref>Pier location: ''Brooklyn Daily Eagle'', p. 94. Ships on the route, duration: Immigration Information Bureau, p. 206.</ref><ref group=Note>The fourth sister ship, {{SS|Vaderland|1900|2}}, had been sunk by {{SMS|U-70||2|sub=y}} off the Irish coast on 4{{nbsp}}June 1917 (See Bonsor, vol. 2, p. 855).</ref> Rough weather on the North Atlantic took its toll on ''Kroonland'' while sailing this route. A storm off [[Sable Island]] in December 1920 was so intense that the liner was only able to travel {{convert|126|nmi|km}} during one 24-hour stretch and nearly exhausted her fuel supply. When the liner arrived in New York, tugs were required to tow her from the quarantine station to the pier.<ref name=NYT-1920-12-31>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/12/31/103525827.pdf | title = Kroonland, oil burner, lacks fuel to get in | work = The New York Times | date = 31 December 1920 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 8 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032010/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1920/12/31/103525827.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> Heavy seas in another storm in October 1921 broke ''Kroonland''{{'}}s port propeller shaft {{convert|350|nmi|km}} past Sandy Hook. She returned to New York at {{convert|8|kn|km/h}} and transferred most of the passengers to ''Lapland''.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1921/10/26/98759954.pdf | title = Kroonland, damaged, back | work = The New York Times | date = 26 October 1921 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 8 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032006/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1921/10/26/98759954.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> Another eastbound crossing four months later was marked by almost continuous gales with winds up to {{convert|90|mph}}; the liner arrived at [[Plymouth]] covered in ice and snow.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/02/01/98975728.pdf | title = Kroonland in hurricane | work = The New York Times | date = 1 February 1922 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 3 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032006/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/02/01/98975728.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

''Kroonland'' was also involved in several non-weather-related events. On 12{{nbsp}}November 1920, after departing Antwerp for New York, she collided with a Dutch tug in the [[Scheldt]], killing two of the tug's crew.<ref>{{cite news | title = Imperial and foreign news items |work=The Times  | date = 15 November 1920 | page = 11 }}</ref> In March 1921, a [[Czechoslovakia]]n woman gave birth to [[fraternal twins]] on board the liner shortly after she and her husband sailed from Antwerp. Because the twins were born on a U.S.-flagged vessel, they were automatically American citizens.<ref>{{cite news | title = Twins, boy and a girl, … |quote= untitled news story |work=The Times  | date = 28 March 1921 | page = 4 }}</ref> On 10{{nbsp}}June 1922, ''The New York Times'' reported that Charles Simmons, ''Kroonland''{{'}}s Chief Steward, was found dead in his bunk. Crewmen aboard the ship, which had been docked in New York since 4{{nbsp}}June, said Simmons had been seen on deck in apparently good health the day before. The medical examiner nevertheless asked police to investigate, because it appeared to him that Simmons had been dead for three to four days.<ref>Date of arrival in New York: {{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/06/05/99026910.pdf | title = Shipping and Mails | work = The New York Times | date = 5 June 1922 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 30 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032009/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/06/05/99026910.pdf | url-status = live }} All other details: {{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/06/10/109842488.pdf | title = Mystery in death on ship | work = The New York Times | date = 10 June 1922 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 3 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032007/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/06/10/109842488.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref><ref group=Note>There were no further reports on the death or investigation in the newspaper.</ref> During an August eastbound crossing, ''Kroonland'' stood by for two hours after receiving a report of an explosion and fire on {{RMS|Adriatic|1907|6}}, some {{convert|70|nmi|km}} behind.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/14/99055768.pdf | title = Stood by Adriatic | work = The New York Times | date = 14 August 1922 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 4 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032509/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/14/99055768.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> The gas explosion in one of ''Adriatic''{{'}}s forward cargo holds killed five crewmen and seriously wounded three others. It also spawned a fire that was quickly extinguished and left little damage. Offers of help from ten liners (including ''Kroonland'') were politely declined and ''Adriatic'' arrived in New York three days later.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/14/99055768.pdf | title = Adriatic safe here; think short circuit made gas explode | work = The New York Times | date = 14 August 1922 | pages = 1, 4 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032509/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/14/99055768.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> In October, U.S. Federal judge [[Learned Hand]] issued a restraining order preventing the [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]]-related seizure of alcohol aboard ''Kroonland'', ''Finland'', and ''St. Paul''. IMM had sought the order to enable her to continue to carry Italian third-class passengers; Italian law required a minimum number of a ship's crew to be Italian, with Italian wine of at least 12% alcohol provided for them.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/10/13/107073344.pdf | title = American ships win first step in fight to lift liquor ban | work = The New York Times | date = 13 October 1922 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 1 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032510/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/10/13/107073344.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

[[Image:MyronHerrick.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|Ambassador [[Myron T. Herrick]] was part of the U.S. delegation to the [[International Chamber of Commerce]] which sailed on ''Kroonland'' in 1920.]]
''Kroonland'' also carried some notable passengers during her time on this route including a majority of the U.S. delegates to the [[International Chamber of Commerce]] for its meeting in Paris in June 1920. Among those on board were [[Myron T. Herrick]], former U.S. Ambassador to France; [[Paul M. Warburg]], former member of the [[Federal Reserve Board]]; and 14 current and former directors of the [[United States Chamber of Commerce]].<ref>{{cite news | title = International Chamber of Commerce |work=The Times  | date = 8 June 1920 | page = 13 }}</ref> Dr. [[Samuel Eyde]], the newly appointed Norwegian Minister to the United States, sailed for his diplomatic post in December on ''Kroonland''. On the same trip, Max Goldberg, a 14-year-old flower delivery boy, returned from an accidental roundtrip, begun in New York when the [[:wikt:gangway|gangway]] was raised and the ship departed while he was making a last-minute delivery.<ref name=NYT-1920-12-31 /> Four of the United States' seven delegates to the [[Inter-Parliamentary Union|19th Inter-Parliamentary Union Convention]] in Stockholm—Congressmen [[Alben W. Barkley]] and [[Edwin B. Brooks]], and Senators [[Thomas J. Walsh]] and [[William B. McKinley]]—returned on ''Kroonland'' in September 1921.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1921/09/13/98732103.pdf | title = Four U.S. delegates home from Sweden | work = The New York Times | date = 13 September 1921 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 11 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032510/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1921/09/13/98732103.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

Passengers were not the ship's only cargo during this time. The New York press reported on gold deposits carried to the United States on the liner several times on the Antwerp route. In a storm-tossed December 1920 voyage, for example, she carried $1,650,000 in gold,<ref name=NYT-1920-12-31 /> and the following June she carried £100,000 gold to the [[Equitable Trust Company of New York|Equitable Trust Company]] in New York.<ref>{{cite news | title = Gold movements | work = The Wall Street Journal | date = 27 June 1921 | page = 5 }}</ref> Another notable cargo arrived in New York in November 1922, when ''Kroonland'' brought {{convert|840000|lb|kg}} of cheese from [[Switzerland]]. The shipment was said to be the first big shipment from that country since before World War I.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/11/28/98790791.pdf | title = Kroonland brings huge cheese cargo | work = The New York Times | date = 28 November 1922 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 41 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032511/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/11/28/98790791.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> A more unwelcome cargo was carried in March 1921, when a Hungarian immigrant in steerage was found to have [[typhoid fever]]. Discovery of the disease necessitated that all 731 steerage passengers be quarantined indefinitely.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1921/03/07/103554840.pdf | title = Six more typhus cases in the city | work = The New York Times | date = 7 March 1921 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | page = 1 | archive-date = 5 May 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240505032511/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1921/03/07/103554840.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref>

''Kroonland'' began her last voyage on the Antwerp route in January 1923, after which she underwent a refit during the first half of 1923. The ship was converted to cabin- and third-class passengers only,<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> and was painted white.<ref name=LAT-1923-07-09>{{cite news | title = Service of fast liners for harbor | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 9 July 1923 | page = I-8 <!-- this is a single page - use a hyphen -->}}</ref> In preparation for her announced return to the Panama Pacific Line in October 1923, more refrigeration and cool air space were added for transporting Southern California agricultural products.<ref name=LAT-1923-07-09 />

After this refit, the ship was briefly assigned to the American Line for three roundtrips on a New York to [[Hamburg]] route, with intermediate stops at Plymouth and [[Cherbourg]].<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> On her first Hamburg trip, she carried American comedic actress [[Florence Shirley]] and her husband, headed for a European vacation. [[Cecil Arden]], a [[mezzo-soprano]] with the [[Metropolitan Opera]], and [[botanist]] [[Otto Warburg (botanist)|Otto Warburg]] sailed on the same trip.<ref>{{cite news | title = Norwegian fjords attract tourists | work = The New York Times | date = 21 June 1923 | page = 23 }}</ref>

== Panama Pacific Line service, 1923–1925 ==
In April 1923, IMM announced that ''Kroonland'' and sister ship ''Finland'' would be returned to the Panama Pacific Line beginning in late September, sailing from New York to San Francisco via [[Havana]], the Panama Canal, and Los Angeles, with Los Angeles being the west coast hub of operations.<ref>{{cite news | title = Two large ships will come here | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 30 April 1923 | page = II-22 }} In June, ''Manchuria'' was also assigned to the route. See: {{cite news | title = I.M.M. Panama-Pacific Line | work = The Wall Street Journal | date = 22 June 1923 | page = 3 }}</ref> On 18{{nbsp}}October, ''Kroonland'' departed on her first voyage on the route since 1915.<ref name=Bonsor-2-856 /> ''Kroonland'' arrived in [[Port of Los Angeles|Los Angeles Harbor]] on 3{{nbsp}}November amidst fanfare, becoming the largest liner to date to enter that harbor.<ref>{{cite news | title = Relinks New York with the Pacific | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 3 November 1923 | page = II-1 }}</ref><ref group=Note>On ''Kroonland''{{'}}s previous visits, she had to anchor offshore and use [[lighter (barge)|lighters]] to transfer passengers and cargo. See: {{cite news | title = Notables welcome Kroonland | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 4 November 1923 | page = I-3 }}</ref>

[[Image:SS Kroonland in Panama Canal, 1923.jpg|thumb|left|''Kroonland'' passes through the Pedro Miguel Locks of the [[Panama Canal]] on 23 October 1923. It was the liner's first voyage on the New York – San Francisco route after an absence of eight years.]]
In contrast to her time on the North Atlantic, ''Kroonland'' encountered few weather or mechanical delays on the coast-to-coast route. In December 1923, however, the ship was delayed one day by unusually heavy seas and gales off [[Baja California]].<ref name=LST-1923-12-21 /> Another delay in October 1924 proved to be fatal, according to the ship's physician. An arrival two days late, caused by adverse currents north of Panama,<ref>{{cite news | title = Storms delay liners | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 17 October 1924 | page = A-20 }}</ref> cost a female passenger her life. Had the ship not been delayed, the physician believed, prompt hospital care could have saved her. On this same trip, ''Kroonland'' passed through a "hurricane zone" but was not adversely affected by the storm.<ref>{{cite news | title = Death victor in race with ship | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 20 October 1924 | page = 15 }}</ref><ref group=Note>In all probability the "hurricane zone" referred to the [[1924 Cuba hurricane|Cuba hurricane]] (12–23 October) of the [[1924 Atlantic hurricane season|1924 season]] that formed in the [[Caribbean Sea]] off the [[Yucatan Peninsula]] and moved across Cuba, Florida, and into the Atlantic.</ref>

In December 1924, the Panama Pacific Line announced that it would add {{SS|Mongolia|1903|2}} to the New York – California route in February to replace ''Kroonland''.<ref>{{cite news | title = Globe-circling vessel due at harbor today | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 15 December 1924 | page = 17 }}</ref> Even though press accounts reported as late as March 1925 that ''Kroonland'' had sailed her last on the route,<ref>{{cite news | title = Liner returns to Pacific | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 16 March 1925 | page = 10 }}</ref> she continued carrying passengers and cargo through at least June 1925 because of booming business.<ref name=LAT-1925-06-16 /> Although plans had been announced to convert ''Kroonland'' and ''Finland'' to freighters upon the delivery of two new ships ordered for the route in late 1924, there is no evidence that this was ever carried out.<ref>{{cite news | title = New liners for Panama Pacific | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 11 November 1924 | page = A-22 }}</ref>

=== Notable passengers ===
''Kroonland'' carried her share of notable passengers during her second stint for the Panama Pacific Line. On her first voyage, passengers included American [[modernist]] poet [[Wallace Stevens]] and his wife, Elsie. After transiting the Panama Canal, the liner headed north along the western coast of Mexico. The ship passed the [[Gulf of Tehuantepec|Gulf]] and [[Isthmus of Tehuantepec]] in early November, inspiring Stevens to later pen the poem "Sea Surface Full Of Clouds". First published in the July 1924 issue of literary magazine ''[[The Dial]]'',<ref name=Cook-80>Cook, p. 80.</ref> it was later included in the 1931 edition of Stevens' ''[[Harmonium (poetry collection)|Harmonium]]''.<ref>Stevens, p. xi.</ref> Each of the five stanzas begins with the line "In that November off Tehuantepec" and is a different portrayal of the surface of the sea.<ref name=Cook-80 /> The poem has been called one of Stevens' "most persuasive statements of the imagination's powers",<ref>Litz, pp. 150–51.</ref> and considered "the most perfect example of a 'pure poem'".<ref>Richardson, p. 22.</ref>

Other notable passengers included professional baseball player [[Ray E. French]], who sailed with his wife to their home in California on the same voyage as Stevens.<ref>{{cite news | title = Two liners carry tourists abroad | work = The New York Times | date = 18 October 1923 | page = 33 }}</ref> California artist [[William Barr (artist)|William Barr]], American author [[Frederick O'Brien]],<ref>{{cite news | title = Sea route takes tourists to coast | work = The New York Times | date = 6 December 1923 | page = 19 }}</ref> and actress [[Mary Carr]] all sailed on ''Kroonland'' in December 1923.<ref name=LST-1923-12-21>{{cite news | title = Kroonland is held back by gales at sea | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 21 December 1923 | page = I-17 }}</ref> In February 1924, [[Daniel Willard]], president of the [[Baltimore and Ohio Railroad]], sailed from New York to Los Angeles. Acknowledging that the Panama Canal had "detract[ed] volumes of freight" from railroads, Willard said that there was no cause for alarm because the railroad business was booming.<ref>{{cite news | title = Liner carries notables | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 10 February 1924 | page = C-12 }}</ref> In January 1925, [[Gene Byrnes]], creator of the [[comic strip]] ''[[Reg'lar Fellers]]'', sailed from New York to Los Angeles with his wife.<ref>{{cite news | title = New motorship departs today | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 25 January 1925 | page = 14 }}</ref> On the same voyage, [[University of Southern California]] president [[Rufus B. von KleinSmid]] boarded ''Kroonland'' at Panama after attending the [[Pan-American Scientific Congress]] in Lima.<ref>{{cite news | title = Dr. von KleinSmid back | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 25 January 1925 | page = 20 }}</ref> In mid-June the same year, short story author and screenwriter [[H. C. Witwer]] and his family returned to New York aboard the ship.<ref name=LAT-1925-06-16>{{cite news | title = Kroonland sails with limit load | work = Los Angeles Times | date = 16 June 1925 | page = 17 }}</ref>

== American Line service, 1925–1926 ==
[[Image:1926 Miami Hurricane damage.jpg|thumb|upright=2.1|''Kroonland''{{'}}s New York – Miami service was not renewed following the [[1926 Miami Hurricane]] which struck the city in September, causing widespread damage.]]
In October 1925, the American Line announced plans for the liner to sail on a weekly New York – Miami route. ''Kroonland'', supplanted {{SS|H. F. Alexander||2}}<ref group=Note>{{SS|H. F. Alexander||2}} was a later name for ''Great Northern'', the ship that transited the Panama Canal the same day as ''Kroonland'' back in February 1915.</ref> of the Admiral Line as the largest ship in Miami service, and sailed from [[Chelsea Piers|Pier 62]] in New York on Thursdays, arrived and departed Miami on Sundays, and returned to New York on Wednesdays. Though ''Kroonland''{{'}}s passenger capacity was potentially much larger, she was outfitted for 500 passengers in first class only.<ref>{{cite news | title = Kroonland will be put on New York – Miami route for weekly run this winter | work = The Wall Street Journal | date = 23 October 1925 | page = 3 }}</ref> She sailed on her first voyage with 400 passengers, including American professional golfer [[Gene Sarazen]], on 10{{nbsp}}December.<ref>{{cite news | title = Miami ship service inaugurated today | work = The New York Times | date = 10 December 1925 | page = 14 }}</ref>

By the time the seasonal service to Miami ended in late March 1926,<ref name=CSM-1926-03-30>{{cite news | title = In the ship lanes | work = The Christian Science Monitor | date = 30 March 1926 | page = 6 }}</ref> ''Kroonland'' had carried 11,000 passengers on the route.<ref name=WSJ-1926-11-02>{{cite news | title = Marine out of Miami business | work = The Wall Street Journal | date = 2 November 1926 | page = 10 }}</ref> Though plans were announced for the liner to resume the route the following winter,<ref name=CSM-1926-03-30 /> this did not happen.<ref name=WSJ-1926-11-02 /> IMM offered no reasons, but conditions in Miami at the end of 1926 were very different from the previous year. The wild [[Florida land boom of the 1920s|South Florida real estate boom]] had collapsed in mid 1926,<ref name=Sun-Sentinel>{{cite news | last = McIver | first = Stuart | url = http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/weather/hurricane/sfl-1926-hurricane,0,1292732.story | title = 1926 Miami: The blow that broke the boom | work = [[South Florida Sun-Sentinel]] | date = 19 September 1993 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | archive-date = 16 July 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080716073809/http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/weather/hurricane/sfl-1926-hurricane,0,1292732.story? | url-status = live }}</ref> and the [[1926 Miami hurricane|Great Miami Hurricane]] struck on 18{{nbsp}}September, killing more than 325 and leaving as many as 50,000 residents homeless,<ref name=Sun-Sentinel /> while causing some $100{{nbsp}}million damage (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|100|1926|fmt=c}}{{nbsp}}million in {{Inflation/year|US}}).{{Inflation/fn|US|df=y}}<ref name="Pielke2008">{{ cite journal | last1= Pielke | first1= Roger A. Jr. | year = 2008 | title = Normalized Hurricane Damage in the United States: 1900–2005 | journal = Natural Hazards Review | volume = 9 | issue = 1 | pages = 29–42 | doi = 10.1061/(ASCE)1527-6988(2008)9:1(29) |display-authors=etal}}</ref> With no place to put the aging ship, IMM [[:wikt:laid up|laid up]] ''Kroonland'' in Hoboken.<ref name=WSJ-1926-11-02 />

The ship was later sold to [[shipbreakers]] in Italy and departed the United States for the last time on 29{{nbsp}}January 1927. After delivering a cargo of grain to her old homeport of Antwerp, she was taken to [[Genoa]] and scrapped. According to an Associated Press report, ''Kroonland'' had completed 234 voyages totaling {{convert|1635468|nmi|km}} during the course of her career without serious accident.<ref name=AP-WP>{{cite news | agency = [[Associated Press]] | title = Razing of Kroonland at Genoa ordered | newspaper = The Washington Post | date = 30 January 1927 | page = 16 }}</ref><ref group=Note>The Associated Press article did not state whether the career totals included wartime service.</ref>

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|group=Note}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
{{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book | last = Bliss | first = Edward | title = Now The News: The Story of Broadcast Journalism | location = New York | publisher = [[Columbia University Press]] | year = 1991 | isbn = 978-0-231-04402-8 | oclc = 22731482 | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/nownewsstoryofbr0000blis }}
* {{cite book | last = Bonsor | first = N. R. P. | title = North Atlantic Seaway, Volume 2 | edition = Enlarged and completely revised | location = [[Saint Brélade, Jersey]] | publisher = Brookside Publications | orig-year = 1955 | year = 1978 | isbn = 0-905824-01-6 | oclc = 29930159 }}<!-- ISBN as printed in book -->
* {{cite book | last = Brent | first = Charles Henry | author-link = Charles Henry Brent | title = A Master Builder, Being the Life and Letters of Henry Yates Satterlee, First Bishop of Washington | url = https://archive.org/details/AMasterBuilder | location = New York | publisher = Longmans, Green | year = 1916 | oclc = 3150392 | isbn = 0-665-81757-6 }}
* {{cite journal | author = [[Brooklyn Daily Eagle]] | title = Steamship and Steamboat Lines, Principal Offices and Sailings | journal = Brooklyn Daily Eagle Almanac | volume = XXXVI |date=January 1921 | location = [[Brooklyn]] |oclc = 1586159}}
* {{cite book | author = [[Bureau of Ordnance]] | title = Navy Ordnance Activities: World War, 1917–1918 | url = https://archive.org/details/navyordnanceacti00unit | location = Washington, D.C. | publisher = [[United States Government Printing Office]] | year = 1920 | oclc = 686627 }}
* {{cite journal | last = Burling | first = Lancaster D. | title = Education, efficiency and economy, with special reference to mining | journal = [[The Scientific Monthly]] | volume = 4 | issue = 5 |date=May 1917 | page = 438 | location = New York | publisher = The Science Press | bibcode = 1917SciMo...4..438B | issn = 0096-3771 | oclc = 7473786 }}
* {{cite book | last = Cook | first = Eleanor | title = A Reader's Guide to Wallace Stevens | location = [[Princeton, New Jersey]] | publisher = [[Princeton University Press]] | year = 2007 | isbn = 978-0-691-04983-0 | oclc = 69013774 }}
* {{cite book | last1= Coons | first1= Lorraine |author2= Alexander Varias | title = Tourist Third Cabin: Steamship Travel in the Interwar Years | location = New York | publisher = [[Palgrave Macmillan]] |date=July 2003 | edition = 1st | isbn = 978-0-312-21429-6 | oclc = 51861968 }}
* {{cite book | last = Cooper | first = George W. | author-link = <!-- not: George W. Cooper --> | title = Our Second Battalion: The Accurate and Authentic History of the Second Battalion 111th Infantry | url = https://archive.org/details/oursecondbattali00coop | location = [[Pittsburgh]] | publisher = Second Battalion Book Co. | year = 1920 | oclc = 4139237 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Crowell |first1=Benedict |last2=Wilson |first2=Robert Forrest |year=1921 |title=The Road to France: The Transportation of Troops and Military Supplies, 1917–1918 |series=How America Went to War: An Account From Official Sources of the Nation's War Activities, 1917–1920 |volume=2 |location=[[New Haven, Connecticut|New Haven]] |publisher=[[Yale University Press]] |oclc=18696066 |lccn=2006940346 |url=https://archive.org/stream/roadtofrancetran02crow#page/n12/mode/1up |access-date=29 June 2015 }}
* {{cite book | last1 = Cutchins | first1 = John A. | author2 = George Scott Stewart Jr. | title = History of the Twenty-ninth division, "Blue and gray," 1917–1919 | url = https://archive.org/details/historytwentyni01thgoog | location = [[Philadelphia]] | publisher = Press of MacCalla & Co. | year = 1921 | oclc = 3260003 }}
* {{cite book | last = Fess | first = Simeon D. | author-link = Simeon D. Fess | title = The Problems of Neutrality When the World Is at War: A History of Our Relations with Germany and Great Britain as Detailed in the Documents That Passed Between the United States and the Two Great Belligerent Powers | url = https://archive.org/details/problemsneutral00fessgoog | location = Washington, D.C. | publisher = [[United States Government Printing Office]] | year = 1917 | oclc = 2570847 }}
* {{Gleaves}}
* {{cite journal | last = Grant | first = W. Henry | title = World Missionary Conference | journal = Herald of Gospel Liberty | volume = 102 | issue = 12 | date = 24 March 1910 | location = [[Portsmouth, New Hampshire]] | publisher = Elias Smith | oclc = 9860911 }}
* {{cite book | last = Harlow | first = Rex F. | title = Trail of the 61st: A History of the 61st Field Artillery Brigade During the World War, 1917–1919 | url = https://archive.org/details/trailstahistory01harlgoog | location = [[Oklahoma City]] | publisher = Harlow Pub. Co | year = 1919 | oclc = 4227658 }}
* {{cite book | author = Immigration Information Bureau | title = Morton Allan Directory of European Passenger Steamship Arrivals for the Years 1890 to 1930 at the Port of New York and for the years 1904 to 1926 at the ports of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Baltimore | location = [[Baltimore]] | publisher = Genealogical Pub. Co. | orig-year = 1931 | year = 1979 | oclc = 4705572 }}
* {{cite book | last1 = Jones | first1 = John Price | author2 = Paul Merrick Hollister | title = The German Secret Service in America, 1914–1918 | url = https://archive.org/details/germansecretser01hollgoog | location = Boston | publisher = [[Small, Maynard & Company]] | year = 1918 | oclc = 63576168 }}
* {{cite book | last = Litz | first = A. Walton | author-link = A. Walton Litz | title = Introspective Voyager: The Poetic Development of Wallace Stevens | url = https://archive.org/details/introspectivevoy0000litz | url-access = registration | location = New York | publisher = [[Oxford University Press]] | year = 1972 | isbn = 978-0-19-501518-8 | oclc = 281929 }}
* {{cite book | last = Loving | first = Jerome | title = The Last Titan: A Life of Theodore Dreiser | url = https://archive.org/details/lasttitanlifeoft0000lovi | url-access = registration | location = [[Berkeley, California|Berkeley]] | publisher = [[University of California Press]] | year = 2005 | isbn = 978-0-520-23481-9 | oclc = 55947924 }}
* {{cite book | last = McMaster | first = John Bach | author-link = John Bach McMaster | title = The United States in the World War | url = https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesinwo02mcmauoft | location = New York | publisher = D. Appelton and Co. | year = 1918 | oclc = 14915893 | isbn = 1-59605-038-1 }}
* {{cite DANFS | author = [[Naval Historical Center]] | title = Covington | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/c14/covington-ii.htm | access-date = 21 June 2008 }}
* {{cite DANFS | author = Naval Historical Center | title = Kroonland |url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/k5/kroonland.htm | access-date = 21 June 2008 | link = off }}
* {{cite web | author = Naval Historical Center | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/influenza_caper.htm | title = Personal account by Rear Admiral William B. Caperton of the 1918 Influenza on Armored Cruiser No. 4, USS Pittsburgh, at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | publisher = Navy Department, Naval Historical Center | date = 9 November 2005 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080228151642/http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/influenza_caper.htm | archive-date = 28 February 2008 | df = dmy-all }}
* {{cite DANFS | author = Naval Historical Center | title = St. Louis | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/s17/st_louis-iii.htm | access-date = 21 June 2008 | link = off }}
* {{cite book | last = Nixon | first = Fred W. | title = War book of the U.S.S. Kroonland: "Empress of the Seas", 1918–1919 | location = Chicago | publisher = Rogers & Co. | year = n.d. | oclc = 8980829 }}
* {{cite book | last = Pollock | first = David H. | title = The Shipbuilding Industry: Its History, Practice, Science and Finance | url = https://archive.org/details/shipbuildingind00pollgoog | location = London | publisher = [[Methuen Publishing]] | year = 1905 | oclc = 1157996 }}
* {{cite book | last = Richardson | first = Joan |author-link = Joan Richardson | location = New York | publisher = [[William Morrow and Company|William Morrow]] | year = 1988 | oclc = 185839952 |title = Wallace Stevens: The Later Years, 1923–1955}}
* {{cite book | last1= Stevens | first1= Wallace | author-link = Wallace Stevens |editor-first1=Frank |editor-last1=Kermode |editor-link1=Frank Kermode |editor-first2=Joan |editor-last2=Richardson | title = Wallace Stevens: Collected Poetry and Prose | location = New York | publisher = [[Library of America]] | year = 1997 | isbn = 978-1-883011-45-1 | oclc = 36343461 }}
* {{cite book | last = Stathis | first = Stephen W. | title = Congressional Gold Medals, 1776–2002 | location = [[Hauppauge, New York]] | publisher = Novinka Books | year = 2003 | isbn = 978-1-59033-514-7 | oclc = 50622185 }}
* {{cite book | last1= Thompson | first1= Hugh S. | author-link = <!-- not: Hugh S. Thompson --> |editor-last= Ferrell|editor-first= Robert H. |editor-link= Robert Hugh Ferrell | title = Trench Knives and Mustard Gas: With the 42nd Rainbow Division in France | location = [[College Station, Texas|College Station]] | publisher = [[Texas A&M University Press]] | year = 2004 | edition = 1st | isbn = 978-1-58544-290-4 | oclc = 53020338 }}
* {{cite book | last = Todd | first = Frank Morton | title = The Story of the Exposition: Being the Official History of the International Celebration Held at San Francisco in 1915 to Commemorate the Discovery of the Pacific Ocean and the Construction of the Panama Canal, Volume 4 | location = New York | publisher= [[Panama–Pacific International Exposition|Panama–Pacific International Exposition Co.]] | year = 1921 | oclc = 307967 }}
* {{cite book | author = [[United States Army Corps of Engineers]], 304th Regiment | title = The Official History of the Three Hundred and Fourth Engineer Regiment, Seventy-Ninth Division, U.S.A., During the World War | publisher = The Regiment | year = 1920 | oclc = 123230628 }}
* {{cite journal | author = [[United States Department of State]] | title = Bulgaria | journal = Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States | location = Washington, D.C. | publisher = [[United States Government Printing Office]] | year = 1922 | issn = 1048-6445 | oclc = 6699241 }}
* {{cite book | last = von der Goltz | first = Horst | title = My Adventures as a German Secret Agent | url = https://archive.org/details/myadventuresasge00golt | location = New York | publisher = R.M. McBride & Co. | year = 1917 | oclc = 405220 | isbn = 1-152-67492-7 }}
* {{cite journal | last = Vose | first = Edward Neville | title = How Panama will alter trade | journal = The World's Work | volume = XXIV | issue = 4 |date=August 1912 | location = New York | publisher = [[Doubleday, Page & Company]] | oclc = 1770207 }}
* {{cite book | last = White | first = Lonnie J. | chapter-url = http://www.texasmilitaryforcesmuseum.org/36division/archives/wwi/white/chap8.htm | chapter = The Homecoming | url = http://www.texasmilitaryforcesmuseum.org/36division/white.htm | title = Panthers to Arrowheads: The 36th (Texas-Oklahoma) Division in World War I | location = [[Austin, Texas]] | publisher = Presidial Press | year = 1984 | isbn = 978-0-935978-03-2 | oclc = 12771711 | access-date = 21 June 2008 | archive-date = 9 May 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080509084638/http://www.texasmilitaryforcesmuseum.org/36division/white.htm | url-status = live }}
* {{cite book | author = William Cramp & Sons Ship & Engine Building Company | title = Cramp's shipyard founded by William Cramp, 1830 | url = https://archive.org/details/crampsshipyardf00cogoog | location = [[Philadelphia]] | publisher = William Cramp & Sons Ship & Engine Building Company | year = 1902 | oclc = 3118924 | author-link = William Cramp & Sons }}
* {{cite book | last = Williams | first = Archibald | author-link = <!--not: Archibald Williams--> | title = The Romance of Modern Exploration: With Descriptions of Curious Customs, Thrilling Adventures and Interesting Discoveries of Explorers in All Parts of the World | url = https://archive.org/details/romancemodernex00willgoog | location = London | publisher = Seeley | year = 1908 | oclc = 25878689 }}
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Kroonland (ship, 1902)}}
* {{navsource|12/171541|Kroonland}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070829121141/http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-k/id1541.htm Photo gallery] at Naval Historical Center
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070709082546/http://home.att.net/~r.c.henrickson/panama/sskroonland.html Photos of ''Kroonland''] in the Pedro Miguel Locks of the [[Panama Canal]], c. 1915 <!-- Most likely PD images -->
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QC7luLy3eNo A short video dedicated to the ''SS Kroonland'']
{{Featured article}}
* Pages relating to ''Kroonland''{{'}}s rescue of survivors of the burning and sinking of {{SS|Volturno|1906|6}} from [https://web.archive.org/web/20051228125649/http://ca.geocities.com/volturno@rogers.com/volturno01.html  ''The burning of the 'Volturno''']: <!-- Even though this is a geocities site, it is well researched, and relevant to this article -->
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20060509061443/http://ca.geocities.com/volturno@rogers.com/volturno75.html  Photos of ''Kroonland'']
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20060509061453/http://ca.geocities.com/volturno@rogers.com/volturno76.html  Stories of crewmen aboard ''Kroonland'' that received medals]
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20060509061500/http://ca.geocities.com/volturno@rogers.com/volturno77.html  Stories of ''Volturno'' survivors rescued by ''Kroonland'']
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20060509061509/http://ca.geocities.com/volturno@rogers.com/volturno78.html  More photos of ''Kroonland'']

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kroonland}}
[[Category:1902 ships]]
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[[Category:Passenger ships of the United States]]
[[Category:Ships built by William Cramp & Sons]]
[[Category:Ships of the American Line]]
[[Category:Ships of the Red Star Line]]
[[Category:Transport ships of the United States Army]]
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[[Category:World War I transports of the United States]]