This is about a ship named the SS Catalina, but to many people she was known as The Great White Steamer. She was built in the mid-1920's for William Wrigley, who made millions on chewing gum. He needed a passenger ship to connect Santa Catalina Island with Long Beach, in California. It is said that over 25 million passengers sailed on the Catalina to Santa Catalina over a 50-year period. She also served as a troop ship in WWII.

The SS Catalina is not a small ship. She is 52 feet wide and 300 feet long, and displaces more than 1700 tons. She has been parked at a pier in Mexico for some time now, and is falling into disrepair. But there is hope. A lady in Clinton, Tennessee, not far from where I live, has started a drive to raise funds to rescue and restore this historic ship. For more information, try http://www.sscatalina.org .
Howard