S.S. Nomadic, Hamilton Dock, Queen’s Road, Belfast

S.S. Nomadic, docked in Belfast, is the last remaining vessel of the renowned White Star Line. Most famously, the vessel served as a tender alongside S.S. Traffic ferrying passengers and mail to R.M.S. Titanic in Cherbourg. It provided the same role for Titanic's sister ship R.M.S. Olympic as the huge White Star Liners were too large to dock in the French port.

Built in the Harland and Wolff Shipyard, Belfast, Nomadic was laid down on 22nd December 1910 with the Yard Number 422. The vessel launched on 25th April 1911 in Belfast and, after sea trials, White Star Line took delivery of the tender on 27th May 1911.

When fully-loaded, S.S. Nomadic could transport 1,000 passengers at a time. The vessel could accommodate passengers on an upper deck, a lower deck, passenger lounges, and open deck areas on the bridge. First Class passengers occupied the fore of the vessel. At the aft end, a small area was set aside for the overflow of Third Class passengers from S.S. Traffic. The standard of the interior of S.S. Nomadic was similar to that of Titanic and Olympic. Cushioned benches, porcelain water fountains, a buffet bar, and sex-specific flushing toilets made for a very luxurious tender craft.

Between 1914 and 1919, the French Government requisitioned S.S. Nomadic, and the vessel operated as an Auxiliary Minesweeper. Nomadic also transported American soldiers to and from the harbour of Brest, France. Following The Great War, Nomadic returned to tendering duties but ceased this role after the enlarging of Cherbourg Harbour in 1934. First sold to Compagnie Cherbourgeoise de Transbordement and then onto Société Cherbourgeoise de Sauvetage et de Remorquage, the vessel operated for some years as Ingenieur Minard until the outbreak of the Second World War.

On 18th June 1940, S.S. Nomadic took part in the evacuation of troops from the port of Cherbourg. Somehow, following the evacuation of thousands of troops from the French coast, Nomadic escaped to the United Kingdom, unarmed and with no means of defence. Following this event, the Royal Navy requisitioned the vessel and it remained in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England for much of the war. There, the ship served as an accommodation vessel. It also resumed tendering duties of a sort, ferrying soldiers from the Port of Southampton to training camps on the Isle of Wight.

Sister ship S.S. Traffic did not fare so well during wartime. Separated from Nomadic, Traffic was scuttled in Cherbourg Harbour by the French Navy to prevent German access to the port. The Kriegsmarine, however, salvaged the vessel, restored it, and used it as an armed coastal convoy. Eventually, in 1941, S.S. Traffic’s fate was sealed when the former White Star Line tender went down following an Allied torpedo attack. Meanwhile, the Second World War caused severe damage to the port of Cherbourg. This meant large liners such as Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth could no longer dock there and there was once again a role for tenders such as Nomadic.

From the late 1960s, Nomadic’s tale is a tragic one. The vessel lay idle for many years. In the 1970s, it became a floating restaurant on the River Seine in Paris, France. Financial difficulties caused the business to fail in the early 2000s and there was a very real danger of the vessel being sold for scrap.

Campaigns to save the Nomadic eventually garnered Government support. The Northern Ireland Department for Social Development purchased the vessel on 26th January 2006. The tender returned home to Belfast on 18th July 2006. Several years of restoration followed and the vessel now occupies the Hamilton Graving, Belfast.

S.S. Nomadic now stands in a dry dock not far from where workers completed the vessel more than 100 years ago on Slipway No. 1 next to R.M.S. Olympic and R.M.S. Titanic beneath the Arrol Gantry on Slipway No. 2 and Slipway No. 3. Painted in White Star Line colours, the vessel is now a tourist attraction in the popular Titanic Quarter of the city, which is worth a visit for anyone interested in maritime history.