The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-01-15
: c. FRED LEARY, ONCE CAPTAIN OF"
THE 'UNSINKABLE SHIP" IS NOW
MASTER OF COAHOMA COUNTY
Skipper Tells Interesting Story the Last Voyage of the vessel
and Its Sinking After Being Hit by German Sub
marne-Was the Last Merchant Ship to BE
Sunk Before Signing of Armistice.

TO interview the captain Of the
.unsinkabIe shipi" Such was the
pleasure or a Journal representative
Thursday afternoon, and the master
in question is Captain c. Fred Leary,
now Of the American steamer Coahoma
County, which came into Pensacola
land locked harbor after a one day
cruise from Mobile, coming over to
take on cargo here.
To those who were In Pensacola
during the war it will not be necessary
TO Jog their memory very much to
have them recall the alien vessels in
termed here at that time. 1t will be
remembered that there were three,
two German and one Austrian. The
German vessels were the rudolph
Blumberg and the Vogesen, both COM
paratively small craft, but the Aus
trian steamer lucia" later spoken Of
as the "Unsinkable Ship" was large
merchant vessel Of 4,ss6 net tons.
The Lucia arrived In this port on
August 3, 1914, from Boca Grand. Fla,
via Tampa. When she arrived here
she had on board a partial cargo OF
$3.50 tons Of phosphate about half Of
1t having been jettisoned off Port
Tampa, where she ran aground. Mr..
curry, deputy collector of customs in
Pensacola now. was at this time oecu-
pying n similar position at Port
Tampa, and yesterday related to The
Journal representative the story about
the famous ship going aground down
on the west coast of Florida.
Before this Austrian ship and the
two other alien vessels were taken
over by the United tSates shortly af-
ter we had entered the war, the crew
did all the damage possible to the
machinery before they were taken
from them. All this will be remember
ed by Pensacoiians who were here
during the early stages OF Americas
entry into the world war;
After the Lucia had been taken
over by Uncle Sam II was decided that
she would be converted into what en-
gineers described as an unsuitable
ship, 10 be used in transporting am
munition and supplies across the At
lantic to our boys in France. She was
accordingly sent over to Mobile. where
workmen were put to work converting
her into the unsuitable ship.
In describing the work that was to
make the Lucia such a vessel, Captain
Leary said that wooden compartments
about two feet thick, covered with
galvanized iron and soldered so as
to be alright, were fastened along
the insides Of the hull from the bilges
up to the bottom OF the first deck.
These were also securely fastened un-
derneath each of the three decks of
the vessel. After this had been COM
pleted another larger compartment
filled with compressed air about ten
feet thick were placed I'm the vessel
from the bilges up in a perpendicular
line.
With all these extra air tanks of
such large dimensions built inside the
hull OF the boat, Capt. Lsary said that
the cubic capacity OF the Lucia was
reduced about one-third, but the engi-
neers pronounced her as unsuitable.
A later event. however disastrously
proved that the Lucia could be sunk
and the reason of this story is that
seconds before she went to the bottom
in mid-ocean.
Shortly after the Lucia had been
inaugurated into the service she took
her first cargo as a United States
army cargo transport from New Or
leans, and Captain Leary had been
placed I'm command OF the vessel be-
cause of his wide experience as a
world navigator Men OF his ability
and experience in those days were very
valuable, for 1t was on their judgment
and skill that depended whether or
not our supply vessels could cross the
Atlantic, infested with deadly German
U-boats, and furnish cur men on the
fields of France with the supplies so
necessary in the earnest combat with