SS Nomadic

History
The keel of Nomadic was laid down in the Harland and Wolff shipyards, Belfast in 1910 (yard number 422). She was launched on 25 April 1911 and delivered to the White Star Line on the 27 May. The ship is 67 meters (220 ft) long and 11.3 meters (37 ft) wide, with a gross tonnage of 1,273 tons. She had two three-bladed screws, with a maximum speed of 12 knots.

With her sister ship SS Traffic, Nomadic was used as a tender for Titanic and Olympic at Cherbourg in France. This meant she would taxi the second and first passengers from Cherbourg toTitanic or Olympic. SS Traffic however, was used to taxi third class passengers onto the Titanic or Olympic

In 1927, she was sold to Compagnie Cherbourghoise de Transbordement and then sold again to the Société Cherbourghoise de Remorquage et de Sauvetage in 1934. Then she was changed to the name Ingenieur Minard, she again served as troop ship in World War II.

After the war she continued tendering Cunard White Star (White Star Lines and Cunard merged in 1934) ships until November 1968. She then served RMS Queen Elizabeth for the last time.

In 1974, Nomadic was bought by a private individual and converted into a restaurant on the Seine in Paris, where she remained docked and semi-abandoned after the closure of the restaurant, until she was moved to the port of Le Havre in 2003.

Preservation of Nomadic
A public appeal for donations to return Nomadic to the Harland and Wolff shipyard for restoration was organised by Belfast Industrial Heritage, a non-profit organisation in Northern Ireland in collaboration with enthusiasts through the SaveNomadic.com Appeal.

On 26 January 2006, SS Nomadic was purchased at auction in Paris by the Department for Social Development, part of the Northern Ireland Office. She cost £171,320 (the reserve price being £165,000).

SS Nomadic left Le Havre to return to Belfast on 12 July, and arrived back close to where she was built on 18 July 2006. She was welcomed back by the Social Development Minister David Hanson MP and the Deputy Lord Mayor of the City of Belfast, Councillor Ruth Patterson and a number of well wishers. The Nomadic arrived "piggy backed" on a marine transportation barge, which had been contracted from Anchor Marine Transportation Limited.

A study by Belfast City Council estimated the cost of restoring Nomadic at £7 million. Belfast Harbour Commissioners have agreed to provide a temporary berth for the ship, and a charitable trust to co-ordinate fundraising for the restoration has been set up. Now that the vessel is on the United Kingdom's National Register of Historic Vessels, the project should qualify for a National Lottery grant application, which should greatly enhance existing funds of £60,000 from a public appeal and £100,000 from Belfast City Council.

The Nomadic Appeal Public Website founded the Nomadic Preservation Society.


Location
On her return to Belfast, SS Nomadic was moored at Queen's Quay just outside the Odyssey Arena in Belfast and opened with a temporary exhibition. In late 2008 the ship was closed to the public and moved to Barnett's Dock for internal maintenance.

In January 2009, the company Frazer-Nash was appointed to manage the Conservation Management Plan.  The level of restoration will then be decided.It was planned that the restoration of SS Nomadic will be completed in time for the 100th anniversary of the sinking of Titanic in 2012.

 Nomadic today 
SS Nomadic is now a museum ship restored back to her former glory in Belfast Hamilton dock. Her interiors were fitted and she was repainted back to the white star line livery. Even though nomadic will never set sail again, she will remain a tourist attraction and a Belfast landmark.

References

Further reading
 Vanhoutte, Fabrice and Melia, Philippe (2004). Le S/S Nomadic: Petit frère du Titanic. Cherbourg: Editions Isoète. 

Other websites

 Nomadic Preservation Society 
 Nomadic Charitable Trust
 SS Nomadic Forum, Run by The Nomadic Preservation Society 
 SS Nomadic History
  SS Nomadic and her sister ship, SS Traffic 
 Maritime Matters - Nomadic 
 National Register of Historic Vessels 
 BBC News - "Titanic link ship set for Belfast"
 Anchor Marine Transportation Limited 
 Pictures of the Nomadic 
 Department for Social Development 
 Nomadic in 2000 - photo from 2000 with brief description
  Nomadic Home at Atlantic Liners
 French Titanic Society - Association Française du Titanic
 - The French book by P. Melia & F. Vanhoutte 

Category:Ships of the White Star Line