THE QUEEN OF SEA ROUTES. MERCHANTS & MINERS TRANSPORTATION CO. BOSTON, PROVIDENCE, BALTIMORE, NORFOLK, SAVANNAH, & NEWPORT NEWS BY SEA. DIRECT ROUTE BETWEEN THE NORTH AND SOUTH

Baltimore: A. Hoen & Co., n.d. [ca 1899]., 1899. First edition. First edition. 7 3/4" x 4" in colorful pictorial wrapper. Rear wrapper missing. [32] pp. including front wrapper. Illustrations. Maps. Schedules. "Founded in Baltimore in 1852 to operate a cargo and passenger steamship line between Baltimore and Boston, Mass. The service initially operated with two wooden hulled side wheelers, but in 1859 built two iron hulled steamers to augment services and extended services to call at Providence, Rhode Island. Services were disrupted by the American Civil War, but resumed in 1864. After a period of decline after the war, the company slowly recovered and by 1869 were able to order a new ship. Further ships were built in the 1870s and in 1876 the Baltimore & Savannah SS Co. was purchased which allowed the company to enter the cotton trade between Savannah, Charleston and New York. The company expanded in the 1880s and added several new ports of call including Newport News and Norfolk to their routes. In 1900 a Philadelphia - Savannah service was started and in 1907 the Winsor Line of Philadelphia was purchased with their fleet of seven steamers. A new route between Baltimore and Jacksonville commenced in 1909 and in 1920 a service was initiated to Havana, Cuba, but this was discontinued after about a year. A service to Nassau, Bahamas started in 1939, but on the entry of the United Stated into World War II in 1941, most of the company's ships were requisitioned for war duty. Limited services continued, but after the war, it was not considered financially viable to re-purchase ships which had been sold to the Government or to build new ships and in 1948 it was decided to cease trading. The company was officially liquidated in 1952." Pamphlet includes overview of the company; information about places along the route to include Chesapeake Bay, Old Point Comfort, Fort Monroe, Hampton, Hampton Roads, and Norfolk; general information about the ships and officers; information about what one can expect while sailing; information on various rooms aboard the ship to include the Social Hall, the Saloon, the Companionway and Staterooms, and the Culinary Department. List of running times between various ports, 11 pages of deck plans for the various ships, schedules, list of fleet ships and their Commanders, and rates of fare. Illustrations throughout, most shaded in blue and with 2 pages of color illustrations. At center is a double-page system map, colored in yellow and with the routes in red. 3 small maps ( 3 3/4" x 1 3/4") showing their Boston line, Providence line, Savannah line, Newport News and Norfolk line. Staples rusted and center page disbound along with small crease to top corner of front wrapper and first few pages and tiny crease to bottom corner of one page.