The end of a giant

Thirty years ago, the headline in the Daily Pilot in big, bold print read “SS Catalina Here, at Last.”

It was a celebrated event that captured Southern California’s attention: the arrival of “The Great White Steamer” to Newport Beach. The SS Catalina, a 300-foot vessel that for decades had transported millions from the California coast to Santa Catalina Island, was retired and going on a tour of sorts, thanks to increasing docking fees it was forced to move from harbor to harbor, including Newport Beach, San Diego and Long Beach.

On April 25, 1978, the massive ship carefully moved its way into Newport Harbor.

“Out a few hundred feet from the bay club was this giant ship. I’d never seen anything like it in my life. Just stunning, it was a shock,” said David Henley, a member of the Newport Beach Nautical Museum’s advisory board. “We’ve seen yachts … and here was this thing, 300 feet. I mean it was twice as big as anybody had ever seen. It was just awesome.”

What wasn’t so awesome was the blunder that brought the ship’s welcoming to a grinding halt, literally.

A build-up of silt, poor navigation by the ship’s escorts and a low tide all led the SS Catalina’s hull straight into the sea floor.

“It was really one of those life events where you go, ‘Why did I do that?’” said Duncan McIntosh, who organized the SS Catalina’s arrival. “There were so many extra depth charges into bringing it in here.”

Thousands of people, along with countless news reporters, were there to witness the ship’s arrival and unexpected show-stopper.

But a broken hull and flooding ship such as the Titanic this was not. Instead, organizers simply waited.

The tide rose, and tugboats slowly led the massive vessel back out of the harbor, where it remained anchored for about a week. The ship’s arrival was meant to promote the annual boat show. But 30 years later, the SS Catalina has turned into its own boat show, a sad one at that some say, until this week, when it was announced that the SS Catalina would be chopped up for scrap metal in Mexico.

The ship has been anchored there for years, but time and lack-of-money had taken its toll. Parts were stolen, water crept in, and eventually it was decided it was time for the SS Catalina to become just a memory. For folks like the Henleys, the memories are better than the current reality.

“It was probably the biggest nautical event ever to hit Newport,” David Henley said. “There were hundreds of people there. I very stupidly didn’t take any pictures, I don’t know why. I should have.”

“Of the top 10 memories I’ll remember in life, that will probably be one of them,” McIntosh said with a chuckle.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.