Upon acquiring the SS
Badger Mariner in 1958, the American Banner Lines undertook an extensive conversion, turning the ship into a medium-sized
passenger liner. This work took place at the Ingalls Ship Building Corporation at
Pascagoula, Mississippi. Following this conversion, the linear dimensions of the ship remained the same. However, with the addition of passenger decks, her
gross register tonnage increased to 14,138. She was renamed SS
Atlantic. The conversion successfully masked the ship’s origins as a
freighter, and gave her a modern, well-proportioned, though slightly boxy, profile. Overall, her appearance was in keeping with other passenger vessels designed and built in the late 1950s and early 1960s. She sported a black
hull with a white strip at the base of the
superstructure, the lower deck of which retained the black coloration of the hull. Her upper superstructure was white and was topped by a squat blue
funnel. She featured glass-enclosed
promenades, running most of the length of both sides of the
promenade deck, and spacious public rooms. On June 11, 1958, SS
Atlantic departed on her maiden voyage. While under the American Banner Lines flag, she ran between
New York,
Antwerp, and
Amsterdam. This service did not return the expected profit, and the vessel was again placed on the market in 1959. SS
Atlantic was soon acquired by the
American Export Lines. An extensive refit, completed in May, 1960, increased her tonnage to 18,100 gross registered tons. She was turned into a warm-weather
cruise ship, catering primarily to
tourist class passengers. She was equipped with a large outdoor pool and was given an all white
hull and superstructure. Her
funnel, in keeping with the
American Export Lines livery, was marked by black, white, and buff stripes. She could accommodate 880 passengers, 40 housed in first class accommodations. The vessel was fully
air conditioned and each passenger cabin was equipped with a private bathroom. She was fitted with stabilizers in 1961. SS
Atlantic had six passenger decks, with the uppermost designated as the Bridge Deck, and those below as the Boat Deck, Promenade Deck, Upper Deck, Main Deck, and “A” Deck, respectively. Between 1960 and 1967, SS
Atlantic ran successful cruises between
New York,
Florida, and the
Caribbean, stopping at
St. Thomas, Jamaica and other destinations. Her voyages were advertised as Beachcomber Cruises to the Caribbean. She also made 24-day cruises to the
Mediterranean. In January 1967, the SS
Atlantic ran aground on a
sand bar when leaving
Port Everglades,
Fort Lauderdale, Florida on a seven-day Caribbean cruise. Tugs required two days to dislodge the ship, which returned to Port Everglades without significant damage. Later in 1967, the vessel was withdrawn from service due to declines in passenger traffic. ==University at Sea==