Talk:SS Persian Monarch

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Did you know nomination

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Persian Monarch as a steamship
Persian Monarch as a steamship
  • ... that May Flint, one of the largest sailing ships of her day, was built using the wrecked steamship Persian Monarch (pictured)?
  • Source: Hard to sum down to a single quote, but page 125 and 126 of Chesapeake Circle sum it up
Created by GGOTCC (talk). Number of QPQs required: 1. Nominator has 13 past nominations.

GGOTCC 16:25, 3 November 2025 (UTC).[reply]

General: Article is new enough and long enough
Policy: Article is sourced, neutral, and free of copyright problems
Hook: Hook has been verified by provided inline citation
Image: Image is freely licensed, used in the article, and clear at 100px.
QPQ: Done.

Overall: Maximilian775 (talk) 15:37, 9 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

GA review

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Reviewing
This review is transcluded from Talk:SS Persian Monarch/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

Nominator: GGOTCC (talk · contribs) 19:46, 7 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Reviewer: Akaza (talk · contribs) 17:26, 8 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I can take this one, once I've finished my previous review. Always a pleasure to see civilian maritime history represented here. — ❆ AKAZA ❆ 17:26, 8 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

As this vessel spent most of her working life under the British flag, the article should ideally be written in British English, rather than American English.

Is there anything else that needs to be changed aside from the template and the spelling of licence?
Nothing I can see.

Service history

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  • "Persian Monarch soon joined the company, and was the first Monarch Line ship to reach New York City. In late December 1880, the steamship sailed from New York to London, but encountered poor weather. The ship was thrown around by the waves, and a leak sprung in the aft. The amount of water rapidly overwhelmed the pumps and began to flood a cargo hold before the captain abandoned the voyage and returned to New York."
Source? It's generally not a good idea to support a large chunk of text with a single source, with the exception of quote blocks.
This is the first time I have heard this. This segment is only five sentences long and greatly restructures and summarizes the New York Times article. Today's featured article, for instance, has an entire paragraph cited to one reference. Would you like a gift version of the New York Times article?
It's more my own personal practice. Although it's not as much of an issue if the information is all sourced from a singular source.
  • "At 9:30 pm on 2 May 1894, the ship struck a sandbar off Eastport on Long Island, and ran aground. The weather was clear and calm when the incident occurred, and crew from a nearby lifesaving station quickly responded. As the ship was not in any danger, they were dismissed by the captain. The steamship laid in 22 feet (6.7 m) of water, parallel to the beach and rested at an angle a quarter mile off shore. The next day, salvage work began with an attempt to free the ship's propeller, which failed. Locals gathered to see the stranded steamship as passengers remained onboard without concern. The ship began to settle into the sandbar, which was counteracted by pumping out water ballast. On the 4th, the low tide left the ship heeled over at a sharp angle, and high winds complicated efforts. Several tugboats arrived, one pulling a barge. Cargo from Persian Monarch was loaded onto the barge to lighten the load and passengers were swung over the side and lowered into another tugboat by a bosun's chair that night."
Same as above. Is there any information regarding the voyage she was on during the grounding (departure point, destination, etc.)?
I added "while sailing to New York". The article already established her route, so mentioning she left London is superfluous imo
Perfect.
  • "The sternpost and rudder were missing"
Link sternpost.
Done, thank you.
  • "The resulting aesthetic was described as 'ghastly'"
Described by whom?
The quote is from Harold A. Underhill, in his book. Since he does not have an article, I added "according to one author" and namedropped the more notable Lubbock, if that is OK
I would attribute the quote nonetheless (i. e. "according to maritime historian Harold A. Underhill....").
  • "In addition, she had a relatively low dead weight capacity, limiting the amount of cargo she could carry and worsening stability issues."
Link deadweight tonnage.
Thanks!
  • "She was operated as a tramp ship, and was towed to Baltimore in 1895 and loaded with coal for her first voyage. She then sailed to San Francisco, but a severe storm off Cape Horn caused parts of the masts to crash onto the deck."
Source?
Pages 124-127 of ref 17, which is Chesapeake Circle? It is free to access.
As this paragraph is composed of info from multiple sources, inline citations are a good idea in multiple places. I've fixed it.
  • "For the next several years, the ship carried various unrefined goods between the US East Coast and the Pacific, and was damaged by storms another two times."
What does "unrefined cargo" mean in this context?
I switched it to "raw materials and oil"
  • "In 1899, her owner was listed as W. D. Walker, who was affiliated with the company."
Is this Charles R. Flint and Co? Regardless of the intended company, I would mention it.
Chesapeake Circle states that she was owned by W. D. Walker, who is apparently distinct from the company. Pacific Square Riggers describes him as being in the company's interests. I'm not exactly sure how else to present the information as Walker and Flint are distinct from one another.
In which case, I recommend removing "who was affiliated with the company" from the sentence, if the affiliated company is unknown.
  • "On 8 September 1900, May Flint arrived off San Francisco carrying a full load of 5,000 tons of coal. The city was celebrating the 50th anniversary of California's admission into the United States, and a naval parade was planned. The port was crowded with various ships, and a tugboat could not be found to guide the bark. She instead sailed into port, but the wind was irregular. While the wind was initially strong as she approached the harbor, it rapidly subsided. The shift temporarily left May Flint uncontrollable, and she smashed into USS Iowa's ram. The sailing ship's bow began to sink as she drifted and collided with the bark Vidette, damaging both vessels. May Flint's crew used the opportunity to board Vidette as their ship capsized and sank within 15 minutes. Illuminated by a searchlight, boats from Iowa were able to rescue everyone in the water."
Source(s)? As above.
  • "May Flint's captain was blamed for the accident. The company president stated that a tug would have been needed, and that there were other opportunities to anchor without sailing further into the harbor. A local pilot stated that the event was solely due to poor judgment and the maneuver was always risky."
Source?
  • Would it be possible to include the coordinates of the wreck?
I do not have any sources that provide coordinates, aside from "between Alcatraz and Market Street." Should I leave this description as-is, or find coordinates to add in?
It's not necessary if the exact coords are unknown.

Overall a decent read. I'm putting it on hold until the improvements are made. ❆ AKAZA ❆ 09:10, 18 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

@GGOTCC would you need additional time to complete the changes? ❆ AKAZA ❆ 18:14, 20 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]
@Akaza I am working on it now, thank you! I have a few comments I would reply with for my own clarity. GGOTCC 18:17, 20 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]
I am confused about your comments asking for the sources, as the reference and page numbers are already listed in the article. Are you unable to see the references? Would you like the quote from the source? GGOTCC 18:30, 20 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]
I can see them. As I said above, having a paragraph cited by a single source at the end, if all the info therein is derived from said source, is not really an issue. However, when paragraphs consist of info from several sources, it is best not to add them all to the end of the paragraph, but allocate them to the relevant sentences. ❆ AKAZA ❆ 21:25, 20 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]
Oooh, I see what you mean! Thank you for clerifying! GGOTCC 22:12, 20 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]
No worries. Gratuitously overcomplicating explanations is somewhat of a hobby of mine after all. ❆ AKAZA ❆ 22:29, 20 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]
@GGOTCC I have reviewed the article again, and have fixed one or two things. Everything looks good now. Passing. ❆ AKAZA ❆ 09:06, 25 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]