SS Liberté Passenger Lists 1954
The SS Liberté (1950) of the CGT-French Line, Ex-Europa (1930). GGA Image ID # 1d21bbf3e6
Europa (1930) North German Lloyd/Liberté (1946) French Line
Built by Blohm & Voss, Hamburg, Germany. Tonnage: 49,746. Dimensions: 890' x 102" (936' o.l.). Quadruple screw, 28 knots. Steam turbines. Two masts and two funnels. Launched in August 1928. From keel to top of masts 236 feet. Funnels measured 50' x 21'. Cost $20,000,000 to build. At one time carried an airplane that was launched from the ship by a catapult. Maiden voyage: Bremen-Southampton-New York, March 19, 1930. A serious fire had delayed her completion for about a year. She became a trans-Atlantic record breaker, by making the westward passage in 4 days, 17 hours, 6 minutes. Remained tied up in a German harbor throughout World War II. After the war was used as a troopship to bring back soldiers to the United States. The liner was turned over to the French in 1946. Renamed: Liberte (1946). While being reconditioned at Havre for service, she was torn from her moorings during a severe gale in December 1946, and sustained serious dam age when she crashed into the sunken hulk of the former French luxury liner Paris. As a result her hull was ripped open and she sank in the water of the harbor, but was subsequently refloated and reconditioned at great cost. Commenced her maiden voyage as a French liner in August 1950. Note: See Liberte for additional information. Sister ship: Bremen.
Liberte (1930) French Line.
Built by Blohm & Voss, Hamburg, Germany. Tonnage: 51,839. Dimensions: 890' x 102" (936' o.l.). Quadruple Screw, 27 knots. Twelve steam turbines. Two masts and two funnels. Note: Allocated to France in May 1946. Broke loose during a severe gale in December 1946, while in the process of being thoroughly reconditioned for trans-Atlantic Service. She was driven against the sunken hulk of the former luxury liner Paris, and a large section of her hull was ripped open and she sank in the water of the harbor. Her re-entry into service was delayed for a number of months. Reconstruction was completed in 1950, at a total cost of about $19,500,000. First voyage: Havre-New York, August 17, 1950. New funnels were fitted in 1954. Passengers: 555 first, 497 cabin, 450 tourist. Sold to Italian shipbreakers, Decem ber 30, 1961. Ex-Europa (1946).
All Digitized Passenger Lists For the SS Liberté Available at the GG Archives. Listing Includes Date Voyage Began, Steamship Line, Vessel, Passenger Class and Route.
1954-09-21 SS Liberté Passenger List
- Steamship Line: Compagnie Générale Transatlantique / French Line (CGT)
- Class of Passengers: Cabin and Tourist Class
- Date of Departure: 21 September 1954
- Route: Le Havre to New York via Southampton
- Commander: Commanded by Captain Paul Kerharo
Passenger Lists contained in the GG Archives collection represent the souvenir list provided to the passengers of each cabin class (and other classes). Many of these souvenir passenger lists have disappeared over the years. Our collection contains a sampling of what was originally produced and printed by the steamship lines.
⚠️ About Accuracy in Historical Records Research Tip
Context. The GG Archives presents passenger lists as faithfully as possible to the original documents. While OCR is generally accurate, portions of these collections—especially image captions and some transcriptions—are typed by hand and may include typographical or spelling variations. The original manifests themselves also contained clerical inconsistencies (names recorded phonetically, mid-voyage corrections, etc.).
What this means for your research:
- Search variant spellings of names (e.g., “Schmidt/Schmitt/Smith,” “Giuseppe/Joseph”).
- Cross-reference with immigration cards, passport applications, naturalization files, city directories, and newspapers.
- Treat manifests as primary sources with historical quirks—use them alongside corroborating records.
- For place names, consider historical borders and language variants (e.g., Danzig/Gdańsk, Trieste/Trst).
How to cite. When quoting a name from a manifest, consider adding [sic] for obvious misspellings and include a note such as “spelling as printed in original passenger list.”
Need help? If you spot a likely transcription error in captions, feel free to contact us with the page URL and a brief note—we love community input. 🙏
Curator’s Note
For over 25 years, I've been dedicated to a unique mission: tracking down, curating, preserving, scanning, and transcribing historical materials. These materials, carefully researched, organized, and enriched with context, live on here at the GG Archives. Each passenger list isn't just posted — it's a testament to our commitment to helping you see the people and stories behind the names.
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