Yacht SS Delphine Is Up for Auction As Is, Where Is

One of the largest American-built megayachts in history, the classic yacht SS Delphine is set for a auction in early 2025. The auction terms are “as is, where is,” with the minimum bid much lower than a traditional sales price.

Set for February 5, the auction requires minimum bids of €500,000 (about $520,000). According to Marc Bernié, a lawyer with the French firm BMC Avocats, the auction is court-ordered. “The current owner did not pay the shipyard,” he states. That shipyard is Sud Marine Shipyard in Marseille, France. The 258-footer (79-meter), which saw initial delivery in 1921, is currently there, remaining through the auction. Bernié was unable to answer questions about SS Delphine‘s present condition, referring inquiries instead to Sud Marine Shipyard. A spokesperson for the yard did not respond to a request for details by press time.

The history of the yacht SS Delphine is simultaneously remarkable and tragic. Great Lakes Engineering Works, a shipyard in the Detroit area from the early to mid-20^th century, built her. Her owner was Horace Dodge, from the renowned Dodge automobile family, who named her in honor of his daughter. (The “SS,” for Steam Ship, came later.) Although the 258-footer wasn’t his first steam-powered yacht with this name, she certainly was the largest. In fact, Delphine was the world’s largest steam yacht upon completion in 2021. Additionally, Dodge was more than just her owner. Notably, he designed her original quadruple steam engines. Sadly, he never got to put them to the test. Dodge died in December 1920, about four months before her completion. Anna Dodge, his wife, kept construction going. The christening—by the newlywed Delphine Dodge Cromwell—took place on April 2, 1921.

yacht Delphine launch 1921 — the launch of Delphine in 1921

The Dodge family took delivery, primarily keeping the yacht at their home on Lake St. Clair, Michigan. The Grosse Pointe Historical Society, which has photos and documents about her, quotes her construction price at $2 million. It was a princely sum for the era, though arguably the yacht had features fit for a prince. For instance, a $60,000 pipe organ sat in a music room.

More tragedy struck in 1926. While in New York City, en route to the remarried Anna Dodge’s winter home in Florida, the megayacht caught on fire. The crew escaped unharmed, but the yacht sank. Following her raising, she headed to a shipyard in Brooklyn for repairs. It took several months, due to significant mud intrusion requiring all wood and machinery removed and repaired. While her layout remained the same, Delphine did gain a new interior from the famed Tiffany store in New York.

Following service with the U.S. Navy during World War II, the superyacht set sail back to the Dodge family. They held onto her until 1967, donating her to a foundation. A decades-long string of ownership changes soon followed. Neglect did eventually, too, with the yacht looking worse for wear in the 1980s. Not even her steam engines, still aboard, worked.

the yacht Delphine American-built megayacht

Though a European-based cruising company acquired her in 1990 to restore her in France, Delphine fell further into disrepair. In 1997, Jacques Bruynooghe, a jeans mogul who had seen her in a sorry state of affairs in Marseille during daily ferry trips, bought her. He and his daughter, Ineke Bruynooghe, embarked on a six-year, painstaking restoration. Ineke Bruynooghe particularly dove into the storied history to ensure period-authentic interiors and glamor. In 2003, 82 years following the original launch, the yacht SS Delphine touched water again, christened by Princess Stephanie of Monaco.

Charter guests from both sides of the Atlantic stepped aboard her decks for several subsequent years. Her weekly base rate of $470,000 let them enjoy the ambience of the bygone era, and—most importantly—the original steam engines. While the boilers were new, the powerplants themselves came back to life with the restoration. Of course, modern amenities like a hot tub were aboard as well. Subsequent owners kept SS Delphine on the charter market when they acquired her in 2015. Up to 26 guests could stay aboard, with upwards of 100 capable of enjoying dockside events.

For the upcoming auction of the yacht SS Delphine, bidders must have legal representation, Marc Bernié notes, plus place a deposit in an escrow account. He’s further arranging onboard visits for interested parties for January 13 at Sud Marine Shipyard.