“This plan demonstrates conclusively that the SS United States can be a powerful economic engine and cultural showplace that will create thousands of jobs, become a globally recognized destination, and generate millions in tax revenue,” said Susan Gibbs, president of the conservancy and granddaughter of the vessel’s designer.

Looming above the Port Authority terminals in Philadelphia, the SS United States appears both tantalizingly close and frustratingly faraway. As a photographer who specializes in images of abandoned places, I had dreamed of boarding the decaying ocean liner for years.