Lykes Brothers Steamship Company

In 1898, the sons of Dr. Howell Tyson Lykes started a shipping business on the Gulf Coast of Florida.

[1] They used a 109-foot, 75 ton three-masted schooner to ship cattle to Cuba as a replacement for herds which were wiped out in the Spanish–American War.

Three years later, an office was opened in Galveston, Texas, and Lykes began offering general cargo transportation between the US Gulf and Caribbean ports.

After passage of the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, they committed themselves to the replacement of their fleet with modern freighters.

The general offices were later moved to the SunTrust Tower at 401 East Jackson Street in Tampa.

On February 24, 1997, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Alexander Paskay approved a bid by CP Ships, Ltd. to buy Lykes Brothers Steamship Co.

This electro/hydraulic "sled" moved onto the elevator and 76 hydraulic jacks lifted the barge just enough to bring it into the ship.