Permanently moored on the scenic Hudson River at the foot of the campus across from New York City, this first collegiate floating dormitory[5] became one of the best-known college landmarks in the country.

[3] Twenty-four years prior to her duty as a floating dormitory, the ship served with distinction in World War II as USS Dauphin (APA-97),[6] a Windsor-class attack transport vessel.

Originally launched in 1944, Dauphin was awarded one battle star and was present in Tokyo Bay for the Surrender Ceremony of World War II on September 2, 1945.

[7] Following the war, the vessel underwent significant modifications and emerged as the cruise liner SS Exochorda[8] — a member of the "4 Aces", a post-war quartet of ships operated by American Export Lines.

During her eleven years of cruise liner service, from 1948 to 1959, Exochorda — along with her nearly identical sister ships in the "4 Aces" — regularly sailed with passengers and cargo on a 12,000-mile (19,000 km) route from New York Harbor to various Mediterranean ports.

Exochorda's conversion to a dormitory ship, following her purchase by Stevens Institute of Technology in 1967, required only minor modifications such as the connection of land-based water, sewer and electric utilities.

Located at the foot of the Stevens Institute of Technology campus in Hoboken, her venue afforded viewing of the large variety of watercraft that frequented the river.

Notable among the ships witnessed by Stevens' residents was the great transatlantic ocean liner, RMS Queen Elizabeth, sailing from New York on her final voyage on October 30, 1968.

With concurrence by the Coast Guard, four sets of pilings were driven into the river bed, wedging the ship in place and preventing her from drifting downriver in the event the lines were cut.

Despite high winds and accompanying storm surge, the pilings and mooring lines held the ship in place, usually without incident, except for minor damage in some rooms caused by the toppling of unsecured personal items.

The resulting wake from the passing ship tossed Stevens and caused the mooring bollard securing the bow lines to break away from its footing on the pier.

Hatch locations for cargo holds were: Contrary to her sedentary life as a floating dormitory, the ship's past was filled with travels to numerous ports in Europe and the Far East including Okinawa, Tokyo and Pearl Harbor in the Pacific.

As early as 1965, the idea of buying a ship arose as an interim solution to the potential housing gap following the institute's forecast of an increase in student enrollment.

Wilson T. Crisman, the institute's director of auxiliary operations and boating enthusiast long before the school acquired the vessel, oversaw the ship's purchase and conversion.

Exochorda's dining hall — on "B" deck, paneled with light, figured walnut and displaying artwork by artist Loren MacIver — became the main lounge on Stevens.

Located aft of the main dining lounge on "B" deck, these rooms were smaller and some lacked amenities such as portholes which were included in the passenger staterooms.

Connection of water, sewer and electric services with the Hoboken land utilities was facilitated by flexible piping (hoses) and cabling of sufficient length to accommodate the motion of the ship resulting from changing tides or severe weather.

Designed to the highest Coast Guard standards (1948), fire safety doors and smoke ventilation systems were functional and met local regulations.

As a benefit of their common heritage — Stevens, the former Exochorda, and Texas Clipper, the former Excambion, sisters ships in the post-war "4 Aces"[21] — many parts were interchangeable between the two vessels.

While a typical room harbored the usual complement of personal items such as a television, stereo and refrigerator, students aboard the ship were afforded more latitude regarding individual décor as compared to their land-based counterparts.

On cabin doors, life jacket and lifeboat informational placards, having lost their vital significance to time and circumstance, remained dutifully posted.

Reminiscent of her former glory days on the high seas, a mural reflecting the ship's Mediterranean sailing route, by Miné Okubo[h], decorated the main foyer.

White-on-black depictions of life at sea — whimsical "doodles" by artist Saul Steinberg[25] — added subtle context to Promenade's bar and smoking lounge.

Institute officials postulated that Stevens' popularity may have been due, in part, to the ship's appeal to "loners",[12] a supposition consistent with students' statements.

Within the next two years, however, declining enrollments, rising costs of heating the vessel and needed repairs prompted the institute to reassess the economics of maintaining Stevens.

After allowing for necessary painting and electrical wiring upgrades, the cost estimate for repairs totaled $100,000, forcing the institute's decision in April 1975 to sell the ship.

Recounting the events and sentiments on the day Stevens was towed away, the institute's alumni association expressed in its journal, "She disappeared into the fog and into our hearts.

She was returned to the U.S. Maritime Administration where she was mothballed and assigned to the Hudson River Reserve Fleet at Stony Point, N.Y.[2] ^ d:  Unlike a Murphy bed which tilts up into the wall by rotating on a hinge attached to short axis of the bed (head or foot), Stevens' berths tilted into the wall by rotating about the long axis, the side of the berth.

^ h:  Miné (pronounced "MEE-nah") Okubo, a Japanese American author and artist, created the Mediterranean mural map for the main foyer on SS Exochorda.

When asked to estimate the value of the unusually large (22 ft.) mural, — according to Dale Shively, Artificial Reef Coordinator for Texas Parks and Wildlife — the Steinberg Foundation responded, "not millions of dollars, but it's probably at least six figures".