Although it may seem I have abandoned this AU, I can assure you this is not the case. Work on the first few vessels for that AU has slowed work on this one a bit, but I have quickly edited a design that I can upload here.
-The Carolinian Line: The company known as the Carolinian line was formed in the wake of industrial explosion in the nation after the Civil War. It's original fleet consisted of 3 small passenger steamers that served the North American east coast, as well as 2 cargo steamers that plied the waters around the Caribbean, trading in goods such as sugar, exchanging them for manufactured goods and weapons. Towards the 1880's, the company benefited from government subsidies (intended to provide funding for new ships, which would increase national prestige) and a booming market for manufactured goods in both the Caribbean and South America. With the new influx of funds the company placed an order for 3 new ships:
-The Venture class: These 3 vessels (Venture, Voyage, and Expedition) where ordered as mixed passenger/cargo steamers from Denny's of Dumbarton in England. They displaced 4,500 gross registered tons. Cargo space amounted to 800 tons, including a refrigerator and an ice maker. Propulsion was of a high standard typical to most British-built ships. It consisted of four single-ended coal-fired marine boilers providing steam to a pair of 3-cylinder compound steam engines. They had space for 170 first-class passengers, 136 second-class, and 760 third class passengers, and could steam at a speed of 16 knots. They were all laid down in 1883 and were completed the next year. They entered service in 1885, carrying passengers to and from Charleston and Wilmington to ports like New York, Boston, Mobile, Rio de Janeiro, and so on and so forth. Carrying passengers, including investors and migrant workers, around the Southern Atlantic and Caribbean. Towards the 1890's they were relatively outclassed by larger liners, and were converted to cargo-only ships due to the fact that their cabin spaces were outdated and considered second-rate at best. The Voyage was even converted to a totally refrigerated ship for carrying agricultural products like beef and other meats, fruits, sugar, and tobacco. During World War One, Venture and Expedition were refitted as armed merchant cruisers, armed with two 4-inch guns, two 3-inch guns, and four 7.62-mm machine guns. They defended convoys across the Atlantic, helped blockade Germany's coast, and patrolled for U-Boats in the North Sea and Caribbean. Venture was part of the Carolinian task force that raided the German East African colonies, firing it's 4-inch guns against the oil tanks at the dockyards. The 3-inch guns and machine guns came in useful for repelling an attack by a pair of German motor launches. The Venture was preserved in Charleston after being restored, with one of the 4-inch guns being manned and fired by the Carolinian National Guard (the gun was mounted on land, not on the ship.) The Voyage and Expedition were sold to the breakers in 1926 and 27, respectively.
-NEXT UP: River ferries, maybe some more civilian ships, primitive submarines. I am busy working on the carrier for the CCCN AU and will get to work on these later.