Inspired by the exemplary service of the British liners RMS Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth, which transported hundreds of thousands of US troops during World War II, the US government sponsored the construction of a large and fast merchant vessel that would be capable of transporting large numbers of soldiers. Designed by renowned American naval architect and marine engineer William Francis Gibbs, the construction of the SS United States was a joint effort between the US Navy and United States Lines. To minimize the risk of fire, the designers used no wood in the ship's framing, accessories, decorations, or interior surfaces. Although the galley did feature a butcher block, the clothes hangers in the luxury cabins were aluminum. The ballroom's grand piano was of a rare, fire-resistant wood species - although originally specified in aluminum - and accepted only after a demonstration in which gasoline was poured upon the wood and ignited, without the wood itself igniting.

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