 | |
| Industry | Transportation |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1874 |
| Founder | George Bradbury |
| Defunct | 1908 |
| Successor | Pacific Mail Steamship Company |
| Headquarters | San Francisco |
Area served | Pacific Ocean |
| Services | Cargo and passenger |
| Owner | Central Pacific Railroad & Union Pacific Railroad |
The Occidental and Oriental Steamship Company (sometimes abbreviated to O&O) was an American shipping company founded in 1874 by US railroads wishing to provide competition to the Pacific Mail Steamship Company which had not complied with its obligations to them. Chartering vessels from different companies, the most important being the British White Star Line, the company quickly became financially successful, against the expectations of its founders.
Having succeeded in its primary objective, the O&O proved a serious competitor to the Pacific Mail, to the point that in 1900, the vice president of the latter became its president. In the following years, Pacific Mail having commissioned more powerful ships, the O&O gradually ended its chartering contracts. On October 30, 1906, the SS Coptic made the company's last crossing, which nevertheless continued to advertise sailings until July 1908.