22 April 1838 Completion of first steam powered transatlantic passenger crossing

The SS Sirius was a  wooden-hulled steamship built in 1837 for the London-Cork route operated by the St George Steam Packet Company. The next year, she opened transatlantic steam passenger service when she was chartered for two voyages by the British and American Steam Navigation Company. By arriving in New York a day ahead of the Great Western, she is usually listed as the first holder of the Blue Riband, although the term was not used until decades later.

She left Cork on 4 April and arrived in New York after a journey of 18 days.