After Rogers' death in 1909, the "Kanawha" served the U.S. Navy during World War I. After the war, it was sold to Marcus Garvey's ill-fated Black Star Line and renamed the S.S. "Antonio Maceo". However, the former luxury yacht was apparently in poor condition by this time. A boiler, used to generate steam to drive the ship, exploded, and a crewman was killed, while the vessel was located off the Virginia coast on its first voyage from New York to Cuba.