 "Breslau" was built in 1901 by the Bremer Vulkan yard at Vegesack for the North German Lloyd line as the fourth of seven ships of the "Köln" class.The "Köln"-class ships, all named after German cities, were designed for the Bremen to Baltimore and Galveston route, and were specially fitted for steerage traffic.Though the class was designed with accommodations for 120 cabin-class passengers and up to 1,850 steerage passengers for service from Germany, "Breslau"'s capacity was somewhat lower, with room for 66 cabin-class and 1,660 in steerage.