Dedicated to the civilian sailing vessels and their civilian crews commissioned into service to defend the front lines of our Shores.
The Mission of the Coastal Picket Patrol:
To discover and report any evidence of enemy activity, to attack enemy forces when armament permits.
Humphrey Bogart, Ernest Hemingway, Arthur Fiedler, the Governor of Maine, and WW1 flying ace Sumner Sewall were some of the notable members of the Coastal Picket Patrol (CCP), affectionally known as the “Hooligan Navy.”
On 15 May, 1942, Admiral E. J. King, Commander-in-Chief of the United States Fleet wrote to Commander Eastern Sea Frontier, saying in parts “It has been directed that there be acquired the maximum practicable number of civilian craft that are in any way capable of going to sea in good weather for a period of at least 48 hours at cruising speeds. These craft will be acquired and manned by the Coast Guard as an expansion of the Coast Guard Reserve. They will be fitted to carry at least four three-hundred-pound depth charges and be armed with at least one machine gun, preferably 50 caliber; and will be equipped with a radio set, preferably voice.”
By early fall, 1942, the Coastal Picket organization was operating with full effect along the Atlantic seaboard and the Gulf coast. More and more men enrolled for three months for more duty, at full time and with military pay. By 18 September, there were 480 craft actively engaged in Picket Patrol in the Atlantic and Gulf, working out of more than 30 bases. The summertime yachtsmen may feel that the men in this service were fortunate to be sailing around all the time, but the service probably was the most rugged and punishing of all duty engaged in by Temporary Reservists except the weather patrol in the North Atlantic. Patrols were often dull and monotonous and many times craft would return to their bases without having seen or heard sign of the enemy or survivors. Yet, they had to be out there and, by virtue of good numbers, remain “on top1” of enemy submarines and keep them down. The larger sailing vessels without auxiliary motors, known as the “Corsair Fleet”, worked far offshore. Because they moved noiselessly through the water, they were better than motor vessels for listening; they had greater cruising radius and could stand heavy weather better than motor vessels. Time and again, when storms approached, the motor craft were ordered in, but not so the sailing vessels. Listening devices on all craft, motored or otherwise, were carefully attended, and the surface of the ocean continually watched.
Districts were set up throughout the coastal regions of the United States and beyond from the Pacific, Gulf and Atlantic and Greenland Coast. At the peak operation of the program there were 536 Coast Guard small craft of service design, 627 acquired small vessels, and 2,093 small Reserve craft, a total of 3,256 small vessels in all Districts.
A Preliminary List of Known American Sailing Vessels That Served During World War II
The Coastal Picket Patrol Fleet
There are currently 33 names in this directory
Araner
Araner - (IX-57) - USS Araner was a Jack Hanna-designed wooden-hulled auxiliary ketch built in 1926 at Essex, Massachusetts by the Arthur D. Story Shipyards and acquired by motion picture director John Ford in June 1934. Originally named Faith, she was refurbished, and renamed Araner in honor of the Aran Islands, whence his wife’s family had come. - WWII service
The film director was appointed a Lieutenant Commander in the United States Naval Reserve in September 1934 and, according to one of his biographers, used Araner off Baja California for intelligence-gathering operations. In 1940, the commandant of the 11th Naval District commended Ford for his “… initiative in securing valuable information…” on that region.
After he was recalled to active duty in the summer of 1941 however, Ford had little use for his yacht. Shortly thereafter, America’s entry into World War II in December 1941 prompted the US Navy to acquire many private vessels and Araner was among them, for local patrol duties. Taken over on a bareboat charter on 27 January 1942, Araner was delivered to the US Navy at the section base at San Diego, California. Classified as a miscellaneous auxiliary and given the designation IX-57, she was placed in service on 26 February 1942. Assigned initially to the 11th Naval District and then, on 23 July 1942, to the Western Sea Frontier, the ketch operated out of San Diego, under sail power for much of the time, patrolling off Guadalupe and San Clemente Islands. - Transferred back to the 11th Naval District forces upon completion of her duties under the Commander, Western Sea Frontier, Araner was laid up at the Naval Frontier Base San Diego on 1 May 1944; and her crew transferred to YAG-6. Delivered to Mrs. John Ford on 12 July 1944, Araner was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 14 October 1944.
The film director was appointed a Lieutenant Commander in the United States Naval Reserve in September 1934 and, according to one of his biographers, used Araner off Baja California for intelligence-gathering operations. In 1940, the commandant of the 11th Naval District commended Ford for his “… initiative in securing valuable information…” on that region.
After he was recalled to active duty in the summer of 1941 however, Ford had little use for his yacht. Shortly thereafter, America’s entry into World War II in December 1941 prompted the US Navy to acquire many private vessels and Araner was among them, for local patrol duties. Taken over on a bareboat charter on 27 January 1942, Araner was delivered to the US Navy at the section base at San Diego, California. Classified as a miscellaneous auxiliary and given the designation IX-57, she was placed in service on 26 February 1942. Assigned initially to the 11th Naval District and then, on 23 July 1942, to the Western Sea Frontier, the ketch operated out of San Diego, under sail power for much of the time, patrolling off Guadalupe and San Clemente Islands. - Transferred back to the 11th Naval District forces upon completion of her duties under the Commander, Western Sea Frontier, Araner was laid up at the Naval Frontier Base San Diego on 1 May 1944; and her crew transferred to YAG-6. Delivered to Mrs. John Ford on 12 July 1944, Araner was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 14 October 1944.
Atlantic
Atlantic - (WIX 271) - Three-Masted Schooner - Honors and Awards: World War I Victory Medal, American Defense Service Medal, American Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal - WWI service - Following the United States declaration of war on Germany in April 1917, Atlantic was acquired by the Navy on 10 June 1917 and commissioned as USS Atlantic II (SP 651) on 28 July 1917 with Lieutenant C. S. Keller in command. - She was assigned to Patrol Force, Atlantic Fleet, and cruised along the east coast until November 1917 when she was assigned duty as a guard ship at Yorktown, Va., and tender to a squadron of submarine chasers. In January 1919 she was assigned to the 5th Naval District. She was decommissioned on 11 June 1919 at the Norfolk Navy Yard in Portsmouth, Virginia. She was sold to a private owner on 24 July 1919. WWII service - Atlantic was acquired by the Coast Guard and commissioned on 1 April 1941. She was assigned hull number WIX-271. She was assigned to Coast Guard Headquarters but was stationed at the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut where she was used for cadet training. She was decommissioned on 27 October 1947 and sold to a private owner on 10 September 1948
Black Douglas
Black Douglas - (PYc-45) is a three-masted staysail auxiliary schooner built for Robert C. Roebling (great-grandson of John A. Roebling and grand-nephew of Washington Roebling) at the Bath Iron Works of Bath, Maine, and launched on 9 June 1930. Designed by renowned New York City naval architects H.J. Gielow & Co., she is one of the largest steel-hulled schooners ever built. - WWII service - Coastal patrol vessel in United States Navy service during World War II (PYc-45)
Blue Dolphin
Blue Dolphin - (IX-65 ) - was designed by the famous naval architect William Roue, designer of the famous racing schooner Bluenose. Sometimes called a sister ship to Bluenose, Blue Dolphin was in fact considerably smaller but reflected the overall style of Bluenose. - World War II Service - Modified for Naval service at George Lawley & Sons Shipyard, Neponset, MA. from 26 March 1942 to 4 April 1942. Designated a miscellaneous auxiliary, IX 65 and placed in service at the Section Base, Boston on 6 April 1942. - Blue Dolphin spent the next 38 months serving as station vessel at Casco Bay, Maine. Shortly after Germany surrendered, she was placed out of service at Boston on 28 June 1945. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 11 July 1945, and she was delivered to the Maritime Commission's War Shipping Administration for disposal on 14 September 1945.
Booya
Booya - A three-masted steel schooner built in the Netherlands in 1917, was originally named De Lauwers. The schooner was renamed Argosy Lemal in 1920 and carried that name until 1949. As Argosy Lemal the ship served as one of the early United States Army communications ships from 1942–1949. In 1949, on return to civilian use, the vessel was renamed Ametco, Clair Crouch and finally Booya in 1964. Booya was last seen anchored off Fort Hill wharf in Darwin Harbour at about 8.00pm on 24 December 1974, the evening Cyclone Tracy hit Darwin. Nearly twenty-nine years later, in October 2003, she was discovered by chance in Darwin Harbour, lying on her starboard side in about 20 metres of wate. In November 1942, the Argosy Lemal (Boots) was requisitioned by the Commonwealth Government and she played an important role in the US Army Small Ships Section, functioning as a radio communication vessel in the Arafura and Timor Seas during World War II.[9][10] The crew of 12 was made up of Australians, Americans, Norwegians, Scandinavians, Scots and British personnel.[11] As operations against the enemy began in the island and ocean areas northward from Australia in 1942, amphibious communications became necessary
Bowdoin
Bowdoin - USS Bowdoin (IX-50) - The schooner Bowdoin was designed by William H. Hand, Jr., and built in 1921, in East Boothbay, Maine, at the Hodgdon Brothers Shipyard now known as Hodgdon Yachts. She is the only American schooner built specifically for Arctic exploration, and was designed under the direction of explorer Donald B. MacMillan. - On 22 May 1941 the United States Navy purchased Bowdoin from MacMillan for use in the war effort. She was placed in commission as USS Bowdoin (IX-50) on 16 June 1941. - WWII service - She was one of the very few sail powered vessels commissioned in the U.S. Navy during World War II. Her first commanding officer was her previous owner, Lieutenant Commander Donald B. MacMillan. (MacMillan had received a commission in the Naval Reserve in 1925 and was retired for age in 1938 but volunteered for active duty in 1941 at the age of 66.) MacMillan was soon reassigned to the Navy’s hydrographic office. As of March 1, 1942, her commanding officer was Lieutenant (junior grade) Stuart T. Hotchkiss.
Curlew
Curlew - (CG-65016) - WWII Wartime designation: CG-65016 – Picket Patrol - Donated on the 31st of January 1940 to the US Coast Guard Academy at New London CT for the grand sum of $1.00. Here she served as a sail-training vessel and saw coastal submarine patrol duty for the Coast Guard during WWII.
Dwyn Wen
Dwyn Wen - USS Dwyn Wen (IX-58), an unclassified miscellaneous vessel, was the only ship of the United States Navy to have that name, which was given to her by her former owner, possibly in honor of Saint Dwynwen. - Dwyn Wen was acquired by the Navy and placed in service on 19 February 1942 and assigned to the 11th Naval District and later to Western Sea Frontier. Placed out of service on 1 April 1943, she was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 18 July 1944 and sold.
Edlu II
Edlu II - Picket Commander Jakob Isbrandtsen. In 1941 the Schaefer family loaned the boat to the US Navy. She performed coastal security patrols (Corsair Fleet) during WW II. Winning a battle flag for scaring away German U boats off the coast of New England.
Geoanna
Geoanna - (IX-61) - Geoanna was a steel auxiliary schooner built in 1934 by Craig Shipbuilding Company in Long Beach, California. Geoanna was requisitioned during World War II for service briefly with the U.S. Navy before transfer to the U.S. Army for Southwest Pacific operation for the duration. - U.S. Army WWII service - On 1 February 1942 the vessel was acquired by the U.S. Navy from the Maritime Commission and placed in service 19 February 1942 as the unclassified miscellaneous vessel Geoanna (IX-61). Geoanna was never commissioned and thus never bore the USS designation. The vessel was assigned to the 11th Naval District performing miscellaneous duties for Port Director, San Pedro, California. On 2 July 1943 Geoanna was turned over to the United States Coast Guard for service as a Coast Guard operational training ship until being redelivered to the Maritime Commission by the Navy 28 August 1943. - The U.S. Army acquired Geoanna on 3 September 1943 for service in the Southwest Pacific Area. That command modified the vessel as a communications ship for use by the Signal Corps. On 12 December 1943 the ship became part of the Army operated radio communication fleet joining the other sailing ships Volador and the previously operating, Australian registered vessels, Harold and Argosy Lamal. A crew of mixed Army, Navy and Australian civilian personnel operated these predecessors of the CP, or Command Post, ships in the Port Moresby, Woodlark and Laee-Salamau areas. Geoanna was given the Army designation of TP-249. The ship served as a communications relay during operations of the Western New Guinea campaign into the Moluccas through landings at Tacloban in the Philippines.
Highland Light
Highland Light - (IX-48), was built by George F. Lawley & Son for Dudley Wolfe for long-distance ocean racing. Launched just weeks before the 1931 Trans-Atlantic race start, - WWII service - The estate of Dudley Wolfe donated the boat with a large maintenance fund in 1940 to the US Naval Academy Annapolis for sail training. President Roosevelt accepted the gift via U.S. Congressional Bill 3098 and Highland Light became USS Highland Light, Naval Ship IX-48, performing in U.S. east coast and Bermuda races. As part of the sail training program, many midshipmen
Hindu
Hindu - was built in 1932 by Hodgdon Bros.,East Boothbay, Maine and designed by William H. Hand Jr. for James W. Hall of New York City. - WWII service - The U.S. Navy commissioned “Hindu” during World War II, where she assisted the Coastal Patrol along the Eastern Seaboard. Log books indicate the navy men painted her gray, lined her with depth charges, mounted a machine gun on her deck and engaged a German U-boat on more than one occasion.
Irene Forsyte
Irene Forsyte - (IX-93) - The three-masted schooner MacLean Clan was built in 1920 by MacLean Construction Company, Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia for H.W. Adams of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. - WWII service - At this time, the U.S. Navy began looking for a smaller coastal vessel to serve as a Q-ship, complementing the larger decoy ships Big Horn, Asterion, and Atik. Purchased on 16 November 1942, for about US$12,000, the schooner was renamed Irene Forsyte and given hull designation symbol IX-93 on 7 December. She was delivered to the Thames Shipyard of New London, Connecticut, for conversion. Fitted with new engines, quick-firing armament, as well as concealed radar and sonar equipment, the auxiliary was commissioned 26 August 1943, Lieutenant Commander Richard Parmenter in command.
La Reine
La Reine - Type: Two-masted schooner - a classic John Alden design, loosely based on the Canadian bluenose schooners. Built in 1932 at the famous Hodgdon Brothers yard in East Boothbay, Maine. After the war she was re-rigged for ocean racing with a Marconi main, and in 1955, and again in 1959, finished first in her class in the Transpac Race. - WWII service - During World War II she served in the U.S. Coast Guard’s Corsair fleet, hunting Japanese submarines on the East Coast.
Migrant
Migrant - ((IX-66) - was designed by Henry Gielow, built at a cost of over 1 mil in 1929 by Geo. Lawley & Sons, Neponset, Massachusetts for Carl Tucker, of Manhattan, N.Y. - Wartime designation: USS Migrant (IX-66) - Sail Number: - Type: schooner - LOA: 223’3″ / 68.05m - LOD: 180’0″/ 54.86m - LWL: 168’0″ / 51.20m - Beam: 34’0″ / 10m - Draft: 14’0″ / 4.3m - Displacement: 661 long tons (672 t) - Ballast: - Original Owner: Carl Tucker, Manhattan, N.Y. - Original Name: - Year Launched: July 1929 - Designed by: Henry J. Gielow - Built by: Geo. Lawley & Sons, Neponset, Massachusetts - Hull Material: Vanadium Steel - Documentation or State Reg. No.:
Mohawk
Mohawk - (CGR-2543) – U.S. Coast Guard Coastal Picket Force, 1942 – 1943. One of the first civilian wooden sailboats to be selected into the Picket Force. - Type: Auxiliary Gaff Schooner (After Cockpit) - LOA: LOD: 60’4” / 18.39m LWL: 46’2” / 14.07m Beam: 14’5″ / 4.39m Draft: 8’9” / 2.67m Designer: John G. Alden (No. 359) Original Owner: Dudley F. Wolfe, Rockland, ME. Current Owner: Year Launched: 1928 Built by: F.F. Pendleton, Wiscasset, ME Hull material: Wood Working Sail Area: Downwind Sail Area: Displacement: 76,400 lbs / 34,654kg Ballast: Status: Lost off Marblehead, Massachusetts (1950s)
Odyssey
Odyssey - (IX-87) - was built in 1938 by Henry B. Nevins, Inc., City Island, Bronx as the Odyssey, the yacht was acquired by the Navy on 31 July 1942 from Mrs. Barklie Henry of Old Westbury, New York, converted to diesel auxiliary power in August and September at Port Everglades, Florida, and placed in service on 17 October. - WWII service - U.S. Navy – Saluda was assigned to the Port Everglades Section Base under the administrative control of the Commandant, 7th Naval District and remained there for outfitting. She was commissioned on 20 June 1943, Lt. Edward F. Valier in command, and assigned to the Bureau of Ordnance for experimental work at the Underwater Sound Laboratory, at Fort Trumbull, New London, Connecticut. In December, she sailed south to St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and thence proceeded to various Caribbean ports before returning to Mayport, Florida, for overhaul during the summer of 1944. In August, Saluda was ordered back to New London and duty with the Sound Laboratory. She continued operations there until she was decommissioned and placed in service in October 1945, to be retained at New London under the operational control of the Commandant, 3rd Naval District. Saluda was recommissioned on 20 May 1946 for further service as an experimental test vessel. She engaged in hydrographic work with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, until September and then returned to New London for duty at the Sound Laboratory through December. Again decommissioned and placed in service on 7 January 1947, Saluda remained at New London under district control until transferred to the 11th Naval District on 8 January 1948. On 26 May, she entered the Thames Shipyard for overhaul preparatory to sailing for the west coast. - Saluda departed from New London on 16 June and arrived at San Diego, California, in July to begin a long career of service with the Naval Electronics Laboratory. Operating as a silent platform, she was used in tests on experimental sonar equipment and techniques developed for undersea warfare. On 29 June 1968, she was reclassified YAG-87. - Saluda was placed out of service (date unknown), and struck from the Naval Vessel Register, 15 April 1974.
Pilot
Pilot - Designed by the renowned W. Starling Burgess, Pilot was intended to race and beat Bluenose, a foreboding Nova Scotia schooner and the fastest boat in the world, for the International Fisherman’s Cup. But due to the disappointing results of the 1923 race, in which the American boat Columbia was out-sailed, and the previous year’s defeat and disappearance of the boat Puritan, both financed by the Manta Club of Gloucester, the race was called off—and funding for Pilot ceased, just as the J.F. James and Sons shipyard neared her completion. Pilot’s death knell almost rang, but, luckily, the Massachusetts Pilot’s Association caught wind of her berth. - WWII service
During WWII, she was commandeered by the US Coast Guard. She made over 1,300 trips, moving “troop transporters, freighters, tankers, and ‘explosive ships’ loaded with tons of concentrated hell fire,” as an article from the October 14, 1945 issue of the Boston Globe phrased it.
During WWII, she was commandeered by the US Coast Guard. She made over 1,300 trips, moving “troop transporters, freighters, tankers, and ‘explosive ships’ loaded with tons of concentrated hell fire,” as an article from the October 14, 1945 issue of the Boston Globe phrased it.
Puritan
Puritan - (IX-69) - began active duty with the U.S. Navy, commissioned as USS Puritan (IX-69), Puritan was assigned to the Western Sea Frontier, 11th Naval District, San Diego. Fear of Japanese attack had reached a zenith on the west coast by 1942. Puritan operated on the San Diego Coastal Patrol throughout her Naval career, guarding against such an attack. Puritan had but a brief tour with the U.S. Navy and was placed out of service at San Diego, California, on 27 September 1943. She was struck from the Navy Register on 28 June 1944 and transferred to the War Shipping Administration for return to her former owner on 18 November 1944. - Wartime designation: Zahma (IX-69) - Type: Schooner, Center Board - LOA: 126′ 0″ / 38.00m - LOD: 102′ 9″ / 31.32m - LWL: 74′ 8 / 22.76m - Beam: 22′ 10″ / 6.96m - Draft: 9′ 0″ / 2.74m - Displacement: 262,000 / 118,841 - Sail Area: - Original Owner: Edward W. Brown - Year Launched: 1930 - Designed by: John G. Alden - Built by: Electric Boat Company - Hull Material: - In service: 1941 - Out of service: 28 June 1944 - Complement: - Former name(s) Sapphire Seas
Roseway
Roseway - was designed as a fishing yacht by John James and built in 1925 in his family’s shipyard in Essex, Massachusetts. Father and son worked side by side on Roseway, carrying on a long New England history of wooden shipbuilding. She was commissioned by Harold Hathaway of Taunton, Massachusetts, and was named after an acquaintance of Hathaway’s “who always got her way.” - WWII service - In the spring of 1942, Roseway was fitted with a .50-caliber machine gun and assigned to the First Naval District (New England). All lighted navigational aids along the coast were turned off during the war, and it was up to the Pilots and Roseway to guide ships through the minefields and anti-submarine netting protecting the harbor. At the end of the war, the Coast Guard presented a bronze plaque to the pilots in honor of Roseway‘s exemplary wartime service.
Sea Cloud
Sea Cloud - (IX-99) - Sea Cloud was built in Kiel, Germany, as a barque for Marjorie Merriweather Post and her second husband Edward F. Hutton of Wall Street’s E. F. Hutton & Co.. She was launched in 1931 as Hussar V; at the time of her construction, she was the largest private yacht in the world. WWII service
In 1943, the Navy asked for control of Sea Cloud and Nourmahal, another former yacht converted into a weather ship. On April 9, 1943, the United States Navy commissioned Sea Cloud as USS Sea Cloud (IX-99), though she maintained a Coast Guard crew.[2] She was assigned to Task Force 24.
Relieving USCGC Conifer in February 1944, Sea Cloud patrolled a 100-square-mile (260 km2) area near the New England coast, generating weather reports for the First Naval District. On February 27, 1944, Sea Cloud traveled to be refurbished at Atlantic Yard in East Boston, afterwards taking over a new one-hundred square mile area at Weather Station Number One.
On April 5, 1944, Sea Cloud received radar indication of a small target at position 39°27′N 62°30′W, bearing 350° at 3,000 yards (2,700 m).[2] General quarters were sounded and battle stations manned, but contact was lost ten minutes later. The target was identified as a submarine, but after Sea Cloud carried out standard anti-submarine drills with no evidence of damage being inflicted, she returned to port.
After minor repairs, Sea Cloud was rebased to Argentia, Newfoundland, where she was assigned to Weather Station Number Three. While patrolling the area on June 11, 1944, the crew spotted a Navy Grumman TBF Avenger, exchanging recognition signals. Sea Cloud received orders to report to the escort carrier Croatan and join the five other escort ships under her command. The envoy searched for a raft reported in the area, but returned with no sightings. After this event, Sea Cloud was once again reassigned to Weather Station Number Four. After a search for a downed aircraft, she returned to port in Boston. Sea Cloud was decommissioned on November 4, 1944, at the Bethlehem Steel Atlantic Yard and returned to Davies, along with $175,000 for conversion to pre-war appearance. For her wartime service, Sea Cloud was awarded the American Campaign Medal and the World War Two Victory Medal. - Wartime designation: USS Sea Cloud (IX-99) - Sail Number: - Type: Four-Mashed Barque - LOA: 316’0″ / 96.00m - LOD: - LWL: - Beam: 49’2″ / 14.99m - Draft: 19 ‘0″ / 5.80m - Displacement: 3,077 tons - Ballast: - Original Owner: Edward Francis Hutton, Marjorie Merriweather Post - Original Name: Hussar V - Year Launched: April 25, 1931 - Designed by: Cox & Stevens - Built by: Krupp family shipyard in Kiel, Germany - Hull Material: - Propulsion: Diesel-electric; two shafts
In 1943, the Navy asked for control of Sea Cloud and Nourmahal, another former yacht converted into a weather ship. On April 9, 1943, the United States Navy commissioned Sea Cloud as USS Sea Cloud (IX-99), though she maintained a Coast Guard crew.[2] She was assigned to Task Force 24.
Relieving USCGC Conifer in February 1944, Sea Cloud patrolled a 100-square-mile (260 km2) area near the New England coast, generating weather reports for the First Naval District. On February 27, 1944, Sea Cloud traveled to be refurbished at Atlantic Yard in East Boston, afterwards taking over a new one-hundred square mile area at Weather Station Number One.
On April 5, 1944, Sea Cloud received radar indication of a small target at position 39°27′N 62°30′W, bearing 350° at 3,000 yards (2,700 m).[2] General quarters were sounded and battle stations manned, but contact was lost ten minutes later. The target was identified as a submarine, but after Sea Cloud carried out standard anti-submarine drills with no evidence of damage being inflicted, she returned to port.
After minor repairs, Sea Cloud was rebased to Argentia, Newfoundland, where she was assigned to Weather Station Number Three. While patrolling the area on June 11, 1944, the crew spotted a Navy Grumman TBF Avenger, exchanging recognition signals. Sea Cloud received orders to report to the escort carrier Croatan and join the five other escort ships under her command. The envoy searched for a raft reported in the area, but returned with no sightings. After this event, Sea Cloud was once again reassigned to Weather Station Number Four. After a search for a downed aircraft, she returned to port in Boston. Sea Cloud was decommissioned on November 4, 1944, at the Bethlehem Steel Atlantic Yard and returned to Davies, along with $175,000 for conversion to pre-war appearance. For her wartime service, Sea Cloud was awarded the American Campaign Medal and the World War Two Victory Medal. - Wartime designation: USS Sea Cloud (IX-99) - Sail Number: - Type: Four-Mashed Barque - LOA: 316’0″ / 96.00m - LOD: - LWL: - Beam: 49’2″ / 14.99m - Draft: 19 ‘0″ / 5.80m - Displacement: 3,077 tons - Ballast: - Original Owner: Edward Francis Hutton, Marjorie Merriweather Post - Original Name: Hussar V - Year Launched: April 25, 1931 - Designed by: Cox & Stevens - Built by: Krupp family shipyard in Kiel, Germany - Hull Material: - Propulsion: Diesel-electric; two shafts
Seaward
Seaward - (IX-60 ) - Seaward (IX-60) was built by the Adams Company, East Boothbay, Maine, in 1920. She was acquired by the Navy on 31 January 1942 from Cecil B. DeMille Productions, Los Angeles, California. - WWII service - The auxiliary schooner was placed in service on 19 February 1942, assigned to the 11th Naval District, and homeported at San Pedro, California. On 23 July, Seaward was assigned to the Western Sea Frontier. Seaward ended the year at Mare Island Navy Yard. She was placed out of service on 1 April 1943, and was struck from the Navy List on 18 July 1944.
Serva La Bari
Serva La Bari - (Originally TEXEL), was designed as a Dutch “pilot boot” in 1923 by Boele Bolnes for Mr. Norberto Goizueta Díaz. - WWII service - Serva La Bari served during the war as United States Coast Guard Picket Patrol vessel
Shearwater
Shearwater - The auxiliary schooner Shearwater was designed by Theodore Donald Wells and built by the Rice Brothers Corporation in East Boothbay, Maine in 1929. - World War II Service - On November 7, 1942, after being requisitioned by the War Shipping Administration, she became a member of The United States Coast Guard’s Coastal Picket Patrol. She was painted gray and bore the numbers CG 67004. Based at Little Creek, Virginia she patrolled the waters east of the Chesapeake Bay entrance and south towards Cape Hatteras. She was designed and built as a gaff rigged schooner but during this period was changed to a Marconi rig.
Summerwind
Summerwind - Served her country during the Second World War as part of the Coastal Picket Patrol with her designation CGR-1989. As the noted historian Samuel Eliot Morison wrote, “( these vessels) had the arduous task of patrolling areas around Nantucket Shoals, west to Shinnecock and down to 40 degrees North…They kept at sea for a week of more and took everything that old man Neptune uncorked.”
Te Vega
Te Vega - (IX-77) is a two-masted, gaff-rigged auxiliary schooner. Originally launched as the Etak, she was designed by New York naval architects Cox & Stevens in 1929 for American businessman Walter Graeme Ladd and his wife, Catherine (“Kate”) Everit Macy Ladd. Etak (“Kate” spelled backwards) was built at the Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft shipyard in Kiel, Germany, and launched in 1930. - World War II service - USS Juniata (IX-77), an unclassified miscellaneous vessel, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Juniata River in Pennsylvania, which empties into the Susquehanna River. Her keel was laid down as Vega in 1930 by Krupp, of Kiel, Germany. She was purchased by the Navy from her owner, H. W. Rohl, of Los Angeles, California, in 1942. Delivered 20 July, she was placed in service 11 August 1942.
Trade Wind
Trade Wind - (CGR 2529) - WWII Wartime Service – Mr. Learoyd enlisted in the United States Coast Guard (possibly Coast Guard Reserve) in the spring of 1942. Due to some prior military service and his sailing experience, he was immediately made a Chief Bosun’s Mate (E7). Mr. Learoyd then skippered the “Trade Wind,” as part of the Coastal Picket Patrol Fleet. Trade Wind was given the wartime designation CGR 2529, on was on U-boat patrol out of Camden Maine in 1942.
Mr. Learoyd would occasionally talk about his WW II experience on Trade Wind. His son recalls that his father and his crew did five days out and two days in, as my mother mentioned he would be home a couple of days a week. Trade Wind sailed out of Belfast, ME, although may have been out of Gloucester, MA at times. His son remembers his father mentioning that they often worked with a blimp or dirigible, either which could carry a couple of depth charges. As far as his son recalls I know they never spotted a U-boat, but did participate in some rescues.
Mr. Learoyd would occasionally talk about his WW II experience on Trade Wind. His son recalls that his father and his crew did five days out and two days in, as my mother mentioned he would be home a couple of days a week. Trade Wind sailed out of Belfast, ME, although may have been out of Gloucester, MA at times. His son remembers his father mentioning that they often worked with a blimp or dirigible, either which could carry a couple of depth charges. As far as his son recalls I know they never spotted a U-boat, but did participate in some rescues.
Valor
Valor - (CGR-3080) - VALOR (built as HARDI BIAOU, 1928), was designed by John G. Aiden for Dr. Henry D. Lloyd, of Brooklin, MA. - WWII service - Valor served during the war as United States Coast Guard Picket Patrol CGR-3080
Vileehi
Vileehi - (IX-62) - The USS Vileehi a wooden-hulled ketch with an auxiliary engine was designed by Edson B. Schock and built in 1930 at San Diego, California by the San Diego Marine Construction Company. The vessel was acquired by the Navy from Hiram T. Horton of San Diego on 23 December 1941. - WWII service - Assigned to the 11th Naval District on 17 February 1942, Vileehi was given the designation IX-62 and placed in service on 26 February. She operated locally out of San Diego for the remainder of World War II and was placed out of service on 20 September 1945. Returned to her owner on 27 September, Vileehi was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 24 October 1945
Wolcott
Wolcott - (YN-92) - a 100-foot patrol boat built to combat rum-runners during Prohibition (1920-1933), was one of 13 in her class, which were delivered to the United States Coast Guard. Corwin was delivered first on October 21, 1925, ending with WOLCOTT on July 26, 1926. These 13 were steel-hulled patrol boats that were capable of close inshore work but were slower than the 75-foot patrol boats. They made up for their slower speed and lack of maneuverability with better accommodations for the crew so that they could stay at sea for longer periods and work well off-shore. They were all built by Defoe Boat & Motor Works of Bay City, Michigan. - USCGC (YN-92) - Type: 100-foot Corwin Class Patrol Boat - LOA: 99’8” / 30.38m - LOD: 99’8” / 30.38m - Beam: 23’0” / 7.01m - Draft: 10’9” / 3.28m - Displacement: Gross 173 Net Tons 105 - Hull material: Rivited wrought iron - Power: Twin 671’s Detroit diesels - Generator(s): Two 371’s generators, One 12.5 kw onan - Tankage: 4000 fuel, 2500 water, 1200 blackwater - Speed: 12 knots maximum (original spec) - Built by: Defoe Boat & Motor Works of Bay City, Michigan. - Year Launched: July 1926 - Other name(s): 1955 Pacific, Willamette Pacific 1969, Imagineer 1980, Friendship 1980 - Complement: 15 (with 1 warrant officer) - Current Owner: Diane S. House, Shawn Berrigan
Zaca
Zaca - Two-Masted Gaff Schooner - World War II Service - Due to the need for local patrol and rescue craft in the busy waters in the San Francisco area during World War II, the schooner was acquired by the Navy from Templeton Crocker on 12 June 1942. Placed in service on 19 June 1942 and assigned to the Western Sea Frontier, Zaca, classified a miscellaneous auxiliary and designated IX-73 operated as a plane-guard ship, standing ready to rescue the crews of any planes downed nearby. Eventually relieved by the frigates (PF’s) of Escort Squadron 41, Zaca was placed out of service at Treasure Island, California on 6 October 1944; and her name was struck from the Navy list on 13 November 1944.
Zahma
Zahma - (IX-63) - a wooden-hulled ketch with an auxiliary engine was designed by Edson B. Schock and built in 1930 at San Diego, California by the San Diego Marine Construction Company. The vessel was acquired by the Navy from Hiram T. Horton of San Diego on 23 December 1941. - WWII service - Acquired by the Port Director of San Diego, California, from R. J. Rheem on 13 February, Zahma was placed in service on 26 February 1942. Classified as an unclassified miscellaneous vessel and designated IX-63, Zahma was based at San Diego and operated as a local patrol craft into the spring of 1943. Placed out of service on 13 April 1943, her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 18 July 1944.
Zaida III
Zaida III - The John G. Alden designed Cutter Zaida was the third vessel of the same name for George Ratsey of Ratsey & Lapthorn - WWII service - Zaida was used during the 1940s in the Picket Patrol — (nine-man crew – lost her mizzen mast off Nantucket in bad weather tracking possible U-boats, crew injured, lost her radio, sails, 1.5 weeks no one heard from her…dec 17 was spotted by a military craft off the coast of Carolina under jury-rugged sails, rescued on Deceber 23 as weather permitted. a part of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary made up of motor boats, yachts and other small craft. Mr. Ratsey was the great-grandfather of Greenport residents Jane Ratsey Williams and her brother Colin Ratsey.
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Source: The Coast Guard at War The Temporary Component of the Coast Guard Reserve XX, January 1, 1948
Greetings, my father flew a B25 in WW11, (one of the best planes), my friends father sailed an Alden schooner in WW11 (one of the best boats) . As we were talking about our fathers service we realized that on April 18 th 1942, B25’s headed west to Japan with volunteer captains at the controls, and at the same time, volunteer captains sailed there sailboats East to meet the Grrmans.. Where did they get these men (and planes and boats)?
ZAIDA sails out of Greenport NY and has been owned by David Lish for 42 years.
The Ratsey family has no interest in the yacht at all.
I have a plaque from a 52′ ketch Felisi owned by my Grandfather. Recognizing her for her service to the Coast Guard during WWII.
I am trying to find out more about her service?
I’m looking into Carl Tucker (and his wife Marcia Brady Tucker) and found that they are connected not only to the Migrant but two other vessels. Great website, thank you!
My dad, a USCG Chief Bosun’s Mate, skippered the “Tradewind,” CGA2529, on U-boat patrol out of Camden Maine in 1942. I have a photo of the Tradewind I can scan send you
Hello,
I’m looking into Sumner Sewall’s participation, and can’t find any resources except one book talking about his serving in the Hooligan Navy. Would you please direct me toward other places I can look? Thanks.