USCGC Acacia (WAGL-200)

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Coordinates: 16°17′N 63°44′W / 16.283°N 63.733°W / 16.283; -63.733
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other ships with the same name, see USCGC Acacia.

History
United States Army
NameGeneral John P. Story
NamesakeMajor General John P. Story
BuilderFabricated Shipbuilding Corporation and Coddington Engineering Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Laid down1918[2]
Launched15 September 1919[1]
Acquired1920[1]
Commissioned1920[1]
FateTransferred to the United States Lighthouse Service, 1927
United States Coast Guard
NameUSCGC Acacia
NamesakeAcacia
Acquired1922
Commissioned14 April 1927
IdentificationHull symbol: WAGL-200
FateSunk by German submarine, 15 March 1942
NotesUSLHS absorbed by the
USCG
1 July 1939
General characteristics
Class and type
mine planter as built, later Speedwell-class buoy tender
Displacement1,130 long tons (1,150 t)
Length172 ft 6 in (52.58 m)
Beam32 ft (9.8 m)
Draft11 ft 6 in (3.51 m)
Installed power
  • 2 ×
    water-tube boilers
  • 1,000 
    kW
    )
Propulsion
Range1,692 mi (2,723 km) at 11 kn (20 km/h; 13 mph)
Complement
  • 33 (pre-war)
  • 44 (1942)

USCGC Acacia (WAGL-200) was originally built for service by the

mine planter shortly after World War I and later transferred to the U.S. Lighthouse Service, which became part of the U.S. Coast Guard in 1939; when transferred the ship was redesignated as a Speedwell-class buoy tender. She was sunk in 1942 by a German U-boat
.

Construction

Acacia was laid down by

Mine Planter Service at Milwaukee.[2][1][3]

Service history

Army – transfer to the Lighthouse Service

Acacia was a mine planter, USAMP General John P. Story, originally built for the U.S. Army in 1919. Although intended for the

Coast Defenses of Chesapeake Bay. The ship was decommissioned on 10 November 1921.[1]

Six vessels of this type were transferred to the U.S. Lighthouse Service at no cost in 1921–1927 and redesignated as Speedwell-class lighthouse tenders, also functioning as buoy tenders. The original intent was for these vessels to serve a dual purpose: mine planter in case of a war, and lighthouse tender during peacetime. Unfortunately, this conversion proved to be impracticable and too expensive and they were modified exclusively for service as tenders at a cost of between $41,022 to $110,963. Each had a turtleback forecastle installed and their anchors were mounted high to prevent the ship from being hung up on a buoy she was servicing. A steel main deck was added forward; new windows were installed in the pilothouse, and a new refrigerating plant was added. All vessels were then commissioned from 1923 to 1927 with new names.[3]

Lighthouse Service and Coast Guard service

Acacia was assigned to the

San Ciprian hurricane, but was safely refloated.[3]

The ship's main mission was to place and repair aids to navigation equipment, in which they maintained approximately 255 during her time in service. The crew supported shore lights, unwatched lights, lighted buoys, unlighted buoys and beacons, and radio beacons on both the Panama Canals Atlantic and Pacific sides, the western Caribbean, Morro Puercas and the Jicarita Island Lights. In addition, Acacia rendered numerous salvage services involving vessels and persons in distress. The most notable was the rescue of the Brazilian training ship Almirante Saldanha. The vessel and its crew were given up for lost after the ship had run aground off San Juan Harbor Entrance 25 July 1938. Acacia rescued her crew, and the rescue created a celebration in Brazil and gained the attention of international officials.[3]

In June 1938,

Galveston, Texas for repairs, one of the longest towing operations in Coast Guard history to that time.[3]

Sinking

On 15 March 1942, from 11:37 until 12:11, while en route alone from

PBY "Catalina" and picked up by the destroyer USS Overton. They were landed at San Juan 16 March 1942. She was the only U.S. buoy tender sunk by enemy action during the war.[3][4]

Acacia sank at 16°17′N 63°44′W / 16.283°N 63.733°W / 16.283; -63.733, about 80 mi (70 nmi; 130 km) southwest of Saint Kitts and Nevis.[4]

See also

Notes

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e Clay 2010, p. 1195.
  2. ^ a b Shipping 1918, p. 35.
  3. ^ a b c d e f USCG.
  4. ^ a b Helgason.

Bibliography

  • "Shipbuilding Notes". Shipping: A Weekly Record of Marine Transportation, Supplemented by Ship Construction and Outfitting Notes and News. IV (5). Shipping Publishing Co. Inc., New York City. 3 August 1918. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  • "Acacia, 1927" (PDF). U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 August 2011. Retrieved 6 April 2017.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  • "U.S. Coast Guard Tenders - 1915 Through WWII (WAG, WAGB, WAGL, WLB, WLM, WLI, WLR, WIX)". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 14 February 2016. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  • Clay, Steven E. (2010). US Army Order of Battle 1919–1941, vol. 2 (PDF). Fort Leavenworth, Kansas: Combat Studies Institute Press. p. 1195.
  • Helgason, Guðmundur. "USCGC Acacia (WAGL 200)". www.UBoat.net. Retrieved 6 April 2017.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=USCGC_Acacia_(WAGL-200)&oldid=1203333600"