USS Lyndonia (SP-734)

	Lyndonia (American Steam Yacht, 1907) photographed prior to her World War I era Naval service.
History
United States
Name	USS Lyndonia
Namesake	Renamed Vega, a star of the first magnitude in constellation Lyra used frequently by navigators.
Builder	Gas Engine and Power Company and Charles L. Seabury Company.
Laid down	date unknown
Completed	1905
Acquired	by the Navy 5 September 1917
Commissioned	4 December 1917 as USS Lyndonia (SP 734) at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Decommissioned	13 September 1919 at Philadelphia
Renamed	USS Vega (SP 734) on 20 February 1918, probably to avoid confusion with USS Lydonia (SP-700)
Stricken	circa 1921
Homeport	Norfolk, Virginia; Cape May, New Jersey; Annapolis, Maryland; Pensacola, Florida;
Fate	Sold 20 December 1921; ultimate fate unknown
General characteristics
Type	Yacht
Tonnage	276 gross ton
Length	175'
Beam	20' 4"
Draft	7' 9"
Propulsion	steam engine
Speed	15 knots
Complement	69
Armament	One 3-inch gun; One 6-pounder rifle; Two machine guns;
Armor	steel-hulled

USS Lyndonia (SP-734), later known as USS Vega (SP-734) was a

U.S. Naval Academy

. Post-war, she was disposed of through sale to the public.

Constructed in New York

Lyndonia—a steel-hulled, steam yacht designed by Charles L. Seabury and built in 1907 at

Philadelphia Navy Yard

, the former yacht was placed in commission on 4 December 1917.

World War I service

Start-up problems

Lyndonia departed Philadelphia on 22 December bound for

Christmas Day, while en route to the Virginia Capes

, the remaining boiler tubes blew, leaving the ship without any steam whatever.

As if losing steam were not enough, 10 minutes later, the hawser parted, leaving Lyndonia adrift for nearly 20 minutes before she was again taken in tow. Subsequently,

Norfolk Navy Yard

where the yacht then underwent repairs in drydock.

Ice blocks passage

Lyndonia got underway on 4 February for

Delaware Capes the following day, only to encounter heavy ice floes which blocked further passage. She accordingly returned to Norfolk, Virginia, and remained there into the spring, serving as dispatch and mail boat in the Chesapeake Bay

. During this tour of duty, on 20 February, the ship was renamed Vega.

On 22 April, Vega sailed for Philadelphia. Arriving there the following day, she was attached to the

Cold Spring Inlet, near Cape May, New Jersey, for patrols off the New Jersey

coast.

Friendly fire on a neutral ship

On 25 June, Vega sighted a ship resembling a surfaced submarine at long range. Going to general quarters, Vega altered course to close the unidentified craft and flashed recognition signals and challenges in Morse code. The ship would not respond, however, and Vega opened fire with her 6-pounder forward—firing six quick shots before the target hove to. Upon closer investigation, the unidentified ship turned out to be SS Skandeborg, a Danish merchantman bound from Cuba to New York City with a general cargo—mostly sugar. No member of the Danish vessel's crew knew Morse code—hence her seeming reluctance to reply to Vega's challenges!

The warship continued her operations out of Cold Spring Inlet into the fall of 1918. During this period, she also undertook local escort duties.

Assigned as training ship

On 28 October, following repairs at the

U.S. Naval Academy. She remained in the Annapolis vicinity from 1 November to 4 December before she got underway for Pensacola, Florida

, on 5 December.

Reaching Pensacola three days before Christmas, 1918, Vega conducted local operations out of Pensacola until 22 March 1919, when she got underway for Philadelphia.

Post-war disposition

The yacht remained at the

San Francisco, California, on 20 December 1921. Meanwhile, in 1920, Curtis had a new ship built named Lyndonia

after his home estate with that ship, one of the great yachts of its era, also seeing Army and Navy service in World War II.