USS Oglala (CM-4)

Figure 1: SS Massachusetts (American coastal steamer, 1907) shown after she was purchased and remodeled by the Eastern Steamship Corporation in 1912. The postcard bearing this image was postmarked at New York on 25 August 1914 by a passenger who had apparently become seasick on the passage from Boston, Massachusetts. This ship became the minelayer USS Shawmut in January 1918 and was renamed USS Oglala in 1928. Donation of Captain Stephen S. Roberts, USNR (Retired), 2008. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 2: USS Shawmut operating at sea in October 1918, during the laying of the North Sea mine barrage. The ship is painted in a disruptive camouflage scheme. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 3: USS Shawmut (CM-4) at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in January 1920. A Curtiss N-9 aircraft is on the water by her stern and another is resting on her after deck. A "Sea Sled" and motor launch are tied up along her starboard side. Courtesy of the US Naval Institute Photo Collection. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 4: USS Shawmut (CM-4) in the Caribbean area, April 1924. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 5: USS Shawmut (CM-4) at anchor with seven "S" and "R" class submarines alongside, circa the mid-1920s. Location is probably Christobal, Panama Canal Zone. Note: The original caption identifies this ship as USS Aroostook (CM-3). However, the searchlight on her foremast, and other details, confirm that she is actually Shawmut. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 6: USS Shawmut (CM-4) in the Hudson River, New York, with YO-5 alongside, 2 May 1927. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 7: USS Oglala (CM-4) photographed circa the late 1920s, soon after she was refitted with new boilers and a single smokestack. Note pine trees suspended from her jackstaff and foremast yards. USS Overton (DD-239) is among the destroyers visible in the left background. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 8: USS Oglala (CM-4) alongside the Pearl Harbor Supply Depot, 17 September 1941. Photograph from the Bureau of Ships Collection in the US National Archives. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 9: "The Japanese Sneak Attack on Pearl Harbor." Charcoal and chalk painting by Commander Griffith Bailey Coale, USNR, Official U.S. Navy Combat Artist, 1944. This artwork "... shows the destruction wrought on ships of the U.S. Pacific Fleet attacked in their berths by scores of enemy torpedo planes, horizontal and dive bombers on December 7, 1941. At the extreme left is the stern of the cruiser Helena, while the battleship Nevada steams past and three geysers, caused by near bomb misses, surround her. In the immediate foreground is the capsizing minelayer Oglala. The battleship to the rear of the Oglala is the California, which has already settled. At the right, the hull of the capsized Oklahoma can be seen in front of the Maryland; the West Virginia in front of the Tennessee; and the Arizona settling astern of the Vestal ..., seen at the extreme right. The artist put this whole scene together for the first time in the early summer of 1944, from 1010 Dock, in Pearl Harbor, where he was ordered for this duty. Coale worked under the guidance of Admiral William R. Furlong, Commandant of the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, who stepped from his Flagship, the Oglala, as she capsized." (quoted from the original Combat Art description). Courtesy of the U.S. Navy Art Center, Washington, DC. Official US Navy Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 10: Pearl Harbor Attack, 7 December 1941, view from Pier 1010, looking toward the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard's dry docks. In the foreground is the capsized USS Oglala (CM-4), with USS Helena (CL-50) further down the pier, at left. Beyond Helena is Dry Dock Number One, with USS Pennsylvania (BB-38) and the burning destroyers Cassin (DD-372) and Downes (DD-375). Official US Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 11: Pearl Harbor Attack, 7 December 1941, view looking toward 1010 Dock, with USS Oglala (CM-4) capsized in the foreground. To the left is USS Argonne (AG-31), with USS Sacramento (PG-19) barely visible beyond her. Collection of Vice Admiral Homer N. Wallin. Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 12: USS Oglala (CM-4) capsized alongside 1010 dock at Pearl Harbor, 9 December 1941. She was sunk during the Japanese air raid two days earlier. Preliminary salvage work on her is already underway "Battleship Row," by Ford Island is in the distance, with USS Maryland (BB-46) in center, alongside the capsized USS Oklahoma (BB-37). Astern are USS West Virginia (BB-48), sunk alongside USS Tennessee (BB-44). Farthest to the right are the sunken and burned-out remains of USS Arizona (BB-39). Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 13: USS Oglala (CM-4) capsized to port beside Pearl Harbor's 1010 Dock, circa January 1942. She had been sunk during the Japanese attack on 7 December 1941. An oiler is at the Ford Island gasoline wharf in the center distance. In the extreme right distance is the capsized hull of USS Oklahoma (BB-37). Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 14: USS Oglala (CM-4) under salvage alongside 1010 dock at Pearl Harbor in early 1942. She had capsized there during the 7 December 1941 Japanese raid. Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 15: USS Oglala (CM-4) capsized alongside 1010 dock at Pearl Harbor, with salvage work underway, 17 March 1942. Chains encircling her hull are part of the righting tackle. USS West Virginia (BB-48) and USS Arizona (BB-39) are sunk in the middle distance. Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 16: USS Oglala (CM-4) under salvage alongside 1010 Dock, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, circa 11 April 1942. YSP-13 and YSP-15 are among the salvage pontoons being used to try to raise Oglala's capsized hull. An oiler and the sunken USS West Virginia (BB-48) are in the background. Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 17: USS Oglala (CM-4) at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard in mid-1942, after she was salvaged. The ship had been sunk alongside Pearl Harbor's 1010 Dock during the 7 December 1941 Japanese air attack. Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 18: USS Oglala (CM-4) at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard following completion of salvage and initial repairs, circa December 1942. Oglala left Pearl Harbor for the west coast on 23 December of that year. She had been sunk in the 7 December 1941 Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor. Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 19: USS Oglala (ARG-1) photographed in the southwestern Pacific area, circa 1944. She is painted in camouflage Measure 32, Design 6d. Official US Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 20: USS Oglala (ARG-1) being scrapped at the Joffe Brothers Ship Breaking Yard, Richmond, California, 3 December 1965. Photographed by Lieutenant J.R. Shackleton, USNR. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.

The fast coastal freighter SS Massachusetts was built in 1907 by William Cramp and Sons, Philadelphia, and was operated by the Fall River Line. In 1912, she was purchased by the Eastern Steamship Corporation and converted into a coastal passenger liner. In 1917, the ship was purchased by the US Navy and was converted into a minelayer. On 7 January 1918, the 3,746-ton minelayer was renamed USS Shawmut (CM-4) and was sent to Great Britain to participate in the deployment of the great anti-submarine mine barrage in the North Sea. The ship was approximately 386 feet long and 52 feet wide, had a top speed of 14 knots, and had a crew of 407 officers and men.

Shawmut spent the rest of World War I working on the North Sea Mine Barrage. In December 1918, she returned to the United States and for the next 20 years served as an aircraft tender and a minelayer. To avoid confusion with the USS Chaumont (AP-5), the ship was renamed Oglala (after a Sioux Indian tribe) in January 1928. At that time, the ship underwent a major overhaul and substantial modifications, including a change in her appearance (she went from having two smokestacks to one). Although old and obsolete by the start of World War II in September 1939, by 1941 Oglala still was functioning as the US Navy’s principal minelayer.

On 7 December 1941 the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. On that day, Oglala was serving as the flagship of the Pacific Fleet Mine Force and was tied up outboard and alongside of the light cruiser USS Helena. They were tied up to Pier 1010 at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard when the two ships were attacked by the first wave of Japanese planes. A torpedo was dropped by an attacking aircraft and it ran underneath Oglala and hit Helena’s starboard side. The torpedo’s massive explosion tore a huge hole in Oglala amidships and the minelayer started to flood rapidly. A bomb also exploded next to Oglala, causing even more underwater damage. As the old ship began to sink, Oglala was moved aft of Helena so that it would not pin the cruiser against the dock. Two hours after being hit, Oglala rolled over to port and sank adjacent to Pier 1010.

Oglala initially was declared a total loss and the only salvage goal was to clear the sunken hulk from the pier so that it could be used for other warships. But for some reason, a decision was made to fully recover and repair the battered ship. The salvage effort proved to be an enormous task and 15 to 18 divers worked on the ship for nearly 2,000 hours, patching her hull, rigging chains, cutting away unwanted metal, and preparing the ship to be refloated. Ten salvage pontoons were used to drag Oglala upright as air was pumped into her to lighten the ship. The first attempt at righting the ship was made on 11 April 1942, but it failed after several connecting chains broke. Twelve days later, the second attempt at righting the ship succeeded, though Oglala was still mostly underwater. A big wooden cofferdam was constructed around her decks to enable water to be pumped out from her interior. The ship was briefly refloated in June, but sank on 26 June when a pump failed and the resulting flooding in the forward part of the ship dragged her down again. She was refloated on 29 June, but then sank again when the cofferdam broke. After being raised again a few days later, an unfortunate fire on 2 July almost sank the ship for a fourth time, but this time Oglala managed to remain afloat and was quickly placed in a dry dock. She was given temporary repairs throughout the rest of 1942 and in December finally left Pearl Harbor under her own power for California, where she received an extensive overhaul. Oglala had just been the beneficiary of one of the most complicated and extensive salvage operations in US Navy history.

Through 1943 and into 1944, Oglala was given permanent repairs and was converted into an internal combustion engine repair ship. The ship now was armed with one 5-inch gun, four 3-inch guns, and four 40-mm guns. Oglala was re-designated ARG-1 on 21 May 1943 and was re-commissioned on 28 February 1944. Oglala was sent to Milne Bay, New Guinea, in April 1944 and tended to patrol, mine, and landing craft. In July, the ship was sent to Hollandia, New Guinea, and in December she moved to Leyte in the Philippine Islands. Oglala returned to the United States in early 1946 and was decommissioned at San Francisco on 11 July 1946. She was struck from the Navy List and was transferred to the Maritime Commission the next day. Oglala was placed in reserve until September 1965, when she was sold for scrapping.

This tough old warship, which started life as a freighter and then was a passenger liner, ended up serving in two wars and received a new lease on life after enduring one of the most amazing salvage efforts in modern naval history. Few may know her name today, but this was a remarkable career for a ship that was never intended to serve in the Navy to begin with.

USS Vicksburg (PG-11)

Figure 1: USS Vicksburg (PG- 11) under sail, circa 1897-1898. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 2: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) under sail, circa 1897-1898. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 3: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) at anchor, circa the early 1900s. Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 4: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) coaling at Isabella, Basilan Island, Philippines, 1901. Courtesy of Captain Fletcher L. Sheffield, USN. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 5: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) on the marine railway at Canacao, near Cavite Navy Yard, Philippines, 1901. Courtesy of Captain Fletcher L. Sheffield, USN. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 6: Commander Edward B. Barry, USN, Commanding Officer, USS Vicksburg (PG-11), seated on the deck of his ship during operations in the Philippines in 1901. Courtesy of Captain Fletcher L. Sheffield, USN. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 7: Lieutenant Commander James H. Glennon, USN, Executive Officer, USS Vicksburg (PG-11), seated on the deck of his ship during operations in the Philippines in 1901. Courtesy of Captain Fletcher L. Sheffield, USN. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 8: Assistant Surgeon Karl Ohnesorg, USN, on board USS Vicksburg (PG-11), during operations in the Philippines in 1901. Courtesy of Captain Fletcher L. Sheffield, USN. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 9: Brigadier General Frederick Funston, US Army, conversing with the ship's Executive Officer on board USS Vicksburg (PG-11) during operations in the Philippines in 1901. Courtesy of Captain Fletcher L. Sheffield, USN. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 10: US Army officers lounging the quarter deck of USS Vicksburg (PG-11) while she was underway in the Philippines in 1901. Courtesy of Captain Fletcher L. Sheffield, USN. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 11: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) off the Mare Island Navy Yard, circa June 1904, upon her return to the United States from Asiatic waters. Note the "homeward bound" pennant flying from her mainmast peak. Courtesy of the San Francisco Maritime Museum, 1971. The original print is in the Union Iron Works scrapbook, Volume II, page 178. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 12: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) ship's officers and crew, circa 1904. Photographed by Karl Lewis. Collection of Captain Frederick R. Naile, USN. Donated by his daughter, Mrs. Whitney Ashbridge, 1979. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 13: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) in a Pacific coast harbor during World War I. From the collection of William Crawford, who served on board Vicksburg at that time. Photograph was donated by his daughter, Mrs. Ann Jordan, in 1976. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 14: USS Vicksburg (PG-11) at a Commanding Officer's inspection during World War I. From the collection of William Crawford, who served on board Vicksburg at that time. Photograph was donated by his daughter, Mrs. Ann Jordan, in 1976. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 15: The schooner Alexander Agassiz photographed at the time of her capture by USS Vicksburg (PG-11) off Mazatlan, Mexico, 17 March 1918. She was suspected of being a potential German raider or contraband carrier. The prize crew is seen here going aboard. USS SC-302 is in the background. Note the sailor on deck amidships, holding a rifle. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 16: German prisoners under guard on board USS Vicksburg (PG-11). They were captured on the schooner Alexander Agassiz off Mazatlan, Mexico, 17 March 1918. Note M1903 Springfield rifle, with bayonet, held by the sailor at left. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 17: USCGC Alexander Hamilton under sail, circa 1922-1930, while serving as US Coast Guard Academy training ship. She was formerly USS Vicksburg (PG-11). Courtesy of Donald M. McPherson, 1975. US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.

Named after a city in Mississippi, USS Vicksburg (PG-11) was a 1,010-ton Annapolis class “composite” gunboat that was built by the Bath Iron Works at Bath, Maine, and was commissioned on 27 October 1897. Vicksburg was classified a “composite” gunboat because it was built using wooden planks over a steel frame. The ships of the Annapolis class also were equipped with a single-screw power plant and a complete barkentine rig that could spread more than 11,000 square feet of canvas. These measures were taken to make them economical to run (they could use wind power instead of their more expensive coal-fired engines) and to substantially extend their cruising range, an important factor when dealing with large oceans such as the Pacific. Vicksburg was approximately 204 feet long and 36 feet wide, had a top speed of 12.7 knots, and had a crew of 143 officers and men. The ship was armed with six 4-inch guns, four 6-pounders and two 1-pounder cannons.

After serving briefly in the Caribbean, Vicksburg was ordered to join Rear Admiral William T. Sampson’s North Atlantic Fleet in May 1898, shortly after the Spanish-American War started. The North Atlantic Fleet blockaded the northern coast of Cuba and for the next three months Vicksburg patrolled off the coast of Havana, returning only occasionally to Key West, Florida, for fuel and supplies. While on blockade duty, Vicksburg captured three Spanish blockade runners. The gunboat did come under fire once from a shore battery near Havana, but by August 1898 the war was ending and Vicksburg was sent back north, arriving at Newport, Rhode Island, on 23 August. For the rest of 1898 and well into 1899, Vicksburg patrolled America’s east coast and the Caribbean. But on 24 May 1899, Vicksburg was decommissioned at Boston, Massachusetts.

On 15 May 1900, Vicksburg was re-commissioned at Newport and, after patrolling the Atlantic for almost six months, left Boston on 9 November to join the Asiatic Station. She went via the Mediterranean and the Suez Canal and arrived at Cavite, the Philippines, on 2 February 1901. For the next three years, Vicksburg supported the US Army in its effort to suppress the insurrection in the Philippines. Vicksburg made a significant contribution in that effort when she assisted US Army units in capturing the Filipino leader of the revolt, Emilio Aguinaldo, at Palawan Island in March 1901. In June, Vicksburg also assisted with the occupation of the two largest cities on that island, Puerta Princessa and Cuyo.

In 1902, Vicksburg was ordered to patrol off the coasts of China, Japan, and Korea. In 1904, she spent several months at Chemulpo, Korea, protecting American lives and property during the opening phases of the Russo-Japanese War. On 9 June 1904, Vicksburg left Yokohama, Japan, and headed for the United States. She arrived at Bremerton, Washington, on 29 June and then steamed south to the Mare Island Navy Yard, California, where she was decommissioned and placed in reserve on 15 July.

Vicksburg went back into commission at Mare Island on 17 May 1909 and left San Francisco on 16 June for duty off the coasts of Mexico and Panama. For the next three years, she patrolled the west coast of Central America and visited ports in Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Panama. She also spent a great deal of time protecting American interests in Nicaragua, which was suffering from almost constant violent political turmoil.

After completing overhauls at the Mare Island and Puget Sound Navy Yards, Vicksburg was transferred to the Washington State Naval Militia on 18 June 1912. She was used as a training ship and served in that capacity until the United States entered World War I in the spring of 1917. The only break in this routine came in May and June 1914, when she was briefly re-commissioned for a patrol off the coast of Mexico. After that trip, the gunboat returned to Puget Sound where she was placed back in reserve and continued operating as a training ship for the Washington State Naval Militia.

On 6 April 1917, America entered World War I. On 13 April, Vicksburg again was re-commissioned at Puget Sound. Although ordered to patrol the west coast of the United States and Mexico throughout the rest of the war, Vicksburg spent most of her time cruising off the coast of Mexico. At that time, Germany tried to convince Mexico to join the Central Powers in the war against the United States. The US Navy, therefore, kept a close watch on any possible German activity along the Mexican coastline, especially any German ships that were trying to slip into or out from Mexico.

On 17 March 1918, Vicksburg was anchored at Viejo Bay, Mexico, when she received word that a ship carrying German citizens was going to leave the Mexican port. At 1225, Vicksburg spotted a suspicious schooner, the Alexander Agassiz, flying the American flag and heading out to sea. Vicksburg decided to intercept the schooner after the Agassiz spotted the American gunboat and tried to make a run for it. Vicksburg fired a shot across the bow of the Alexander Agassiz and it quickly came to a halt. Vicksburg pulled alongside the schooner and soon an armed boarding party of American sailors jumped on board the mysterious vessel. It soon was discovered that the Alexander Agassiz was carrying 14 people, five of whom were German (there also were eight Mexicans and one American, a spy who initially sent the message to Vicksburg that a ship carrying German nationals was leaving Viejo Bay). The American sailors also found arms, ammunition, and a German flag on board the ship. A later investigation determined that the five German nationals probably were attempting to either return to Germany or reach a friendly port where they could arrange passage on a ship taking them back to Europe. Vicksburg towed the schooner and transported its prisoners to San Diego for legal processing.

Vicksburg continued patrolling off the coast of California until the war ended in November 1918. After the war, she remained on active duty on the west coast, but on 16 October 1919 Vicksburg was decommissioned for the last time at Puget Sound. Four days later, she was given to the Washington State Nautical School and served as a training ship.

On 2 May 1921, Vicksburg was transferred to the Coast Guard. Her name was struck from the Navy List and she was renamed Alexander Hamilton on 18 August 1922. She served as a training ship at the Coast Guard Academy until 1930. The Coast Guard decommissioned the old gunboat on 7 June 1930 and towed her to the Coast Guard Yard at Curtis Bay, Maryland, where she became the station ship there. In 1935 or 1936 (the exact day is not clear), the ship was renamed once again and called Beta. On or about 1 July 1940, Beta became the station ship at New London, Connecticut. By 1942, the ship was towed back to Curtis Bay, where she was used as a training ship for machinist’s mates and water tenders. On 30 December 1944, the once proud gunboat was withdrawn from service for the last time and on 28 March 1946 what was left of the ship was turned over to the War Shipping Administration and sold for scrap.

USS Newport (PG-12)

Figure 1: USS Newport (PG-12) oil on canvas by an unidentified artist. Courtesy of the Navy Art Collection, Washington, DC, Navy Art Accession #: 66-255-A, US Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 2: USS Newport (PG-12) 10 August 1915 in Dry Dock No. 2 at the Mare Island Navy Yard, California. Courtesy Darryl Baker. Click on photograph for larger image.

Named after a city in Rhode Island, the 1,153-ton Annapolis class “composite” gunboat USS Newport (PG-12) was built by the Bath Iron Works at Bath, Maine, and was commissioned on 5 October 1897. Newport was classified a “composite” gunboat because it was built using wooden planks over a steel frame. The ship was approximately 204 feet long and 36 feet wide, had a top speed of 12.8 knots, and had a crew of 156 officers and men. Newport was armed with one 4-inch gun, two 3-inch guns, and two 6-pounders.

Once the ship completed its “fitting out” process in Boston, Newport sailed to the Caribbean on 15 October 1897. From December 1897 to August 1898, Newport patrolled the West Indies and off the coast of Central America. During the Spanish-American War, Newport captured four Spanish ships but returned shortly after the war ended. The ship was decommissioned on 7 September 1898.

Newport was re-commissioned on 1 May 1900 and served as the training ship for the US Naval Academy and at the Naval Training Station at Newport, Rhode Island. However, she was decommissioned at Boston on 1 December 1902. Re-commissioned once again on 18 May 1903, Newport was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet and patrolled the East Coast as well as the West Indies. The ship was decommissioned on 17 November 1906 and then was loaned to the Massachusetts Naval Militia on 2 June 1907. On 27 October 1907, Newport was transferred to the New York Public Marine School and also was used as a training ship for the Third Naval District until June 1918. On 26 July 1918, Newport was reassigned as a training ship for New York State and was placed under the control of the Third Naval District’s Commandant. She went on a training cruise from New York to the Gulf of Mexico and the West Indies that lasted from 9 December 1918 to 25 May 1919, but was returned to the full control of New York State on 3 June 1919.

Newport was re-designated IX-19 and listed as an “Unclassified Miscellaneous Auxiliary” on 1 July 1921. She continued serving as a training ship until she was struck from the Naval Register on 12 October 1931. By an Act of Congress on 14 May 1934, USS Newport was given to the city of Aberdeen, Washington, and ended her days there as a training ship for the US Naval Reserves. Her final disposal date is unknown.

USS Nashville (PG-7)

Figure 1: USS Nashville (PG-7) at the Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia, 8 January 1898. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 2: USS Nashville (PG-7) between 1895 and 1901, by Edward H. Hart. From the Detroit Publishing Company Collection of the Library of Congress. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 3: USS Nashville (PG-7), date and place unknown. Courtesy David Buell. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 4: USS Nashville (PG-7) circa the early 1900's on one of the Great Lakes. Nashville was the first ship to capture a prize during the Spanish-American War and it was the first American warship sent by Teddy Roosevelt to arrive off Panama in support of the revolt in November 1903, which paved the way for the creation of the Panama Canal. From the collection of C. Munson. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 5: USS Nashville (PG-7) halftone reproduction of a photograph, published in "Deeds of Valor," Volume II, page 361, by the Perrien-Keydel Company, Detroit, 1907. The image shows crewmembers who participated in the cable cutting operation at Cienfuegos, Cuba, on 11 May 1898. They are posed in one of the ship's launches, after the ship had been repainted in peacetime colors following the end of the Spanish-American War. The Medal of Honor was awarded to several men who took part in this operation. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 6: Seaman Willard Dwight Miller, USN, a Canadian who served on USS Nashville (PG-7) during the Spanish-American War. Both he and his brother, Harry H. Miller, were awarded the Medal of Honor for exhibiting "extraordinary bravery and coolness" during the 11 May 1898 telegraph cable cutting operation off Cienfuegos, Cuba. This is a halftone reproduction. Courtesy of the Army Museum, Halifax Citadel, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1971. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 7: Seaman Harry H. Miller, USN, a Canadian who served on USS Nashville (PG-7) during the Spanish-American War. Both he and his brother, Willard Dwight Miller, were awarded the Medal of Honor for exhibiting "extraordinary bravery and coolness" during the 11 May 1898 telegraph cable cutting operation off Cienfuegos, Cuba. This is a halftone reproduction. Courtesy of the Army Museum, Halifax Citadel, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1971. U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 8: Coxswain Benjamin F. Baker, USN, halftone reproduction of a photograph, published in "Deeds of Valor," Volume II, page 362, by the Perrien-Keydel Company, Detroit, 1907. Coxwain Baker received the Medal of Honor for "extraordinary bravery and coolness" during the 11 May 1898 cutting of the underwater cable at Cienfuegos, Cuba. He then was serving on USS Nashville (PG-7). U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 9: Blacksmith Austin J. Durney, USN, halftone reproduction of a photograph, published in "Deeds of Valor," Volume II, page 360, by the Perrien-Keydel Company, Detroit, 1907. Austin J. Durney received the Medal of Honor for his "extraordinary bravery and coolness" during the cable cutting operation off Cienfuegos, Cuba on 11 May 1898. He then was serving on USS Nashville (PG-7). U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.


Figure 10: Carpenter's Mate Third Class William Meyer, USN, halftone reproduction of a photograph, published in "Deeds of Valor," Volume II, page 359, by the Perrien-Keydel Company, Detroit, 1907. William Meyer received the Medal of Honor for his "extraordinary bravery and coolness" during the 11 May 1898 cable cutting operation off Cienfuegos, Cuba. He then was serving on USS Nashville (PG-7). U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.

Named after the capital of Tennessee, USS Nashville (PG-7) was a 1,371-ton steel gunboat that was built by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company at Newport News, Virginia, and was commissioned on 19 August 1897. The ship was approximately 233 feet long and 38 feet wide, had a top speed of 16.3 knots, and had a crew of 180 officers and men. Nashville was armed with eight 4-inch guns, four 6-pounder guns, and two 1-pounders.

Nashville joined the North Atlantic Fleet shortly after being commissioned. At the start of the Spanish-American War, Nashville was sent south to join the blockade of Cuba and from 22 April 1898 to 26 July, she captured four Spanish ships. On 11 May 1898, Nashville took part in the daring raid to cut the underwater Spanish telegraph cables at Cienfuegos, Cuba. Several of Nashville’s crewmembers used one of the ship’s launches to assist in cutting two of the three major cables while enduring withering enemy fire from shore. Several men on board the launch were awarded the Medal of Honor for this operation. Nashville continued patrolling off the coast of Cuba for the rest of the war.

Nashville left the Caribbean on 14 October 1899 and steamed towards the Philippines via the Suez Canal, arriving at Manila on 31 December. She assisted in the military campaign against the Filipino rebels, primarily by providing gunfire support for US troops. At the start of the Boxer Rebellion in China, Nashville left Cavite in the Philippines on 8 June 1900 and transported a US Marine detachment that was to be used in the rescue of Western legation diplomats who were surrounded and under siege by the Chinese Boxers at Peking. Nashville arrived at Taku, China, on 18 June, disembarked the Marines, and joined the Western naval task force off the Chinese coast until the siege of Peking ended. Once the Boxers were suppressed, Nashville remained in China but was sent back to the Philippines on 3 February 1901. In July, she was ordered to the Mediterranean, arriving in Genoa, Italy, on 22 September 1901.

Nashville patrolled the Mediterranean for more than a year and on 1 November 1902 she left Gibraltar and headed back to the United States, arriving at Boston on 16 January 1903. The gunboat then was transferred to the Caribbean and remained there from 26 May 1903 to 4 March 1904, when she was sent back to Boston and was decommissioned on 30 June.

Nashville was re-commissioned on 8 August 1905 at the Boston Navy Yard and on 8 September was sent back to the Caribbean. She patrolled the waters off Santo Domingo, Cuba, and Puerto Rico until 26 June 1906, but was once again sent back to Boston for decommissioning on 23 July. After remaining in reserve for three years, Nashville was transferred to the Illinois Naval Militia on 29 April 1909. From May 1909 to July 1911, the gunboat was based at Chicago and was used as a training ship on the Great Lakes. After completing a major overhaul, Nashville left the United States on 7 January 1912 and arrived at Santo Domingo on 31 January, starting a five- year tour of duty protecting American lives and property off the coast of the West Indies and Central America. Nashville took part in the blockade of Mexico in 1914 during the Vera Cruz crisis and, after a short period of reduced commission in New Orleans from 10 May to 8 July 1916, was sent back to patrolling the Mexican coast until America entered World War I on 6 April 1917.

On 2 August 1917, Nashville left Norfolk, Virginia, and was sent to Gibraltar, arriving there on 18 August. The gunboat was assigned to patrol and escort duty off the coast of Morocco and she continued escorting Allied convoys off North Africa and in the western Mediterranean until 15 July 1918. Nashville eventually left Gibraltar and arrived at Charleston, South Carolina, on 1 August, where she was decommissioned for the last time in October. The old gunboat remained there for three years and finally was sold on 20 October 1921 to J.L. Bernard & Company of Washington, DC, for the Richmond Cedar Works and was ignominiously converted into a barge named Richmond Cedar Works No. 4. The barge was taken out of service in 1954 and was scrapped in 1957, a sad end to a once proud warship.