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USCGC Tampa (1921)
Encyclopedia
USCGC Tampa (Coast Guard Cutter No. 48) was a United States Coast Guard Cutter
that served in the United States Coast Guard
from 1921 to 1941, and then went on to serve in the United States Navy
from 1941 to 1947.
Tampa, a steel
-hull
ed, single-screw
cutter, was laid down on 27 September 1920 at Oakland
, California
, by the Union Construction Company
. She was launched on 19 April 1921, sponsored by Mrs. Joseph P. Conners, and commissioned on 15 September 1921, Lieutenant Commander
M. J. Wheeler, USCG, in command.
Tampa got underway for the United States East Coast, transited the Panama Canal
on 28 October 1921, and arrived at New York
, New York
, on 7 November 1921. On 23 November 1921, the cutter shifted to Boston, Massachusetts
, her home port. In the ensuing years, Tampa operated as part of the International Ice Patrol
established in the aftermath of the RMS Titanic tragedy in 1912. Between March and July — the peak months in which iceberg
s were regarded as a menace to the northernmost transatlantic sea lanes — Tampa conducted regular patrols, alternating with USCGC Modoc (Coast Guard Cutter No. 39) on 15-day stretches. At the end of each patrol, Tampa would put into Halifax, Nova Scotia
, for stores and fuel. Between these cruises in the frigid waters at the northern end of the Atlantic, Tampa operated on exercises and maneuvers, sharpened her skill with target practice and battle drills, and patrolled sailing regatta
s.
Shifted to the New York division, with headquarters at Stapleton, New York, in August 1932, Tampa arrived at her new home port on the 27 August 1932. She operated from this base until the late 1930s. During this time, she participated in the drama which accompanied the tragic fire on board the Ward Line
steamer SS Morro Castle
.
At about 0230 on the morning of 8 September 1934, a fire broke out on board the passenger ship as she was returning from a Caribbean
cruise. The fires spread rapidly, and incompetent seamanship on the behalf of her captain — who had only taken command after the ship's regular master had died earlier that evening — resulted in the loss of many lives.
Moored at Staten Island
, New York, when Morro Castle caught fire, Tampa received word of the disaster at 0436 on the morning of 8 September 1934. She hurriedly recalled her liberty party, got up steam, and put out to sea at 1540. It took two hours to reach the scene of the holocaust, but when she arrived, Tampa assumed direction of the rescue operations which, by that time, were already well underway. Surfboats from the U.S. Coast Guard's Shark River Station — the first help to arrive - had rescued some 120 people before the New York pilot boat and boats from the Sandy Hook Station appeared and joined in the effort. The cutter USCGC Cahoone had also been on station for some time.
Tampa passed a towline to the stricken ship, but it soon parted with the sharp crack of a pistol shot and fouled the cutter's screw. Tampa herself drifted perilously close to shore before the cutter USCGC Sebago towed her out of danger. When conducted in smooth seas, operations to save lives are difficult enough; the gale
raging off the New Jersey
shore on the morning of 8 September 1934 made matters markedly worse. Nevertheless, the Coast Guardsmen performed feats of great heroism in rescuing the liner's passengers and crew from the storm-tossed waves. During the rescue, Tampa had accounted for 140 survivors.
Shifted to Mobile
, Alabama
, in the late 1930s, Tampa operated in the Gulf of Mexico
into 1941. She came under U.S. Navy jurisdiction in November 1941, a month before Japan
attacked Pearl Harbor
. Apparently shifted back to the North Atlantic for coastwise convoy escort runs in the Greenland area, Tampa departed Narsarssuak, Greenland, on 3 May 1942 to escort the merchantman Chatham to the Cape Cod Canal. The ships stopped briefly at St. John's, Newfoundland, and then pushed on toward the Massachusetts coast. Tampa lost track of Chatham in dense fog on the 16th but regained contact near the eastern entrance of the canal and safely conducted the merchantman on her way. Tampa then searched, unsuccessfully, for a German U-boat reported in the vicinity before she put into Boston on the 17th.
She remained there for repairs and alterations until the 30th when she sailed for Argentia, Newfoundland. While escorting SS Montrose, Tampa picked up a sound contact and dropped depth charges but could not claim a "kill." On 3 June, Montrose ran aground on Moratties Reef. Tampa, assisted by two naval vessels, soon floated the merchantman free; and the cutter continued her escort mission, routed onward to Greenland. Arriving at Sondrestrom fjord on the 10th, Tampa conducted harbor entrance patrols before proceeding to Ivigtut. There, she guarded the cryolite mine—which provided ore vitally needed for the production of aluminum—from the 16th to the 26th.
During the last half of 1942, Tampa—designated WPG-48 in or around February 1942—conducted 12 more convoy escort missions between Iceland, Greenland, and Nova Scotia. She departed Argentia on 1 January 1943, in company with Tahoma (WPG-80), bound for St. John's where she arrived soon thereafter. Moored until the 6th, Tampa then got underway to escort a convoy routed to Greenland and then screened two groups of merchantmen—GS-18 and ON-161—to Newfoundland.
On 29 January, she got underway, with Escanaba
(WPG-77) and Comanche (WPG-75), to escort Army transport Dorchester
and merchantman SS Biscay a and SS Lutz to Greenland. Bad weather soon hampered the convoy's progress; and the flank escorts, Comanche and Escanaba, soon experienced difficulties keeping station. Icing had increased their displacement and reduced their speed accordingly. This fact, in turn, slowed the whole convoy. By 2 February, the weather had somewhat improved; but a radio direction finder had discovered the presence of an enemy submarine. Tampa accordingly screened ahead, some 3,000 yards from Dorchester, while Escanaba and Comanche were deployed on each flank, 5,400 yards from Lutz and Biscaya, respectively.
Convoy SG-19, as it was known, soon came into the periscope sights of U-223, which maneuvered astern to bring her tubes to bear. The U-boat fired her deadly "fish" which struck Dorchester astern at 0355. Tampa observed the transport veering hard to port and showing numerous small lights. Biscaya quickly fired two green signal rockets and executed an emergency turn to avoid fouling the mortally stricken Dorchester.
Three minutes after Dorchester had been struck, her master ordered her abandoned. As the ship went down, four Army chaplains gave up their life jackets to soldiers who had none to ensure the survival of others at the expense of themselves. Meanwhile, Escanaba and Comanche searched for U-223, while Tampa escorted Lutz and Biscaya to Skovfjord before returning to assist in the hunt for survivors. Tampa subsequently searched for survivors on the 4th, but sighted only numerous bodies; two swamped lifeboats manned only by corpses; and seven life rafts. She found no signs of life before she returned to Narsarssuak on 6 February.
Tampa resumed convoy operations, performing local escort in the Greenland area for the remainder of February 1943. She continued these operations through the spring. On 12 June 1943, she departed Narsarssuak with four other escorts, escorting a three-ship convoy for Argentia. The next day, at 0508, she observed smoke on the horizon, and received a report that Escanaba was afire. In fact, Escanaba had been blown to bits by an explosion of undetermined origin. Only three survivors were picked up by Raritan (WYT-93), and one of these died. The other two could not explain what had destroyed their ship.
Tampa escorted convoys for the remainder of 1943 before returning to Boston on the last day of the year for an overhaul which extended through January 1944. She resumed convoy escort operations in the North Atlantic, between Boston and Greenland—primarily in the Argentia and Narsarssuak vicinities—and continued the task through 1944 and into 1945.
With the cessation of hostilities in Europe in May 1945, Tampa resumed ice patrols off the Grand Banks in June through August, alternating with Modoc (WPG-46) and Mojave (WPG-47). Departing Argentia on 6 September 1945, less than a month after the war against Japan ended, Tampa operated between that port and Boston, receiving a 30-day availability at the Coast Guard yard in Boston in November and December.
Tampa subsequently cruised on North Atlantic ice patrol duties into August 1946. She was decommissioned on 1 February 1947 and turned over to the Maritime Commission's War Shipping Administration which sold her to Charles M. Barnett, Jr., on 22 September 1947.
United States Coast Guard Cutter
Cutter is the term used by the United States Coast Guard for its commissioned vessels. A Cutter is or greater in length, has a permanently assigned crew, and has accommodations for the crew to live aboard...
that served in the United States Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
from 1921 to 1941, and then went on to serve in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
from 1941 to 1947.
Tampa, a steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
-hull
Hull (watercraft)
A hull is the watertight body of a ship or boat. Above the hull is the superstructure and/or deckhouse, where present. The line where the hull meets the water surface is called the waterline.The structure of the hull varies depending on the vessel type...
ed, single-screw
Screw
A screw, or bolt, is a type of fastener characterized by a helical ridge, known as an external thread or just thread, wrapped around a cylinder. Some screw threads are designed to mate with a complementary thread, known as an internal thread, often in the form of a nut or an object that has the...
cutter, was laid down on 27 September 1920 at Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, by the Union Construction Company
Union Construction Company
The Union Construction Company was a company set up in 1901 and associated with Charles Yerkes, an American associated with the London Underground at that time...
. She was launched on 19 April 1921, sponsored by Mrs. Joseph P. Conners, and commissioned on 15 September 1921, Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
M. J. Wheeler, USCG, in command.
Tampa got underway for the United States East Coast, transited the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
on 28 October 1921, and arrived at New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, on 7 November 1921. On 23 November 1921, the cutter shifted to Boston, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, her home port. In the ensuing years, Tampa operated as part of the International Ice Patrol
International Ice Patrol
The International Ice Patrol is an organization with the purpose of monitoring the presence of icebergs in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans and reporting their movements for safety purposes. It is operated by United States Coast Guard but is funded by the 13 nations interested in trans-Atlantic...
established in the aftermath of the RMS Titanic tragedy in 1912. Between March and July — the peak months in which iceberg
Iceberg
An iceberg is a large piece of ice from freshwater that has broken off from a snow-formed glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water. It may subsequently become frozen into pack ice...
s were regarded as a menace to the northernmost transatlantic sea lanes — Tampa conducted regular patrols, alternating with USCGC Modoc (Coast Guard Cutter No. 39) on 15-day stretches. At the end of each patrol, Tampa would put into Halifax, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, for stores and fuel. Between these cruises in the frigid waters at the northern end of the Atlantic, Tampa operated on exercises and maneuvers, sharpened her skill with target practice and battle drills, and patrolled sailing regatta
Regatta
A regatta is a series of boat races. The term typically describes racing events of rowed or sailed water craft, although some powerboat race series are also called regattas...
s.
Shifted to the New York division, with headquarters at Stapleton, New York, in August 1932, Tampa arrived at her new home port on the 27 August 1932. She operated from this base until the late 1930s. During this time, she participated in the drama which accompanied the tragic fire on board the Ward Line
Ward Line
The New York and Cuba Mail Steamship Company, commonly called the Ward Line, was a shipping company that operated from 1841 until liquidated in 1954. The company’s steamers linked New York with Nassau, Havana, and Mexican Gulf ports. After a series of disasters in the mid 1930s, the company...
steamer SS Morro Castle
SS Morro Castle
The SS Morro Castle was a luxury cruise ship of the 1930s that was built for the Ward Line for runs between New York City and Havana, Cuba...
.
At about 0230 on the morning of 8 September 1934, a fire broke out on board the passenger ship as she was returning from a Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
cruise. The fires spread rapidly, and incompetent seamanship on the behalf of her captain — who had only taken command after the ship's regular master had died earlier that evening — resulted in the loss of many lives.
Moored at Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, New York, when Morro Castle caught fire, Tampa received word of the disaster at 0436 on the morning of 8 September 1934. She hurriedly recalled her liberty party, got up steam, and put out to sea at 1540. It took two hours to reach the scene of the holocaust, but when she arrived, Tampa assumed direction of the rescue operations which, by that time, were already well underway. Surfboats from the U.S. Coast Guard's Shark River Station — the first help to arrive - had rescued some 120 people before the New York pilot boat and boats from the Sandy Hook Station appeared and joined in the effort. The cutter USCGC Cahoone had also been on station for some time.
Tampa passed a towline to the stricken ship, but it soon parted with the sharp crack of a pistol shot and fouled the cutter's screw. Tampa herself drifted perilously close to shore before the cutter USCGC Sebago towed her out of danger. When conducted in smooth seas, operations to save lives are difficult enough; the gale
Gale
A gale is a very strong wind. There are conflicting definitions of how strong a wind must be to be considered a gale. The U.S. government's National Weather Service defines a gale as 34–47 knots of sustained surface winds. Forecasters typically issue gale warnings when winds of this strength are...
raging off the New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
shore on the morning of 8 September 1934 made matters markedly worse. Nevertheless, the Coast Guardsmen performed feats of great heroism in rescuing the liner's passengers and crew from the storm-tossed waves. During the rescue, Tampa had accounted for 140 survivors.
Shifted to Mobile
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, in the late 1930s, Tampa operated in the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
into 1941. She came under U.S. Navy jurisdiction in November 1941, a month before Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
attacked Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
. Apparently shifted back to the North Atlantic for coastwise convoy escort runs in the Greenland area, Tampa departed Narsarssuak, Greenland, on 3 May 1942 to escort the merchantman Chatham to the Cape Cod Canal. The ships stopped briefly at St. John's, Newfoundland, and then pushed on toward the Massachusetts coast. Tampa lost track of Chatham in dense fog on the 16th but regained contact near the eastern entrance of the canal and safely conducted the merchantman on her way. Tampa then searched, unsuccessfully, for a German U-boat reported in the vicinity before she put into Boston on the 17th.
She remained there for repairs and alterations until the 30th when she sailed for Argentia, Newfoundland. While escorting SS Montrose, Tampa picked up a sound contact and dropped depth charges but could not claim a "kill." On 3 June, Montrose ran aground on Moratties Reef. Tampa, assisted by two naval vessels, soon floated the merchantman free; and the cutter continued her escort mission, routed onward to Greenland. Arriving at Sondrestrom fjord on the 10th, Tampa conducted harbor entrance patrols before proceeding to Ivigtut. There, she guarded the cryolite mine—which provided ore vitally needed for the production of aluminum—from the 16th to the 26th.
During the last half of 1942, Tampa—designated WPG-48 in or around February 1942—conducted 12 more convoy escort missions between Iceland, Greenland, and Nova Scotia. She departed Argentia on 1 January 1943, in company with Tahoma (WPG-80), bound for St. John's where she arrived soon thereafter. Moored until the 6th, Tampa then got underway to escort a convoy routed to Greenland and then screened two groups of merchantmen—GS-18 and ON-161—to Newfoundland.
On 29 January, she got underway, with Escanaba
USCGC Escanaba (WPG-77)
The United States Coast Guard Cutter Escanaba was an "A" class cutter stationed on the Great Lakes from her commissioning in 1932 until the start of US military involvement in World War II in 1941...
(WPG-77) and Comanche (WPG-75), to escort Army transport Dorchester
USAT Dorchester
USAT Dorchester was a United States Army Transport ship that was sunk by a torpedo from a German U-boat on February 3, 1943, during World War II...
and merchantman SS Biscay a and SS Lutz to Greenland. Bad weather soon hampered the convoy's progress; and the flank escorts, Comanche and Escanaba, soon experienced difficulties keeping station. Icing had increased their displacement and reduced their speed accordingly. This fact, in turn, slowed the whole convoy. By 2 February, the weather had somewhat improved; but a radio direction finder had discovered the presence of an enemy submarine. Tampa accordingly screened ahead, some 3,000 yards from Dorchester, while Escanaba and Comanche were deployed on each flank, 5,400 yards from Lutz and Biscaya, respectively.
Convoy SG-19, as it was known, soon came into the periscope sights of U-223, which maneuvered astern to bring her tubes to bear. The U-boat fired her deadly "fish" which struck Dorchester astern at 0355. Tampa observed the transport veering hard to port and showing numerous small lights. Biscaya quickly fired two green signal rockets and executed an emergency turn to avoid fouling the mortally stricken Dorchester.
Three minutes after Dorchester had been struck, her master ordered her abandoned. As the ship went down, four Army chaplains gave up their life jackets to soldiers who had none to ensure the survival of others at the expense of themselves. Meanwhile, Escanaba and Comanche searched for U-223, while Tampa escorted Lutz and Biscaya to Skovfjord before returning to assist in the hunt for survivors. Tampa subsequently searched for survivors on the 4th, but sighted only numerous bodies; two swamped lifeboats manned only by corpses; and seven life rafts. She found no signs of life before she returned to Narsarssuak on 6 February.
Tampa resumed convoy operations, performing local escort in the Greenland area for the remainder of February 1943. She continued these operations through the spring. On 12 June 1943, she departed Narsarssuak with four other escorts, escorting a three-ship convoy for Argentia. The next day, at 0508, she observed smoke on the horizon, and received a report that Escanaba was afire. In fact, Escanaba had been blown to bits by an explosion of undetermined origin. Only three survivors were picked up by Raritan (WYT-93), and one of these died. The other two could not explain what had destroyed their ship.
Tampa escorted convoys for the remainder of 1943 before returning to Boston on the last day of the year for an overhaul which extended through January 1944. She resumed convoy escort operations in the North Atlantic, between Boston and Greenland—primarily in the Argentia and Narsarssuak vicinities—and continued the task through 1944 and into 1945.
With the cessation of hostilities in Europe in May 1945, Tampa resumed ice patrols off the Grand Banks in June through August, alternating with Modoc (WPG-46) and Mojave (WPG-47). Departing Argentia on 6 September 1945, less than a month after the war against Japan ended, Tampa operated between that port and Boston, receiving a 30-day availability at the Coast Guard yard in Boston in November and December.
Tampa subsequently cruised on North Atlantic ice patrol duties into August 1946. She was decommissioned on 1 February 1947 and turned over to the Maritime Commission's War Shipping Administration which sold her to Charles M. Barnett, Jr., on 22 September 1947.