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USS Conestoga (AT-54)
Encyclopedia
The second USS Conestoga (SP-1128/AT-54) was an ocean-going tug
in the United States Navy
.
Originally built as the civilian ship Conestoga in 1904 by Maryland Steel Company, Sparrows Point, Maryland, she was purchased on 14 September 1917 for the World War I
duty and designated SP-1128. She was commissioned on 10 November 1917, Lieutenant (junior grade) C. Olsen, USNRF, in command.
and the Azores
, and cruised with the American Patrol Detachment in the vicinity of the Azores. At the end of the war she was attached to Naval Base No. 13, Azores, from which she towed disabled ships and escorted convoys until her arrival at New York
on 26 September 1919. She was then assigned to harbor tug duty in the 5th Naval District at Norfolk, Virginia
.
Conestoga (which had received the hull number AT-54 in July 1920) went to the Pacific in late 1920. She was at San Diego, California
and Mare Island, California, during the first three months of 1921. On 25 March of that year the tug steamed out of Mare Island, with a barge of coal sailing via Pearl Harbor planning to take up an assignment as station ship at Tutuila
, American Samoa
.
Commanded by Lt. Ernest Larkin Jones, Conestoga was never seen again. Despite an extensive search, the only trace found of her was a lifeboat bearing the initial letter of her name.
Tug
Tuğ is a village in the Khojavend Rayon of Azerbaijan....
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...
.
Originally built as the civilian ship Conestoga in 1904 by Maryland Steel Company, Sparrows Point, Maryland, she was purchased on 14 September 1917 for the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
duty and designated SP-1128. She was commissioned on 10 November 1917, Lieutenant (junior grade) C. Olsen, USNRF, in command.
Service history
Assigned to the Submarine Force, Conestoga carried out towing duties along the Atlantic coast, transported supplies and guns, escorted convoys to BermudaBermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
and the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
, and cruised with the American Patrol Detachment in the vicinity of the Azores. At the end of the war she was attached to Naval Base No. 13, Azores, from which she towed disabled ships and escorted convoys until her arrival at 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 26 September 1919. She was then assigned to harbor tug duty in the 5th Naval District at Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
.
Conestoga (which had received the hull number AT-54 in July 1920) went to the Pacific in late 1920. She was at San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
and Mare Island, California, during the first three months of 1921. On 25 March of that year the tug steamed out of Mare Island, with a barge of coal sailing via Pearl Harbor planning to take up an assignment as station ship at Tutuila
Tutuila
Tutuila is the largest and the main island of American Samoa in the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific located roughly northeast of Brisbane, Australia and over northeast of Fiji. It contains a large, natural harbor,...
, American Samoa
American Samoa
American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the sovereign state of Samoa...
.
Commanded by Lt. Ernest Larkin Jones, Conestoga was never seen again. Despite an extensive search, the only trace found of her was a lifeboat bearing the initial letter of her name.