USS Glacier (AF-4)
Encyclopedia
USS Glacier (AF-4) was a Glacier-class stores ship acquired by the U.S. Navy for use in the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
. She served again during 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...
in the dangerous North Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, delivering general goods and ammunition to American Expeditionary Force
American Expeditionary Force
The American Expeditionary Forces or AEF were the United States Armed Forces sent to Europe in World War I. During the United States campaigns in World War I the AEF fought in France alongside British and French allied forces in the last year of the war, against Imperial German forces...
troops in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Acquisition for Spanish-American War service
The first Navy ship to be named Glacier was built as the merchant ship, SS Port Chalmers in 1891 by J.L. Thompson & Son, Sunderland, EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
; purchased from the Federal Line, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, July 1898; commissioned 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...
5 July 1898, Comdr. J. P. Merrill, USN, commanding; had her name changed to USS Delmonico 6 July 1898, and to USS Glacier 6 days later.
Glacier departed Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
15 August, and for the following 5 months she supplied ice, meat, and stores to ships of the North Atlantic Fleet operating in the West Indies during the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
. Sailing from San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
, 3 January 1899, she arrived at New York 1 week later, and decommissioned there 6 March.
Philippine Islands support operations
Glacier recommissioned at New York 31 March 1899, assigned to the Asiatic Station, she stood out of Hampton RoadsHampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
24 May and arrived 15 July at Manila Bay
Manila Bay
Manila Bay is a natural harbor which serves the Port of Manila , in the Philippines.The bay is considered to be one of the best natural harbors in Southeast Asia and one of the finest in the world...
via the Mediterranean and Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
. Operating in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
during these troubled years, she supplied U.S. Army and Navy forces with ice, meat, and stores; delivered stores to reconstructed gunboats at Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
; and transported large quantities of meat and provisions from Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
to Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
. Sailing out of Manila Bay
Manila Bay
Manila Bay is a natural harbor which serves the Port of Manila , in the Philippines.The bay is considered to be one of the best natural harbors in Southeast Asia and one of the finest in the world...
22 April 1903, Glacier arrived 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....
, 29 June, and decommissioned there 1 August.
Additional turn-of-the-century assignments
Recommissioning there 15 December, she loaded supplies and provisions at New York and delivered her cargo to ships at GuantanamoGuantánamo
Guantánamo is a municipality and city in southeast Cuba and capital of Guantánamo Province.Guantánamo is served by the Caimanera port and the site of a famous U.S. Naval base. The area produces sugarcane and cotton wool...
, Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
, and the Panama Canal Zone
Panama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone was a unorganized U.S. territory located within the Republic of Panama, consisting of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending 5 miles on each side of the centerline, but excluding Panama City and Colón, which otherwise would have been partly within the limits of...
(14 February-7 July 1904). Arriving at Boston, Massachusetts, 17 July, Glacier decommissioned there on the 30th and, following repairs, recommissioned 15 September and fitted out for special duty.
Continued Philippine Islands assignment
Glacier became a unit of the Special Service Squadron composed of BrutusUSS Brutus (AC-15)
USS Brutus, formerly the steamer Peter Jebsen, was built in 1894 at South Shields-on-Tyne, England, by John Readhead & Sons and was acquired by the United States Navy early in 1898 from L. F. Chapman & Company. She was renamed Brutus and commissioned at the Mare Island Navy Yard on 27 May 1898,...
(AC-15), Caesar
USS Caesar (AC-16)
USS Caesar was a collier built in 1896 by Ropner and Sons, Stockton-on-Tees, England, as Kingtor; purchased by the United States Navy on 21 April 1898; fitted out by New York Navy Yard; and commissioned on 13 May 1898, Lieutenant Commander A. B...
(AC-16), and Potomac
USS Potomac (AT-50)
USS Potomac , a tug built in 1897 as Wilmot by the F. W. Wheeler Company, West Bay City, Michigan, was purchased by the United States Navy from the Ocean Towing and Wrecking Company on 14 April 1898 for service in the Spanish-American War, commanded by Lieutenant G. P...
(AT-50), assigned to tow the floating dry dock Dewey
USS Dewey (YFD-1)
USS Dewey was a floating dry dock built for the United States Navy in 1905, and named for American Admiral George Dewey. The drydock was towed to her station in the Philippines in 1906 and remained there until scuttled by American forces, to prevent her falling into the hands of the invading...
(YFD-1) from Sparrows Point, Maryland, to the Philippine Islands. Departing Solomons, Maryland
Solomons, Maryland
Solomons is a community and census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,536 at the 2000 census...
, on the Patuxent River
Patuxent River
The Patuxent River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. There are three main river drainages for central Maryland: the Potomac River to the west passing through Washington D.C., the Patapsco River to the northeast passing through Baltimore, and the Patuxent River between...
28 December 1905, the squadron arrived at Olongapo, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, via Las Palmas in the Canaries
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
, Port Said
Port Said
Port Said is a city that lies in north east Egypt extending about 30 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal, with an approximate population of 603,787...
, Suez
Suez
Suez is a seaport city in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez , near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boundaries as Suez governorate. It has three harbors, Adabya, Ain Sokhna and Port Tawfiq, and extensive port facilities...
, and Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, 10 July 1906. Following delivery of the dock, Glacier proceeded to Cavite
Cavite
Cavite is a province of the Philippines located on the southern shores of Manila Bay in the CALABARZON region in Luzon, just 30 kilometers south of Manila. Cavite is surrounded by Laguna to the east, Metro Manila to the northeast, and Batangas to the south...
for discharge of cargo and repairs. She stood out of Cavite 16 August, and arrived at Boston, Massachusetts, 14 November via the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
, the Mediterranean, and New York.
Assigned to the Atlantic Fleet
Departing Boston 4 January 1907, Glacier became a unit of the Atlantic FleetUnited States Fleet Forces Command
The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...
, and engaged in supplying fresh provisions to ships operating in the Atlantic and Caribbean area until returning to New York 14 October.
Transferred to the Pacific Fleet
As a storeship, she departed New York 5 December and accompanied the Atlantic Fleet on its good willGoodwill tour
A goodwill tour is a term used to indicate a tour by someone or something famous to a series of places, with the purpose of expressing benevolent interest or concern for a group of people or a region, improving or maintaining a relationship between parties, and exhibiting the item or person to...
and training cruise to the Pacific, stopping at various ports in the 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...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
en route. Arriving 14 April 1908 at San Francisco, Glacier cruised with the fleet on the 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...
coast until departing San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, 29 June. She continued as supply ship to the Atlantic Fleet on its famous voyage around the world, visiting Honolulu, the Fiji Islands, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and the Philippines. On 21 October, while at Cavite, she became detached from the Atlantic Fleet and assigned to the Pacific Fleet in her former capacity. The Commander in Chief of the Atlantic Fleet reports in 1908:
- "The storeships Culogoa (1889) and Glacier have been in constant attendance on the fleet, and have most successfully met all demands upon them. They have made the fleet absolutely independent of the local resources at the ports visited, which was necessary in view of the large number of men to be subsisted."
Loading provisions at Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
and Sydney, Australia (10 November-5 December), Glacier joined the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Talcahuano
Talcahuano
Talcahuano is a port city and commune in the Biobío Region of Chile. It is part of the Greater Concepción conurbation. Talcahuano is located in the south of the Central Zone of Chile.-Geography:...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, 1 January 1909, and accompanied the fleet on a cruise to South and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
n ports and to Magdalena Bay
Magdalena Bay
Bahía Magdalena is a 50 km long bay in Comondú Municipality along the western coast of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. It is protected from the Pacific Ocean by the sandy barrier islands of Isla Magdalena and Isla Santa Margarita....
. They arrived at Mare Island
Mare Island
Mare Island is a peninsula in the United States alongside the city of Vallejo, California, about northeast of San Francisco. The Napa River forms its eastern side as it enters the Carquinez Strait juncture with the east side of San Pablo Bay. Mare Island is considered a peninsula because no full...
2 June for repairs.
World War I operations
Continuing in her service as supply ship to the Pacific Fleet until 1918, Glacier was employed in delivering fresh provisions, stores, ammunition, target material, and mail; transporting personnel; and towing target rafts and coal barges. Her principal area of operations was on the U.S. West Coast, MexicoMexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
. She made two trips to Asiatic waters (22 September 1909-14 February 1910 and 8 April-17 August 1912) to supply ships operating in the Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
an area, the Philippines, and the China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and 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...
coasts. From 1913 to 1917 she operated between 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...
and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
, delivering stores, mail and men to the Fleet, investigating conditions at Mexican ports, and giving refuge to United States and other foreign citizens during the unsettled conditions in Mexico. She loaded stores, fresh meats, and ammunition at San Francisco 9 to 14 May 1917, arrived 30 June at Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
and, through March 1918, delivered her cargo to ships operating on the east coast of South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
.
Delivering food and stores to U.S. troops in Europe
Departing Rio de Janeiro 2 April, Glacier arrived at New York on the 24th, and became assigned to NOTS. As a Naval Overseas Transport Ship, she made three trips to EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
carrying fresh meats and general stores to naval forces operating in European waters. The first two trips were made from New York to the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
, 2 June-26July 1918 and 13 August-20 October 1918, and the third trip from New York to Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
, 4 November 1918-4 January 1919, returning to 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....
, with a cargo of aviation material and high explosives for New York.
Standing in at New York 10 January 1919, she was detached from NOTS and assigned to the Train Squadron, Atlantic Fleet. From 6 May to 25 June 1919, she issued stores to the Atlantic Fleet and engaged in target practice with the fleet on the East Coast.
Reassigned back to the Pacific
Glacier departed New York 24 July, arrived 17 August at San Pedro, California, and became attached to the Train Squadron, Pacific Fleet. Until 1921 she was engaged in transporting stores, ammunition, and personnel to ships operating off the CaliforniaCalifornia
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...
coast and Panama Canal Zone
Panama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone was a unorganized U.S. territory located within the Republic of Panama, consisting of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending 5 miles on each side of the centerline, but excluding Panama City and Colón, which otherwise would have been partly within the limits of...
area.
Final decommissioning
Arriving 31 October 1921 at Mare IslandMare Island
Mare Island is a peninsula in the United States alongside the city of Vallejo, California, about northeast of San Francisco. The Napa River forms its eastern side as it enters the Carquinez Strait juncture with the east side of San Pablo Bay. Mare Island is considered a peninsula because no full...
, Glacier decommissioned there 6 March 1922 and was sold 17 August to Barde Steel & Machinery Co., Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, for $22,000.