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USS Proteus (AC-9)
Encyclopedia
The collier
USS Proteus (AC-9) was laid down on 31 October 1911, by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, and launched on 14 September 1912. With the threat of war looming, she was commissioned on 9 July 1913, to the United States Navy
, Master Robert J. Easton, Naval Auxiliary Service, in command.
on 11 November 1913, on the first of four runs to Vera Cruz
to coal battleship
s and cruiser
s of the Atlantic Fleet
off Mexico
. On 17 December 1914, Proteus left Hampton Roads
carrying men, fuel, and stores to the Philippines
. She completed the final of four such runs on 4 August of that year.
Sailing again from Norfolk on 25 September 1914, Proteus supplied coal, oil, men and stores for ships of the Atlantic Fleet at Rio de Janeiro
and Montevideo
. Assigned to the Naval Overseas Transport Service, she operated between Norfolk, Boston and New York City for the next several years.
Proteus set forth from New York on 14 July 1918, for the British Isles, returning to Hampton Roads on 19 September. She left again on Christmas Eve of 1918 for Brest, France
, and spent the next six months shipping coal from Cardiff
and Barry, Wales
, to Brest.
Proteus returned to Norfolk on 6 August 1919, and during the greater part of the next three years cruised from Norfolk to replenish the Fleet in the Caribbean.
In the aftermath of World War I
, Proteus cruised from Norfolk to replenish the U.S. Fleet in the Caribbean
. Crossing the Panama Canal
four times, she delivered fuel and stores to Pearl Harbor
in 1920, and to Callao, Peru in 1921.
Her last supply run to the Caribbean ended at Hampton Roads on 12 April 1923. Proteus spent the remainder of her career in operations between Norfolk and Melville, Rhode Island
.
She decommissioned at Norfolk on 25 March 1924 and remained inactive until her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
on 5 December 1940. She was sold to Saguenay Terminals Ltd. of Ottawa, Ontario on 8 March 1941.
A memorial listing of her crew can be found at the CWGC Halifax Memorial. A Canadian website suggests Proteuss possible fate.
Two of Proteuss three sister-ships, and , also vanished without a trace in the Bermuda Triangle
area while doing similar duty during World War I
and World War II
, respectively. Her third sister-ship, , was converted into the very first U.S aircraft carrier
and renamed .
Collier (ship type)
Collier is a historical term used to describe a bulk cargo ship designed to carry coal, especially for naval use by coal-fired warships. In the late 18th century a number of wooden-hulled sailing colliers gained fame after being adapted for use in voyages of exploration in the South Pacific, for...
USS Proteus (AC-9) was laid down on 31 October 1911, by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, and launched on 14 September 1912. With the threat of war looming, she was commissioned on 9 July 1913, to 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...
, Master Robert J. Easton, Naval Auxiliary Service, in command.
Service history
Following her fitting out and shakedown, Proteus steamed out of Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk, 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....
on 11 November 1913, on the first of four runs to Vera Cruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
to coal battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
s and cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
s of the Atlantic Fleet
United 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...
off 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...
. On 17 December 1914, Proteus left 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...
carrying men, fuel, and stores to 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...
. She completed the final of four such runs on 4 August of that year.
Sailing again from Norfolk on 25 September 1914, Proteus supplied coal, oil, men and stores for ships of the Atlantic Fleet 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 Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
. Assigned to the Naval Overseas Transport Service, she operated between Norfolk, Boston and New York City for the next several years.
Proteus set forth from New York on 14 July 1918, for the British Isles, returning to Hampton Roads on 19 September. She left again on Christmas Eve of 1918 for Brest, France
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...
, and spent the next six months shipping coal from Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
and Barry, Wales
Barry, Wales
Barry is a town and community in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales. Located along the northern coast of the Bristol Channel less than south-southwest of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales, Barry is a seaside resort, with attractions including several beaches and the Barry Island Pleasure Park...
, to Brest.
Proteus returned to Norfolk on 6 August 1919, and during the greater part of the next three years cruised from Norfolk to replenish the Fleet in the Caribbean.
In the aftermath of 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...
, Proteus cruised from Norfolk to replenish the U.S. Fleet 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...
. Crossing 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...
four times, she delivered fuel and stores to 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...
in 1920, and to Callao, Peru in 1921.
Her last supply run to the Caribbean ended at Hampton Roads on 12 April 1923. Proteus spent the remainder of her career in operations between Norfolk and Melville, Rhode Island
Melville, Rhode Island
Melville is a village in the town of Portsmouth in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The village is also the basis of a census-designated place , which extends south along the shore of Narragansett Bay into the town of Middletown to encompass the village of Lawtons and the port...
.
She decommissioned at Norfolk on 25 March 1924 and remained inactive until her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
on 5 December 1940. She was sold to Saguenay Terminals Ltd. of Ottawa, Ontario on 8 March 1941.
Loss at sea
Proteus was lost at sea to an unknown cause sometime after 23 November 1941. There are no German U-boat claims for this vessel. One outlandish theory is that the vessel's disappearance can be attributed to the Bermuda Triangle.A memorial listing of her crew can be found at the CWGC Halifax Memorial. A Canadian website suggests Proteuss possible fate.
Two of Proteuss three sister-ships, and , also vanished without a trace in the Bermuda Triangle
Bermuda Triangle
The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is a region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and surface vessels allegedly disappeared under mysterious circumstances....
area while doing similar duty 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...
and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, respectively. Her third sister-ship, , was converted into the very first U.S aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
and renamed .