USCGC Acushnet (WMEC-167)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
|
| Career (US) |  |
|---|---|
| Laid down: | 26 October 1942 |
| Launched: | 1 April 1943 |
| Commissioned: | as USS Shackle (ARS-9), 5 February 1944 |
| Decommissioned: | 29 June 1946 |
| In service: | as USCGC Acushnet (WAT-167), 23 August 1946 |
| Out of service: | as WMEC-167, date unknown |
| Struck: | date unknown |
| Fate: | Transferred to the Coast Guard |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1,720 tons |
| Length: | 213 ft 6 in (65.1 m) |
| Beam: | 39 ft (12 m) |
| Draught: | 14 ft 4 in (4.4 m) |
| Propulsion: | Diesel-electric, four Fairbanks-Morse 6-cylinder opposed piston engines driving four generators and motors, driving two shafts with 3460 Shaft Horse Power |
| Speed: | 15 kts. |
| Complement: | 120 |
| Armament: | two 40mm AA gun mounts; four .50 cal. machine guns |
USCGC Acushnet (WMEC-167) was originally the USS Shackle (ARS-9), a Diver-class rescue and salvage ship commissioned by the U.S. Navy for service in World War II. She was responsible for coming to the aid of stricken vessels and received three battle stars during World War II, before a long career with the United States Coast Guard.
Contents |
[edit] U.S. Navy Service
USS Shackle (ARS-9) was laid down on 26 October 1942 by the Basalt Rock Co., Napa, California; launched on 1 April 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Walker Cochran; and commissioned on 5 February 1944, Lt. Charles G. Jenkins, Jr., in command. Operational history as USS Shackle (ARS-9) included participation in the salvage efforts at Pearl Harbor, Midway Island, Eniwetok, Guam, Saipan, and Japan. As a salvage ship, she also played active roles in the battles over Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
[edit] Transfer to the United States Coast Guard
Decommissioned by the U.S. Navy at the end of World War II, along with her sister ships USS Seize (ARS-26) and USS ESCAPE (ARS-6), she was quickly transferred to the United States Coast Guard. She remained at San Diego, California, until ordered to San Francisco, California, where, on 29 June, she was decommissioned and transferred to the United States Coast Guard. First homeported in Portland, Maine as a Coast Guard Tug, and renamed USCGC ACUSHNET (WAT-167), she earned a valiant reputation as a dependable friend to fishermen and boaters in distress.
On 19 Feb. 1952, Acushnet participated in what is listed as [ttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfkHTcqOZOU the ten most significant Coast Guard rescues] . Two tankers, the Pendleton and the Fort Mercer, split in two in a fierce storm off Cape Cod, and the Acushnet took 18 men off the stern of the Fort Mercer in heavy seas. The ships collided twice and the merchant seamen jumped to the safety of the Acushnet's fantail.
[edit] Redesignated oceanographic ship
Redesignated an oceanographic ship, WAGO-167, in July 1968 and assigned to oceanographic, meteorological, and polar operations, she commenced duties as a research support ship. During fiscal year 1970, she underwent conversion during which alterations were made to her hull and scientific equipment, and research and storage spaces were added. Her primary mission at this time was to support the National Data Buoy Project, initially from San Diego, California. In July 1971, Acushnet transferred from the U.S. West Coast to the Gulf Coast; and, based at Gulfport, Mississippi, she continued her oceanographic work.
[edit] Return to Traditional Missions and the West Coast
In 1978, she was re-designated as a Medium Endurance Cutter (WMEC-167) due to the de-emphasis of the Coast Guard's oceanographic mission. In 1990 she returned to the U.S. West Coast, initially to Eureka, California, and in 1998 to Ketchikan, Alaska where she is employed in Law Enforcement, Fisheries, and Search and Rescue.
[edit] Current status
On 23 February 2007 Acushnet was designated as the "Oldest Commissioned Cutter" in the fleet. She carries gold hull numbers to show this distinction, and the informal title of "Queen Of The Fleet." She is scheduled for decommissioning in late 2008. In March, 2008; letters to the editor have appeared in the Boston Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram calling for Boston and Portland to consider the Acushnet as a possible museum ship.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
