USS See W. See (SP-740)

See W. See as the private motorboat Pequest ca. 1919.
History
United States
Name: USS See W. See
Namesake: Previous name retained
Builder: W. F. Downs, Bay Shore, New York
Completed: 1915
Acquired: 18 June 1917
Commissioned: 18 August 1917
Decommissioned: 13 December 1918
Struck: 14 December 1918
Fate: Returned to owner 14 December 1918
Status: Extant
Notes: Operated as private motorboat See W. See 1915-1917 and as See W. See, Pequest, Rosalie IV, Jonbob II, Mar-Sue II and Misty Isle, and Mar-Sue since 1919
General characteristics
Type: Patrol vessel
Tonnage: 26 gross tons
Length: 65 ft (20 m)
Beam: 13 ft 1 in (3.99 m)
Draft: 3 ft 8 in (1.12 m)
Speed: 12 knots

USS See W. See (SP-740) was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1919.

See W. See was built in 1915 as a private motorboat of the same name by W. F. Downs at Bay Shore, New York. On 18 June 1917, the U.S. Navy acquired her from her owner, Charles W. Cushman of Vernon, New York, for use as a section patrol vessel during World War I. She was commissioned as USS See W. See (SP-740) on 18 August 1917 with Chief Boatswain's Mate John H. Wilson, USNRF, in command.

See W. See operated from Section Base No. 5 on patrol duty off the entrance to New York Harbor for the rest of World War I.

See W. See was decommissioned on 13 December 1918, was stricken from the Navy List and returned to Cushman.

Ca. 1919, Cushman sold See W. See to T. K. Morris, who renamed her Pequest. She had many name changes in succeedung decades, being known successively as Rosalie IV, Jonbob II (she is known to have borne this name from at least 1950 until at least 1955), Mar-Sue II (from at least 1960 until at least 1975), and Misty Isle (at least in 1977). William L. "Butch" Baxter purchased the boat in 1975 and apparently sometime after 1977 renamed her Mar-Sue.[1]

As of 2010, Mar-Sue remains active in private use.

Notes

  1. NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive See W. See (SP 740) claims that Baxter purchased the boat in 1975 and named her Mar-Sue, but also shows photographs of the boat bearing her previous name, Misty Isle, in 1977. This apparent discrepancy is unexplained.

Where I wrote See W. SEE history for navsource, from which most of your information came from, I now need to update it. So I am giving Wikipedia an update now (ref. a). During World War I the USS SEE W. SEE SP-740 was part of a three vessel fleet at Section Base 5, located in West Sayville, NY. These vessels patrolled the Great South Bay, Fire Island Inlet & waters off Fire Island, not the mouth of New York Harbor. The SEE W. SEE and her fleet mates were part of the search and rescue effort for the USS San Diego ACR-6 sunk 13.5 miles off Fire Island Inlet on 19 July 1918.(ref. b, c & d)[1]

References

  1. a. Current owner William L. Baxter, b. Book Fire Island Heroes & Villains on Long Island's Wild Shore by Jack Whitehouse 2011, c. online ACR-6 History US Navy & d. online navsource.org
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