COAST GUARD WON DISTINCTION
ESCORTING CONVOYS BETWEEN GIBRALTAR AND ENGLAND, CUTTERS MADE
NOTABLE RECORD--"TAMPA" SUNK, WITH ALL HER GALLANT OFFICERS AND
MEN--"SENECA" SAVED SURVIVORS OF "COWSLIP" AND "QUEEN"--COAST AND
GEODETIC SURVEY AND LIGHTHOUSE SERVICE DID FINE WORK.
The Coast Guard automatically came under control of the Navy when
war was declared. Its vessels, its trained officers and men proved
a valuable addition to our forces, and rendered notable service in
various areas and in many lines of activity, at home and abroad.
They formed a very important part of our forces at Gibraltar,
which included six Coast Guard cutters, the _Seneca_, _Yamacraw_,
_Algonquin_, _Ossipee_, _Manning_ and _Tampa_, constantly engaged in
escorting convoys.
The splendid service they performed was commended in Admiral Niblack's
letter of September 5, 1918, to Captain Charles Satterlee, commanding
officer of the _Tampa_, in which, after detailing her record, under
way more than 3,500 miles each month since October 1, 1917, "never
disabled, ready whenever called on," he said:
This excellent record is an evidence of a high state of efficiency,
an excellent ship spirit, and organization capable of keeping
the vessel in service with the minimum of shore assistance. The
squadron commander takes great pleasure in congratulating the
commanding officer, officers and crew on the record which they have
made.
Three weeks after notable service had evoked this commendation, every
officer and man of the _Tampa_ met sudden and mysterious death. The
night of September 26, 1918, the _Tampa_, having escorted a convoy from
Gibraltar, was proceeding toward Milford Haven, Wales. At 8:45 p. m.,
a loud explosion was heard by vessels of the convoy, but the night
was so dark that the _Tampa_ disappeared before her companions could
see what had happened. American destroyers and British patrol craft
searched the vicinity.
Nothing was found except a small amount of wreckage and the bodies
of two men in naval uniforms. It is believed that the _Tampa_ was
torpedoed by a submarine. The German U-53 claimed to have sunk a United
States vessel of her description. "Listening-in" stations on shore
reported that they detected the presence of a submarine near the spot
where the _Tampa_ was destroyed. But no one knows how she met her fate.
Every soul on board the vessel perished, 115 in all, of whom 111 were
Coast Guard personnel. The officers lost were Captain Satterlee, First
Lieutenants Archibald H. Scally and John T. Carr, Second Lieutenants
Roy A. Bothwell, James M. Earp and John F. McGourty, and Third
Lieutenant James A. Frost, Jr.
It must, indeed, be a matter of solemn pride to the Coast Guard to
know that the _Tampa_, lost with all her gallant officers and men, was
distinguished by such service and sacrifice that it will always be
remembered in the naval annals of our country. It was my pleasure to
name one of the modern destroyers of the Navy for Captain Satterlee,
and on April 16, 1921, a new cruising vessel of the Coast Guard was
launched at Oakland, California, named the _Tampa_.
Few instances that occurred during the war are more indicative of
devotion to duty than the gallant attempt of the _Seneca_ to salvage
the steamer _Wellington_, torpedoed September 16, 1918. Though damaged,
its officers thought that the vessel would probably float, but the crew
refused to remain on board.
Lieutenant F. W. Brown (U. S. Coast Guard), the _Seneca's_ navigating
officer, asked permission to take a volunteer crew and endeavor to
work the _Wellington_ into port. Nearly all the _Seneca's_ complement
volunteered for this duty. Lieutenant Brown made a hasty selection
from the many volunteers, taking Acting Machinist William L. Boyce and
eighteen men. En route to the torpedoed vessel, lookouts and gun's
crew were detailed. Upon boarding the ship, ammunition was broken
out, the gun's crew was assigned, and lookouts posted. It was highly
probable that the submarine would make another attack. Soon a second
boat, containing the master, first and second officers and eleven
of the _Wellington's_ crew came on board. The _Seneca_ had to leave
at once to protect the remainder of the convoy, and could only send
out radio calls for assistance. There followed an heroic and all but
successful effort on the part of Lieutenant Brown and his men to save
the steamship.
Within half an hour, the _Wellington_ was started at slow speed,
heading for Brest. Men took turns in passing coal and firing, coming
out on deck when relieved and taking a gun-watch. One of the men from
the _Seneca_ was a cook, Russell Elam, who disappeared into the galley,
and in a short time announced that dinner was served for all hands.
When he appeared on the bridge with Lieutenant Brown's dinner, he was
clad in an immaculate white serving jacket and had omitted no detail of
service. And this on a torpedoed steamer in imminent danger of sinking!
Cook Elam met a heroic death with others of this gallant party.
During the afternoon all went well, but at sundown the wind increased,
seas crashed over the bow, and all on board were in danger. The ship
listed sharply, rolling so that the davit heads threatened to force
the lifeboat under. Those aboard were ordered to get into the boat,
and hold on to the _Wellington_ by use of a long rope, a sea painter.
Seven of the _Wellington's_ crew got into the boat with one _Seneca_
man detailed to unhook it, the other Coast Guardsmen standing by to
lower it. The radio operator, M. S. Mason, remained at his instruments
to keep in touch with the destroyer _Warrington_, which was proceeding
to their assistance, and three men kept the pumps going. Just after
the boat was lowered, someone cut the painter, and the boat drifted
away. The _Seneca's_ party and some of the collier's men were left on
board with nothing to rely upon except a small raft which they had
constructed.
At 11:35 p. m., the _Wellington's_ position was sent to the
_Warrington_ (Lieutenant Commander Van der Veer). To aid the destroyer
in her search, rockets were sent up at fifteen-minute intervals, and at
2:30 a. m., answering rockets were seen. The men in the lifeboat were
gotten aboard the _Warrington_, but the boat was crushed. Lieutenant
Brown found some long, heavy planks; from these three rafts were
improvised, which were lowered and lines let down so the men could
reach them in the darkness. The lights of the destroyer were now
in sight. The _Wellington_ listed rapidly. With a hand flashlight,
Lieutenant Brown signaled that he had to abandon ship immediately,
and asked the destroyer to work in close and pick up his men. As the
collier settled by the head, at the same time turning over, Brown
crawled out over the railing and flashed his last appeal, "My men are
in the water."
At that moment the boilers exploded, the vessel seemed to rise up, and
as she lurched into her final plunge, Brown sprang into the water. This
was at 4 a. m., in pitch darkness, a raging gale and tempestuous seas.
After swimming awhile, casting about for something to cling to, and
finding nothing, Brown heard a cry for help. Swimming towards the man,
he saw that he was clinging to a plank, and told him to hold on and
keep his mouth closed, so as not to take in water. Finding two calcium
lights burning, he extinguished them so no one should be misled into
thinking they marked a raft. As he approached the destroyer, Brown
called out repeatedly: "I had eighteen men." His sole thought was that
the men committed to his charge should be saved.
Running close to the _Wellington_, the _Warrington_ floated down
three life-rafts and all available buoys, well lighted. It was still
very dark, but from a few hundred yards to leeward the men on the
_Warrington_ watched the black hull turn turtle, slowly settle in the
water, and then disappear. When dawn broke, they began to see men in
the water, some on rafts and buoys, some on floating wreckage. Eight
men were finally picked up, one of whom died on board. One of the first
rescued proved to be Lieutenant Brown. A heaving line was flung to him
and he grabbed it, but said he did not remember having been hauled
on board. Apparently he lost consciousness, and his identity was not
discovered until he awoke.
Three of the _Warrington's_ crew had jumped into the heavy sea, with
lines made fast to their waists, in attempting to save life. Seaman
James C. Osborne, of the Coast Guard, supporting a shipmate, Coxswain
Peterson, swam through the heavy seas and placed Peterson, who was only
half conscious, on a raft. Several times both were washed off, but each
time Osborne went to his shipmate's assistance and replaced him on
the raft. Finally Osborne semaphored, "I am all right, but he is gone
unless you come right away." The _Warrington_ rescued them both.
Lieutenant Brown and eight men of the _Seneca_ were saved, Machinist
Boyce and ten Coast Guardsmen were lost, besides five belonging to
the _Wellington's_ crew. But for the heavy gale and rough sea that
developed, Brown and his volunteers would probably have won out and
saved ship and cargo. They upheld to the fullest the high traditions of
the Navy and Coast Guard.
Another example of readiness to assume responsibility and act as the
necessities of the occasion require, is that of Captain William J.
Wheeler (U. S. Coast Guard), commanding the _Seneca_, which rescued
the survivors from the British patrol sloop, _Cowslip_. After dark
on April 2, 1918, the danger zone escort from Gibraltar, including
the _Cowslip_, joined the convoy which the _Seneca_ had escorted
from England. A loud explosion was heard and the _Cowslip_ displayed
distress signals. The _Seneca_ immediately headed for her, although
the sloop flashed the signal, "Stay away! Submarine in sight, port
quarter." Circling the _Cowslip_ in search of the submarine, the
_Seneca_ and the destroyer _Dale_, which had also come up, began to
search for the enemy. The established doctrine then was that, when a
vessel was torpedoed, other vessels in the vicinity should not risk
their own destruction by endeavoring to go to her relief and that
rescue of survivors should be considered as a secondary duty. But
American officers could not witness a disabled and sinking ship without
making every effort to save her people.
Three times the _Seneca_ approached, stopping to lower her own boats
and take off survivors from the British sloop. One enlisted man and all
the wardroom officers of the _Cowslip_, except the officer-of-the-deck,
had been killed by the explosion. The _Seneca_ rescued all the
survivors, including the commanding officer, another commissioned
officer, and 79 enlisted men. For this courageous and meritorious act,
Captain Wheeler was commended by Admiral Niblack, Admiral Sims, and the
British admiral commanding at Gibraltar.
[Illustration: LOST WITH EVERY MAN ON BOARD
The Coast Guard Cutter Tampa was lost on the night of September 26,
1918, sunk, probably by a submarine, before any of her companions
in the convoy could see what had happened. Inset: Captain Charles
Satterlee, commanding the Tampa.]
[Illustration: THEY SAVED SURVIVORS OF TORPEDOED VESSELS
At the risk of their own destruction, the crew of the Coast Guard
Cutter Seneca repeatedly rescued survivors of torpedoed vessels,
although it was an established rule that when a vessel was torpedoed
other vessels in the vicinity should not go to her aid because of the
almost certain destruction which would await the rescuers. Inset:
Captain William J. Wheeler, commanding the Seneca.]
On June 29, 1918, the _Seneca_ was acting as ocean escort to a
convoy, when at 6:45 a. m., the British steamer _Queen_ was torpedoed
and sank in five minutes. As in the case of the _Cowslip_, Captain
Wheeler boldly approached the _Queen_. Dropping depth charges and
firing his guns to keep the submarine down, he picked up the survivors.
[Illustration: GALLANT OFFICERS OF THE COAST GUARD
Left to right: Commodore E. P. Bertholf, commandant of the Coast Guard
from 1911 to July, 1919; Lieutenant F. W. Brown, navigating officer of
the Seneca, who volunteered to work the torpedoed Wellington to port;
Boatswain John A. Midgett, of Coast Guard Station No. 179, who led the
rescue of survivors of the torpedoed Mirlo under extraordinary danger
from fire.]
It was work like this, calling for daring and quick decision, that
distinguished the vessels of the Coast Guard, which, operating in the
Navy, performed such signal service for the Allies and the commerce of
the world.
On this side of the Atlantic, the main contribution by the Coast
Guard was as part of the patrol service under Admiral Anderson in the
Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico, protecting the oil supply that went
in large volume from Texas and Mexico to British and other Allied naval
ships and for the necessary uses by the Allied armies in France.
In the great disaster that followed the blowing up of a munition ship
at Halifax, the U. S. Coast Guard cutter _Morrill_, in command of
Lieutenant H. G. Hemmingway, and its crew gave first aid to the injured
in that stricken city. Coast Guard men supervised, without accident
or loss of life, the landing of 345,602 tons of high explosives in
New York and the loading on 1,698 vessels. The total value of the
explosives on these ships was more than five hundred million dollars.
When the tug _Perth Amboy_ and four barges were shelled by a German
submarine on July 21, 1918, within sight of Coast Guard station No.
40, at East Orleans, Mass., Keeper Robert F. Pierce, with his crew,
launched their surfboat, and while the shelling was continuing,
proceeded out to assist the tug and her tow and aided in safely landing
the crew and treating the wounded.
A very gallant action was that of the keeper and crew of Coast Guard
Station No. 179 at Chicamacomico, North Carolina, in rescuing life
under extraordinary circumstances following the destruction of the
steamship _Mirlo_, on August 16, 1918. At 4:30 p. m. the lookout
reported seeing a great mass of water shoot into the air. It seemed
to cover the after portion of a steamer that was about seven miles
away. At the same time a quantity of smoke rose from the steamer. Fire
was seen, and heavy explosions were heard. The Coast Guard boat went
to the rescue. Five miles off shore they met one of the ship's boats
with the captain and six men in it, who informed them that the ship
was a British tank steamer and that she had been torpedoed. Keeper
John A. Midgett directed the captain where to go. The Coast Guard boat
was headed for the burning mass of wreckage and oil. On arrival the
sea was found to be covered with burning oil and blazing gas for a
hundred yards, with two masses of flames about a hundred yards apart.
In between these, when the smoke would clear away a little, a lifeboat
could be seen, bottom up, with six men clinging to it. Heavy seas
washed over the boat.
The Coast Guardsmen made their way through that inferno of smoke,
thrashing wreckage and blazing oil. They evaded the perils of floating
debris, fire, and wave. Lifting the six men on board, all that survived
of the sixteen who had been in that lifeboat, the Coast Guard rescuers
sought the safety of clear water. Thirty-six men of the _Mirlo_ were
rescued.
The first United States vessel to pass the German fortifications
at Heligoland and through the Kiel Canal after the signing of the
armistice was the _Aphrodite_, commanded by a Coast Guard officer,
Captain F. C. Billard. While passing through the North Sea, the
_Aphrodite_ struck a German mine, but escaped destruction and was able
to proceed to Germany.
The danger to American shipping by a submarine base on our coast,
not to speak of the violation of neutrality which such action would
involve, necessitated a patrol of the coast to make sure that there was
no such base and to prevent U-boat operations. These requirements were
admirably met by the coöperation of the Coast Guard. There were on the
Atlantic and Gulf coasts 199 stations.
On April 6, 1917, one message, "Plan One. Acknowledge," incorporated
the Coast Guard as an integral part of the Navy during the war. That
service had 138 line officers, 70 engineer officers, 13 district
superintendents, and 2 constructors, a total of 233 commissioned
and 257 warrant officers, and 3,478 men--a valuable addition to the
naval forces. The professional ability of the Coast Guard officers
is evidenced by the fact that twenty-four commanded combatant ships
operating in European waters, five vessels of the patrol force in the
Caribbean Sea, and twenty-three combatant craft attached to naval
districts. Five Coast Guard officers commanded training camps, six
performed aviation duty, two being in command of air stations, one of
these in France. The Navy Department, naturally enough, assigned to the
command of combatant ships only officers whose experience and ability
warranted such detail and only those officers in whom the Department
had implicit confidence.
Commodore E. P. Bertholf, then commandant, and Commodore W. E.
Reynolds, later commandant of the Coast Guard, and other officers were
assigned important administrative duties. Ashore and afloat, officers
and men discharged their duties with such efficiency that at the close
of the war I strongly recommended to the President and Congress that
the Coast Guard be continued permanently as a part of the Navy.
Not only was the Coast Guard an integral part of the Navy during the
war, but the Lighthouse Service added 1,284 men to the naval personnel
and fifty vessels to the naval force. These vessels did a large part of
the work on the defensive entrance areas, laid mines, and were employed
as patrols. The light vessels and lighthouses served as lookouts and
reporting stations. The Diamond Shoal Light vessel, off Cape Hatteras,
was sunk by a German submarine, but not until after it had given
warning and saved a number of vessels. The larger light-house tenders
were almost continuously in the danger-zone and were employed to buoy
the wrecks of torpedoed vessels.
The transfer of forty-one commissioned officers of the Coast and
Geodetic Survey gave the Navy additional officers who, from their
previous training and experience, immediately assumed important duties.
In addition to commanding patrol boats and auxiliaries and other
service afloat, their scientific attainments made them particularly
useful. For example, one officer, by his experience in developing the
wire-drag method of searching for hidden rocks and dangers, was well
fitted for research work on the anti-submarine problem. His services
were so valuable that he was ordered to London to coöperate with the
British Admiralty in further study of anti-submarine devices. Officers
of this service at the Naval Observatory, among other contributions,
designed a new type of submarine compass binnacle and new type of
aircraft compass. One of the ships of the Coast and Geodetic Survey,
the _Surveyor_, did excellent service at Gibraltar and shared with the
_Wheeling_ and the _Venita_ the credit for a successful attack on a
submarine.