USS ''Monomoy'' (AG-40) was a commercial

cargo ship A cargo ship or freighter is a merchant ship that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year, handling the bulk of international trade. Cargo ships are usu ...

acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II. She was outfitted with guns and

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...

s and sent into the dangerous waters of the North Atlantic Ocean to furnish data used to predict storm movement and severe weather conditions to safeguard the continuous movement of merchant convoys, naval warships, and airplanes between North America and the United Kingdom, Murmansk, and other destinations. She served as an escort vessel when required. She was manned by a

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, multi ...

crew and was eventually transferred to that agency as USCGC ''Monomoy'' (WAG-275).

Built in Duluth, Minnesota

''Monomoy'' (AG-40) was built in 1918 by Globe Shipbuilding Co., Duluth, Minnesota; acquired as ''J. Floyd Massey, Jr'' 15 September 1941 from Steel Products Transportation Company, Buffalo, New York; renamed ''Monomoy'' 15 October 1941; and commissioned 24 December 1941.

World War II Navy service

''Monomoy'', manned and operated by the U.S. Coast Guard, joined the Weather Patrol,

U.S. Atlantic Fleet The United States Fleet Forces Command (USFF) is a service component command of the United States Navy that provides naval forces to a wide variety of U.S. forces. The naval resources may be allocated to Combatant Commanders such as United Stat ...

, in 1942. From her base at Boston, Massachusetts, she periodically sailed to weather stations 1 and 2, where she provided weather reports vital for the safety of convoys and air commerce. Operating in dangerous waters, she made frequent contact with enemy

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

s. At 9:07 PM on 24 July 1942 after spotting wake from two torpedoes crossing ten yards off the bow, the Officer of the Deck (Albert L. Preston) spotted a U-Boat periscope and conning tower. Four shots were fired from the 4" gun at 9:09 PM. The second, targeted at 2,000 yards, resulted in a metallic thud and a fire at the location of the U-Boat, which then disappeared from view. Two more shots were fired, followed by depth charges. No survivors were seen. She continued patrolling the North Atlantic, the North Sea, and the Bay of Biscay for the next 15 months. At times it took two men to control the ship's wheel in the rough seas. The ship rendered valuable service to Allied ships and planes in the North Atlantic.

Transferred to the Coast Guard

She was formally transferred to the Coast Guard 22 October 1943, and stricken from the

Naval Register A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval author ...

30 October. Redesignated ''WAG-275'', ''Monomoy'' served the Coast Guard through the remainder of the war and was then transferred to the

U.S. Maritime Commission The United States Maritime Commission (MARCOM) was an independent executive agency of the U.S. federal government that was created by the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which was passed by Congress on June 29, 1936, and was abolished on May 24, 195 ...

. She was scrapped in 1951.

References

* * * Background information obtained from NARA I (National Archives and Records Administration) file: USCGC Monomoy, which includes the ship's log, letters, and special reports written by officers on board. {{DEFAULTSORT:Monomoy Ships built in Duluth, Minnesota Steamships of the United States Navy World War II patrol vessels of the United States Ships of the United States Coast Guard 1918 ships Lake ships Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the United States Coast Guard