USS ''Cushing'' (Torpedo Boat #1/TB-1) was a

torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of se ...

in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

. She was named for

William B. Cushing William Barker Cushing (4 November 184217 December 1874) was an officer in the United States Navy, best known for sinking the during a daring nighttime raid on 27 October 1864, for which he received the Thanks of Congress. Cushing was the youn ...

. ''Cushing'' was launched on 23 January 1890 by the

Herreshoff Manufacturing Company Nathanael Greene Herreshoff (March 18, 1848 – June 2, 1938) was an American naval architect, mechanical engineer, and yacht design innovator. He produced a succession of undefeated America's Cup defenders between 1893 and 1920. Biography Her ...

Bristol, Rhode Island Bristol is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, US as well as the historic county seat. The town is built on the traditional territories of the Pokanoket Wampanoag. It is a deep water seaport named after Bristol, England. The population of B ...

; sponsored by Miss K. B. Herreshoff; and commissioned on 22 April 1890,

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

C. M. Winslow in command.

Service history

The first torpedo boat built for the Navy, ''Cushing'' was attached to the

Squadron of Evolution The Squadron of Evolution—sometimes referred to as the "White Squadron"— was a transitional unit in the United States Navy during the late 19th century. It was probably inspired by the French "Escadre d'évolution" of the 18th and 19th centur ...

and equipped for experimental work to complete the development of torpedo outfits and to gather data for the service. On 8 September 1891, she reported to

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

for duty at the

Naval Torpedo Station The Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) is the United States Navy's full-spectrum research, development, test and evaluation, engineering and fleet support center for submarines, autonomous underwater systems, and offensive and defensive weapons ...

, and except for a brief period out of commission—from 11 November 1891 – 11 January 1892—''Cushing'' continued her torpedo experiments in this area until 1893. ''Cushing'' arrived at

Hampton Roads Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's ...

on 31 March 1893 for temporary duty with the Naval Review Fleet, and in April she escorted the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

s and HMS Caravels to New York. ''Cushing'' returned to duty at Newport on 6 May, working with the

Whitehead torpedo The Whitehead torpedo was the first self-propelled or "locomotive" torpedo ever developed. It was perfected in 1866 by Robert Whitehead from a rough design conceived by Giovanni Luppis of the Austro-Hungarian Navy in Fiume. It was driven by a th ...

. Based on

Key West Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it cons ...

from 31 December 1897, ''Cushing'' reported to the

North Atlantic Fleet The North Atlantic Squadron was a section of the United States Navy operating in the North Atlantic. It was renamed as the North Atlantic Fleet in 1902. In 1905 the European and South Atlantic squadrons were abolished and absorbed into the North ...

's Blockading Force for picket patrol in the

Florida Straits The Straits of Florida, Florida Straits, or Florida Strait ( es, Estrecho de Florida) is a strait located south-southeast of the North American mainland, generally accepted to be between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, and between th ...

and courier duty for the Force. On 11 February 1898, while making a passage to

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

, ''Cushing'' lost Ensign Joseph C. Breckinridge overboard in heavy seas. For their heroic efforts to save him, Gunner's Mate Third Class

John Everetts John Everetts (August 25, 1873 – September 12, 1956) was a United States Navy sailor and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor. Biography Born on August 25, 1873, in Thorold, Ontario, Everetts immigra ...

and Ship's Cook First Class Daniel Atkins were awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

. The destroyer was named after him in 1918. Upon the declaration of

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

between the U.S. and Spain, ''Cushing'' was assigned to patrol the

Cays A cay ( ), also spelled caye or key, is a small, low-elevation, sandy island on the surface of a coral reef. Cays occur in tropical environments throughout the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, including in the Caribbean and on the Great ...

, and on 7 August captured four small vessels and towed them to her anchorage at Piedras Cay. Four days later, armed boats from ''Cushing'' and captured and burned a

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

. Returning north in August 1898, ''Cushing'' resumed her operations at the Newport Torpedo Station from 14 September until decommissioned on 8 November 1898. From 1901 to 1911, she was attached to the Reserve Torpedo Flotilla at Norfolk, and was sunk on 24 September 1920 after use as a target.

References

* * * * ''The White Squadron''. oledo, Ohio Woolson Spice Co., 1891. * Simpson, Richard V. ''Building The Mosquito Fleet, The US Navy's First Torpedo Boats.'' Arcadia Publishing, Charleston South Carolina, USA, 2001. . * Silverstone, Paul. ''U.S. Warships of World War I'' Ian Allen, London, U.K., 1970. .

External links

*
USN Ships – USS ''Cushing'' (TB-1)

The USS ''Cushing'' Association

Torpedo boat, USS Cushing, experiments with torpedoes
These are 8 photographs showing the Cushing torpedo boat experiments. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cushing (Tb-1) Torpedo boats of the United States Navy Ships built in Bristol, Rhode Island 1890 ships Maritime incidents in 1920 Shipwrecks Ships sunk as targets