The second USS ''Suwannee'' and third USS ''Mayflower'' was a United States Lighthouse Board, and later United States Lighthouse Service, lighthouse tender transferred to the United States Navy in 1898 for service as an auxiliary cruiser during the Spanish–American War and from 1917 to 1919 for service as a patrol vessel during World War I. She also served the Lighthouse Board and in the Lighthouse Service as USLHT ''Mayflower'' from 1897 to 1898, from 1898 to 1917, and from 1919 to 1939, and in the United States Coast Guard as the first USCGC ''Mayflower'' (WAGL-236) in 1939 and from 1940 to 1943 and as USCGC ''Hydrangea'' (WAGL-236) from 1943 to 1945.

Construction and commissioning

USLHT ''Mayflower'' was a lighthouse tender built for the U.S. Lighthouse Board in 1897 by Bath Iron Works in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

, Maine.McLean, Bruce D., "The U. S. Lighthouse Service," spanamwar.com, Retrieved 2 March 2019
/ref> The Lighthouse Board commissioned her in November 1897.

Service history

Spanish–American War

Just after the Spanish–American War broke out in April 1898, ''Mayflower'' was transferred to the U.S. Navy on 27 April 1898 for use as an auxiliary cruiser. She was renamed USS ''Suwannee'' to avoid confusion with the patrol yacht , which also had been acquired for war service. ''Suwannee''′s war service included a brief period as the

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

of the commander of the naval base at

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 ...

, Florida, Commodore

George C. Remey George Collier Remey (August 10, 1841 – February 10, 1928) was a rear admiral of the United States Navy, serving in the Civil War and the Spanish–American War. Early life George Collier Remey was born at Burlington, Iowa on August 10, 184 ...

.Hamerlsy, p. 315.United States Coast Guard Historian's Office: ''Mayflower'', 1897; Later USS ''Suwanee''; ''Hydrangea''
/ref> USLHT Mayflower in 1898

On 11 June 1898, Lieutenant

Victor Blue Victor Blue (December 6, 1865 – January 22, 1928) was a rear admiral of the United States Navy. Career Lieutenant Blue was advanced five numbers for intelligence missions in Cuba during the Spanish–American War. He served on the ''Suwane ...

of ''Suwannee'' went ashore on the south coast of Cuba to conduct a visual reconnaissance of Santiago Bay at Santiago de Cuba and determine what ships were anchored there. A member of the Cuban insurgency guided him through the Spanish lines, and on 12 June 1898 he identified the Spanish Navy′s 1st Squadron, under the command of Vice Admiral

Pascual Cervera y Topete Admiral Pascual Cervera y Topete (18 February 1839, Medina-Sidonia, Cádiz, Spain – 3 April 1909, Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain) was a prominent Spanish naval officer with the rank of '' Almirante'' (admiral) who served in a number of high pos ...

, as being in the bay. His report confirmed for the first time that all of Cervera's squadron was in the bay, and this freed up the U.S. Navy′s heavy ships from searching the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

for Cervera′s ships or escorting troop convoys carrying the United States Army′s Fifth Army Corps from

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

, Florida, to Cuba, allowing the ships instead to concentrate off the harbor and reinforce the U.S. blockade of Santiago de Cuba. On 10 June 1898, during the

Battle of Guantánamo Bay A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

, United States Marine Corps forces had landed at

Guantánamo Bay Guantánamo Bay ( es, Bahía de Guantánamo) is a bay in Guantánamo Province at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the largest harbor on the south side of the island and it is surrounded by steep hills which create an enclave that is cut off ...

on the south coast of Cuba to seize it for use as a forward base for coaling and as an anchorage for use during bad weather. On 15 June 1898, ''Suwannee'' joined the

battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

and the

unprotected cruiser An unprotected cruiser was a type of naval warship in use during the early 1870s Victorian or pre-dreadnought era (about 1880 to 1905). The name was meant to distinguish these ships from “ protected cruisers”, which had become accepted in ...

in providing gunfire support for the Marines as they consolidated the American position at Guantánamo Bay. On 1 July 1898, during the

Battle of the Aguadores The Battle of the Aguadores was a sharp skirmish on the banks of the Aguadores River near Santiago de Cuba, on 1 July 1898, at the height of the Spanish–American War. The American attack was intended as a feint to draw Spanish defenders away f ...

, ''Suwannee'', the armored cruiser , and the gunboat provided gunfire support for U.S. Army forces advancing against

Spanish Army The Spanish Army ( es, Ejército de Tierra, lit=Land Army) is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies — dating back to the late 15th century. The ...

positions on the Aguadores River. When not otherwise engaged, ''Suwannee'' took part in the blockade of Cervera′s squadron at Santiago Bay. She operated′ on a night station from Castillo de San Pedro de la Roca as part of a picket line watching for any attempt by the Spanish

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

s '' Furor'' and '' Plutón'' to sortie from the bay and launch a torpedo attack against the blockading U.S. ships. However, when Cervera′s squadron finally emerged from Santiago Bay on 3 July 1898, resulting in its annihilation in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba, ''Suwannee'' was among ships coaling at Guantánamo Bay, and she therefore missed the battle. On 12 August 1898, the protected cruiser , auxiliary cruiser , armed yacht , armed

tug A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

, gunboat , and ''Suwannee'' – with the First Battalion of Marines embarked aboard ''Newark'' and ''Resolute'' – arrived at Manzanillo, Cuba, and demanded that Spanish forces there surrender. The Spanish refused, and the U.S. ships responded with a bombardment of Spanish positions. At daybreak on 13 August, the U.S. ships observed a large number of white flags flying from the Spanish

blockhouse A blockhouse is a small fortification, usually consisting of one or more rooms with loopholes, allowing its defenders to fire in various directions. It is usually an isolated fort in the form of a single building, serving as a defensive stro ...

s and

batteries Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

at Manzanillo, and a Spanish boat came out from the shore carrying a flag of truce. The boat′s captain gave the senior U.S. officer present a

cipher In cryptography, a cipher (or cypher) is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption—a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is ''encipherment''. To encipher or encode i ...

dispatch from the United States Department of the Navy stating that the U.S. President William McKinley had signed a peace agreement and proclaimed an armistice, bringing the war to an end. ''Suwannee'' was decommissioned on 23 September 1898 and transferred back to the Lighthouse Board in December 1898. The United States Department of the Navy cited her for "conspicuous service" during the war.

1899–1917

The Lighthouse Board rechristened the ship USLHT ''Mayflower'' and placed her in service as a lighthouse tender maintaining

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to navigation in the 2nd Lighthouse District, with her home port at Boston, Massachusetts. The Lighthouse Board was abolished in 1910 and replaced by the new United States Lighthouse Service, making ''Mayflower'' part of the Lighthouse Service.

World War I

After the United States entered World War I in April 1917, ''Mayflower'' again was transferred to the Navy and was commissioned on 10 May 1917 for use as a patrol vessel. She patrolled the Atlantic Ocean off the United States East Coast during the war. After the war ended in November 1918, she was returned to the Lighthouse Service by executive order on 1 July 1919.

1919–1939

After returning to the Lighthouse Service, ''Mayflower'' again operated in the 2nd Lighthouse District. In 1924, she transferred to the 5th Lighthouse District, where she replaced USLHT ''Arbutus''. On 1 July 1939 the Lighthouse Service was abolished and merged into the United States Coast Guard, and therefore the ship became USCGC ''Mayflower'' as a Coast Guard vessel. In December 1939, the Coast Guard decommissioned ''Mayflower'' and transferred her to the Maritime Training Service in Boston, Massachusetts.

World War II

When World War II in Europe created a pressing need for tenders, the Coast Guard recommissioned the ship in July 1940 as USCGC ''Mayflower'' (WAGL-236) and based her at Norfolk, Virginia. The Coast Guard, which operated under the control of the U.S. Navy during World War II, renamed her ''Hydrangea'' on 15 August 1943 to again avoid a naming conflict with the same , which had returned to Navy service once again as a patrol craft.NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive: USCGC ''Hydrangea'' (WAGL 236), ex-USCGC ''Mayflower'', ex-USS ''Suwannee'', ex-USLHS ''Mayflower''
/ref>

Final disposition

''Hydrangea'' was decommissioned on 8 October 1945 and transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal. She was later sold. She is one of the very few ships to have seen service in the Spanish–American War as well as both world wars.

Awards

* Spanish Campaign Medal * World War I Victory Medal * American Campaign Medal * World War II Victory Medal

Notes

References