The first USS ''Sabalo'' (SP-225) was a

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 ...

patrol vessel A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and they ...

in commission from 1917 to 1919. Following

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, ''Sabalo'' was sold to private interests before returning to service as a patrol vessel in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, this time with the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack s ...

, renamed ''Cougar''. Returning to private ownership following the war, the vessel sank in a hurricane in 1950.

Description

''Sabalo'' had a gross register tonnage (GRT) of 204. The vessel was

long overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, an ...

with a

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...

of and a

draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...

of . The ship had a speed of and in U.S. Navy service was equipped with two 3-pounder guns and machine guns. In U.S. service ''Sabalo'' had a

complement A complement is something that completes something else. Complement may refer specifically to: The arts * Complement (music), an interval that, when added to another, spans an octave ** Aggregate complementation, the separation of pitch-class ...

of 12.

Service history

Construction and US Navy career

''Sabalo'' was built as a civilian motor

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

in 1916 by George Lawley and Sons at Neponset,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

for W. Earl Dodge of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, a local financier. The U.S. Navy acquired her from her owner for $25,230 on 11 May 1917 for World War I service as a patrol vessel. She was commissioned on 20 July 1917 as USS ''Sabalo'' (SP-225). Assigned to the

3rd Naval District The naval district was a U.S. Navy military and administrative command ashore. Apart from Naval District Washington, the Districts were disestablished and renamed Navy Regions about 1999, and are now under Commander, Naval Installations Command ...

, ''Sabalo'' operated in the

New York Harbor New York Harbor is at the mouth of the Hudson River where it empties into New York Bay near the East River tidal estuary, and then into the Atlantic Ocean on the east coast of the United States. It is one of the largest natural harbors in t ...

area on

section patrol A Section Patrol Craft was a civilian vessel registered by the United States Navy for potential wartime service before, during, and shortly after World War I. Historical overview The SP/ID registration system In 1916, with World War I raging a ...

duty for the remainder of World War I. On 1 October 1917, she joined the patrol vessel in coming to the assistance of the sinking patrol vessel USS ''Mohawk'', which had collided with the British tanker off

Sandy Hook Sandy Hook is a barrier spit in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. The barrier spit, approximately in length and varying from wide, is located at the north end of the Jersey Shore. It encloses the southern en ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, and she and ''Mohican'' rescued all 77 members of ''Mohawk''s crew. ''Sabalo'' was decommissioned on 3 March 1919 and returned to Dodge the same day.

Interwar

Dodge kept ''Sabalo'' in use as a pleasure yacht until 1921, when he sold her to

Van Lear Black William Van-Lear Black (18 December 187518 August 1930) was an American publisher and civil aviation pioneer. Early life Black was born in Cumberland, Maryland, into a wealthy family who claimed they could trace their lineage back to the Amer ...

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, Maryland. Franklin Roosevelt piloted the yacht as a guest of Black. Black fell to his death off the aft deck in 1930. Black's estate in turn sold her in 1931 to the Albert Pack Corporation of Chicago, Illinois, which renamed her ''Breezin' Thru''. In 1937, Leila Y. Post Montgomery of

Battle Creek Battle Creek is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, in northwest Calhoun County, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek rivers. It is the principal city of the Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which en ...

, Michigan, bought ''Breezin' Thru''.

Royal Canadian Navy and postwar service

After failing to acquire any British vessels at the beginning of World War II for auxiliary purposes, the Royal Canadian Navy discreetly searched the American market for suitable ships. However, American law prevented the sale of ships for possible use in the war to any of the belligerents. The Royal Canadian Navy requisitioned unsuitable Canadian yachts and had their respective owners go the United States and buy those ships the Navy wanted as replacements. Once the ships arrived in Canada, the navy then returned the original yachts and requisitioned the new ones. The Royal Canadian Navy acquired ''Breezin' Thru'' in 1940 after she was purchased by Clarence Wallace, the president of

Burrard Dry Dock Burrard Dry Dock Ltd. was a Canadian shipbuilding company headquartered in North Vancouver, British Columbia. Together with the neighbouring North Van Ship Repair yard and the Yarrows Ltd. yard in Esquimalt, which were eventually absorbed, Bu ...

. ''Breezin Thru'' had not been Wallace's designated target vessel in the United States, but the shipbroker suggested the yacht after the Royal Canadian Navy's selection was found to be in a poor state. Once the vessel had arrived on the

West Coast of Canada , settlement_type = Region of British Columbia , image_skyline = , nickname = "The Coast" , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = British ...

, Wallace used the vessel himself for a couple of weeks to maintain the illusion that ''Breezin Thru'' had not been purchased for military purposes. She was rearmed with one 6-pounder gun at the bow. The ship was renamed ''Cougar'' and commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy on 11 September 1940 with the

pennant number In the Royal Navy and other navies of Europe and the Commonwealth of Nations, ships are identified by pennant number (an internationalisation of ''pendant number'', which it was called before 1948). Historically, naval ships flew a flag that iden ...

Z 15. In Canadian service, the vessel had a complement of 5 officers and 35 crew. After commissioning, ''Cougar'' had a quiet career on the west coast, initially placed on

antisubmarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...

patrol out of

Esquimalt, British Columbia The Township of Esquimalt is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, to the west by Esquim ...

. In May 1942 she was transferred to Prince Rupert Force, based at

Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 (O.S.) / 27 December (N.S.) – 29 November 1682 (O.S.)) was an English army officer, admiral, scientist and colonial governor. He first came to prominence as a Royalist cavalr ...

, British Columbia. She returned to Esquimalt in June 1944, where she served as an

examination vessel An examination vessel is a vessel used to inspect ships and boats entering a port during wartime. An examination vessel would typically be responsible for examining and verifying all merchant ships and small craft entering or departing a port. T ...

. The vessel was paid off on 23 November 1945 and sold to American interests in 1946. HMCS Cougar (Z15) beam

Once again named ''Breezin' Thru'', she operated as a pleasure yacht until sunk during a

hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley Inter ...

, in September 1950.

References

Citations

Sources

* * * * *

External links

Department of the Navy: Navy History and Heritage Command: Online Library of Selected Images: Civilian Ships: ''Sabalo'' (American Motor Yacht, 1916). Served as USS ''Sabalo'' (SP-225) in 1917–1919
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sabalo (SP-225) Armed yachts of the Royal Canadian Navy Patrol vessels of the United States Navy World War I patrol vessels of the United States Ships built in Boston 1916 ships Individual yachts Maritime incidents in 1950 Shipwrecks in the Caribbean Sea