The third USS ''Sea Gull'' (SP-544) was a wooden yacht in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

. ''Sea Gull'' was built during 1902 as ''Heather'' by the Greenport Basin and Construction Company, Long Island, New York, was enrolled in the Naval Coast Defense Reserve on 1 June 1917 following the entry of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

into

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

; and commissioned shortly afterward.

World War I operations

''Sea Gull'' patrolled the waters of the 4th Naval District during her

service. Based at Essington,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, she cruised off the Essington Shipbuilding Company yard and its environs until the war's end. On 8 October 1917, a heavy storm swept across Delaware Bay, threatening to scatter the flotilla, of which ''Sea Gull'' was a part, on patrol duty there. The patrol boat dragged anchor at 07:30 hours and fouled ''Sea Gull'' before getting underway and clearing ''Sea Gull''. In the rough seas, both patrol boats dropped their anchors and moored off Brown Shoal Buoy in the hope of riding out the storm, which did not let up. ''Sea Gull'', unable to get underway, drifted off into the pre-dawn darkness on 9 October 1917, dragging her anchors and sending out

SOS SOS is a Morse code distress signal (), used internationally, originally established for maritime use. In formal notation SOS is written with an overscore line (), to indicate that the Morse code equivalents for the individual letters of "SOS" a ...

signals. ''Sea Gull'' eventually was taken under tow by another vessel and made haven behind the breakwater at

Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. The town is the administrative centre of the wider Lewes (district), district of the same name. It lies on the River Ouse, Sussex, River Ouse at the point where the river cuts through the Sou ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, on 9 October 1917 by 08:15 hours. She found ''Vidofner'', which had arrived under her own power, already there.USS ''Vidofner'' (SP-402) article in the ''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships'' a

Disposal

Decommissioned at

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

, on 27 November 1918, ''Sea Gull'' was ordered returned to her owner on 2 June 1919 and struck from the Navy List.

Notes

References

External links

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships

at navsource.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Sea Gull (SP-544) Patrol vessels of the United States Navy World War I patrol vessels of the United States Ships built in Greenport, New York 1902 ships