The General John McE. Hyde was a 144 feet (43.9 m) long ferry boat built for the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 in 1921, to provide transportation services among the military facilities in Manila Bay

Manila Bay

Manila Bay is a natural harbor which serves the Port of Manila , in the Philippines.The bay is considered to be one of the best natural harbors in Southeast Asia and one of the finest in the world...

, Philippines.

The General John McE. Hyde was sunk during World War II during the Battle of Corregidor

Battle of Corregidor

The Battle for Corregidor was the culmination of the Japanese campaign for the conquest of the Philippines. The fall of Bataan on 9 April 1942 ended all organized opposition by the U.S...

, by Japanese artillery on 15 April 1942.

Design and construction

The General John McE. Hyde was not a navy ship, but it was among the thousands of vessels owned and operated by the US Army for specific logistical purposes. This vessel along with a sister-ship, the General Frank M. Coxe

General Frank M. Coxe (ship)

The General Frank M. Coxe is a steam ferry which was built for the United States Army to provide transportation services among several military facilities which ring California's San Francisco Bay....

, was designed and built shortly after World War I, to ferry army personnel within strategic harbors, in answer to the increasing military importance of the Pacific ports. It was designed by the New York firm of Cox & Stevens

Cox & Stevens

Cox & Stevens began in 1905 as a yacht design and commercial brokerage in New York City. The original principal partners were Daniel H. Cox, Irving Cox, and marine engineer Colonel Edwin Augustus Stevens Jr., son of renowned designer Edwin Augustus Stevens....

, who were renowned Naval Architects specializing in yachts and small commercial and military craft. The Hyde was built in 1921, followed in 1922 by the Coxe, to Cox & Stevens

Cox & Stevens

Cox & Stevens began in 1905 as a yacht design and commercial brokerage in New York City. The original principal partners were Daniel H. Cox, Irving Cox, and marine engineer Colonel Edwin Augustus Stevens Jr., son of renowned designer Edwin Augustus Stevens....

 design #244. The ships were built on the Kanawha River

Kanawha River

The Kanawha River is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 97 mi long, in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The largest inland waterway in West Virginia, it has formed a significant industrial region of the state since the middle of the 19th century.It is formed at the town of Gauley...

, by Charles Ward Engineering Works

Charles Ward Engineering Works

The Charles Ward Engineering Works, Charleston, W. Va. was an iron and steel fabricator and shipyard founded by Charles Ward in 1872. They produced shallow draught boats at a plant on the south bank of the Kanawha River. It remained in operation until 1931 headed by the founder’s son Charles E...

 of Charleston

Charleston, West Virginia

Charleston is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is located at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers in Kanawha County. As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 51,400, and its metropolitan area 304,214. It is the county seat of Kanawha County.Early...

, West Virginia, a firm which specialized in shallow draft vessels such as ferries, riverboats, and tugs.