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USS Eider (AM-17)
Encyclopedia
USS Eider (AM-17) was a of the United States Navy
.
Laid down on 25 September 1917 by the Pusey and Jones
Company of Wilmington, Delaware
, Eider was launched on 26 May 1918, and commissioned as USS Eider, (Minesweeper No.17) on 23 January 1919, LT Arthur E. Freed in command.
, for minesweeping operations in the Delaware River
approaches until 8 March 1919, then put in to Norfolk, Virginia
, to prepare for distant service. On 3 April 1919 she departed for Scotland
and alternately based on Kirkwall
and Invergordon
, Orkney Islands
, swept the vast North Sea minefield. Returning home in October she called at Brest
, Lisbon
, the Azores
and Bermuda
.
Arriving at Charleston Navy Yard on 1 December 1919 Eider was placed in reduced commission for repairs. On 29 May 1920 she joined in salvage operations on . Placed in full commission again for passage to Mare Island, California, Eider sailed from Norfolk, Virginia
, 10 July 1920 and arrived on 28 August to report to Commander, Train, Base Force. On 10 September she was again placed in reduced commission with a partial complement.
, where she arrived on 18 June. She was decommissioned on 18 April 1922, laid up until 1937, and finally sent back to Mare Island, California, still in decommissioned status. In 1940 she was converted for duty as a gate tender and reclassified YNG-20 on 7 October 1940. Placed in service in 1941, based on the Naval Net Depot, Tiburon
, she operated with net tenders in San Francisco Bay
throughout the war.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
.
Laid down on 25 September 1917 by the Pusey and Jones
Pusey and Jones
The Pusey and Jones Corporation was a major ship and equipment manufacturer from 1846 to 1959. Ship building was the primary focus from 1853 until the end of World War II, when the company converted the shipyard to production of paper manufacturing machinery...
Company of Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
, Eider was launched on 26 May 1918, and commissioned as USS Eider, (Minesweeper No.17) on 23 January 1919, LT Arthur E. Freed in command.
Post-World War I Operations
Eider sailed out of Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, for minesweeping operations in the Delaware River
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...
approaches until 8 March 1919, then put in to Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, to prepare for distant service. On 3 April 1919 she departed for Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and alternately based on Kirkwall
Kirkwall
Kirkwall is the biggest town and capital of Orkney, off the coast of northern mainland Scotland. The town is first mentioned in Orkneyinga saga in the year 1046 when it is recorded as the residence of Rögnvald Brusason the Earl of Orkney, who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn the Mighty...
and Invergordon
Invergordon
Invergordon is a town and port in Easter Ross, in Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland.-History:The town is well known for the Invergordon Mutiny of 1931. More recently it was also known for the repair of oil rigs which used to be lined up in the Cromarty Firth on which the town is situated...
, Orkney Islands
Orkney Islands
Orkney also known as the Orkney Islands , is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated north of the coast of Caithness...
, swept the vast North Sea minefield. Returning home in October she called at Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
, Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
and Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
.
Arriving at Charleston Navy Yard on 1 December 1919 Eider was placed in reduced commission for repairs. On 29 May 1920 she joined in salvage operations on . Placed in full commission again for passage to Mare Island, California, Eider sailed from Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, 10 July 1920 and arrived on 28 August to report to Commander, Train, Base Force. On 10 September she was again placed in reduced commission with a partial complement.
Pacific Theatre operations
In 1921 Eider's homeport was changed to Pearl HarborPearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
, where she arrived on 18 June. She was decommissioned on 18 April 1922, laid up until 1937, and finally sent back to Mare Island, California, still in decommissioned status. In 1940 she was converted for duty as a gate tender and reclassified YNG-20 on 7 October 1940. Placed in service in 1941, based on the Naval Net Depot, Tiburon
Tiburon, California
Tiburon is an incorporated town in Marin County, California. It occupies most of the Tiburon Peninsula, which reaches south into the San Francisco Bay. The smaller city of Belvedere occupies the south-east part of the peninsula and is contiguous with Tiburon...
, she operated with net tenders in San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
throughout the war.
End-of-War Decommissioning
Eider was transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal on 1 July 1947.See also
- List of United States Navy ships
- World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
- MinelayerMinelayerMinelaying is the act of deploying explosive mines. Historically this has been carried out by ships, submarines and aircraft. Additionally, since World War I the term minelayer refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines...
- MinesweeperMinesweeper (ship)A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
- MinesweepingMinesweeper (ship)A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...