USS Wenonah (SP-165/PY-11) was a yacht

Yacht

A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...

 acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

. She was configured by the Navy as an armed patrol craft and was assigned to protect North Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

 ships from German submarines. Post-war she was transferred to the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey where she acquired the name USC&GS Wenonah. When returned to the Navy, the ship was designated USS Wenonah (PY-11) and remained mostly idle until sold in 1929.

Constructed in Massachusetts

The first ship to be so named by the U.S. Navy, Wenonah (SP-165) -- a steam yacht

Yacht

A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...

 built in 1915 at Neponset, Massachusetts

Neponset, Massachusetts

Neponset, Massachusetts is a district in the southeast corner of Dorchester, Massachusetts which is the most populous neighborhood of Boston....

, by George Lawley & Sons—was acquired by the Navy from Mr. Walter G. Ladd on 8 June 1917; converted for naval service; and commissioned on 22 October 1917, Lt. Henry G. Fuller, NNV, temporarily in command.

Escorting subchasers to Europe

The armed yacht was fitted out for distant service and departed Newport, Rhode Island

Newport, Rhode Island

Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...

, on 4 November 1917 in company with tender Hannibal and yachts Helenita (SP-210)

USS Helenita (SP-210)

USS Helenita was a yacht leased from its owner by the U.S. Navy during World War I. She was outfitted as an armed patrol craft and initially assigned to North Atlantic Ocean duty, but found to be too lightly built for the ocean...

, Margaret (SP-527)

USS Margaret (SP-527)

USS Margaret was a yacht acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War I and in commission as a patrol vessel from 1917 to 1918. She was assigned to escort and patrol duty in the North Atlantic Ocean...

, May (SP-164)

USS May (SP-164)

USS May was a yacht purchased by the United States Navy during World War I. She was outfitted with two guns and two machine guns, and was assigned to patrol the Atlantic Ocean coast and Caribbean and to protect Allied ships from German submarines...

, Rambler (SP-211)

USS Rambler (SP-211)

USS Rambler was a steam yacht acquired by the United States Navy during World War I for patrol duty.- History :Rambler, built in 1900 by Lewis Nixon of Elizabethport, New Jersey, was acquired by the Navy, 16 August 1917 from Kenneth Van Riper of New York City and commissioned at New York on 19...

, and Utowana (SP-951)

USS Utowana (SP-951)

USS Utowana – also known as USS Victorine -- was a fishing trawler acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War I...

. Each yacht towed a French-manned, American-made submarine chaser

Submarine chaser

A submarine chaser is a small and fast naval vessel specially intended for anti-submarine warfare. Although similar vessels were designed and used by many nations, this designation was most famously used by ships built by the United States of America...

. In spite of a breakdown apiece for Helenita, Margaret

Margaret

-Places:* Margaret , a moon of Uranus* Margaret, Alabama, USA* Margaret River, Western Australia* Margaret Island, Budapest, Hungary* Margaret Bridge, Budapest, Hungary* Isla Margarita, Venezuela* Margarita Island * Marghita, Romania...

, May, and Utowana, the flotilla of yachts and submarine chasers reached their first port of call -- Hamilton, Bermuda

Hamilton, Bermuda

Hamilton is the capital of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. It is the territory's financial centre and a major port and tourist destination.-Geography:...

 -- on 9 November. Wenonah remained at Hamilton for nine days and then departed in tow of May along with Hannibal, Margaret, Rambler, Artemis (SP-593)

USS Artemis (SP-593)

USS Artemis , later known as USS Arcturus was a yacht acquired by the United States Navy during World War I. Artemis was armed with guns and depth charges, and was sent to Europe as a patrol craft to protect Allied ships from German submarines and other dangers...

, Cythera (SP-575), Lydonia (SP-700)

USS Lydonia (SP-700)

USS Lydonia was a 497 gross ton yacht acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War I. She was outfitted as a patrol craft and spent most of the war based out of Gibraltar, escorting and protecting Allied ships in the Mediterranean and along the Atlantic Ocean coast of Europe. Post-war she was ...

, and the six submarine chasers on the 18th for the next leg of the voyage, from 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...

 to 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...

.

She reached the Azores on 5 December and, after two days at Horta

Horta (Azores)

Horta is a single municipality and city in the western part of the Archipealgo of the Azores, encompassing the island of Faial. Horta has a population of about approximately 15,038 people and an area of 173.1 square kilometers. The population density is about 88 persons per square kilometer...

, moved on to Ponta Delgada

Ponta Delgada

Ponta Delgada is a city and municipality on the island of São Miguel in the archipelago of the Azores, an autonomous region of Portugal. It includes 44,403 residents in the urban area, and approximately 20,113 inhabitants in the three central parishes that comprise the historical city: São Pedro,...

 where she remained from 8 to 19 December. From there, the yacht continued on across the eastern Atlantic and arrived at Gibraltar

Gibraltar

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...

 on Christmas Day. On 15 January 1918, she began escorting convoys between Gibraltar and Bizerte

Bizerte

Bizerte or Benzert , is the capital city of Bizerte Governorate in Tunisia and the northernmost city in Africa. It has a population of 230,879 .-History:...

, Tunisia

Tunisia

Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...

. That duty continued uninterrupted through the end of hostilities in November 1918.

Antisubmarine warfare

On 26 March 1918, she attack by mistake the French submarine Watt. The French Commanding Officer Bourély was killed, there are 5 other men wounded which were taken over by the british Yacht Jeannette II, one of them died later.

Wenonah's logs reveal only a single variation to that routine—a run to Genoa

Genoa

Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....

 and back in July 1918. During the Gibraltar-to-Genoa leg of that voyage, the armed yacht engaged in her only combat action of the war. At about 1924 on the evening of the 23d, one of the ships she was escorting, SS Messidor, was torpedoed. Wenonah dropped a single depth charge

Depth charge

A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...

 in the vicinity of the sinking ship then busied herself with rescue operations. She dropped rafts and buoys for the survivors of SS Messidor and returned to her station with the convoy

Convoy

A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...

.

Several hours later, just before 0100 on the 24th as she zigzagged on patrol astern of the convoy, Wenonah spied a flare ahead and learned that another unit of the convoy, SS Rutherglen, had also run afoul of an enemy torpedo

Torpedo

The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...

 and was settling slowly by the stern. She dropped a single depth charge near the sinking ship, but it failed to detonate. After her inauspicious antisubmarine maneuver, the yacht turned to rescue work and, by 0123, had taken 38 survivors on board.

After a lull during the daylight hours of the 24th, action resumed that evening. Just before 2100, she made another unsuccessful attack on a suspected submarine contact. Again, her British depth charge failed to function. Near chaos followed on the heels of that attack. Almost immediately every ship in the convoy began to steer various courses to avoid the unseen "enemy." For almost an hour, they cruised the area in a highly disorganized manner, firing guns and dropping depth charges at almost anything that suggested the presence of a U-boat

U-boat

U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...

.

Finally, at 2150, the convoy

Convoy

A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...

 reformed and moved off in some semblance of order. Two alarms occurred that night; and, during the second, Wenonah fired a single 3-inch shell at what proved to be a porpoise

Porpoise

Porpoises are small cetaceans of the family Phocoenidae; they are related to whales and dolphins. They are distinct from dolphins, although the word "porpoise" has been used to refer to any small dolphin, especially by sailors and fishermen...

. Save for another porpoise masquerading as a U-boat the following day, the excitement abated, and the convoy completed the voyage in a more routine fashion.

Post-war activity

A week after the armistice

Armistice

An armistice is a situation in a war where the warring parties agree to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, but may be just a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace...

, Wenonah made a trip from Gibraltar

Gibraltar

Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...

 to 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...

, Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

, and back. Then, on 7 December, she departed Gibraltar to return to the United States. Steaming in company with Druid (SP-321)

USS Druid (SP-321)

USS Druid was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1919. She was sent to the European coast and the Mediterranean to protect Allied shipping from German submarines and other dangers.- A yacht built in New York :...

, Wheeling (Gunboat No. 14)

USS Wheeling (PG-14)

USS Wheeling was a Wheeling-class gunboat acquired by the U.S. Navy in 1897. She served as a gunboat during the Spanish-American War as well as a convoy escort during World War I...

, and the Coast Guard cutter Yamacraw, she stopped first at Ponta Delgada

Ponta Delgada

Ponta Delgada is a city and municipality on the island of São Miguel in the archipelago of the Azores, an autonomous region of Portugal. It includes 44,403 residents in the urban area, and approximately 20,113 inhabitants in the three central parishes that comprise the historical city: São Pedro,...

. Then, on her way from the Azores to Bermuda, she lost her navigation officer overboard during a battle with a force 10 gale early on the morning of 23 December 1918. On 3 January 1919, the yacht entered port at New London, Connecticut

New London, Connecticut

New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....

.

Transfer to the Coast and Geodetic Survey

On 14 March, she moved to the New York Navy Yard, where she was placed out of commission on 12 April and transferred to the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. The yacht served with that agency on the west coast until October 1922 when the Department of Commerce returned her to the Navy in the custody of the Commandant, 13th Naval District.

Reinstated as PY-11

Wenonah was reinstated on the Navy list

Navy List

A Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a country....

 and received the hull designation PY-11 on 22 September 1923. However, the yacht remained inactive; and her name was again struck from the Navy list on 20 January 1928. The yacht was sold to H. W. Goodall of Santa Barbara, California

Santa Barbara, California

Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...

, on 15 May 1929.

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