USCGC Tampa ( 1912 ) USCGC Tampa was an Ungala - class cutter that served in the US Revenue Cutter Service , the US Coast Guard , and the US Navy . It was sunk with the highest US combat casualty loss in World War I . US Revenue Cutter Service . " Miami " , a cutter built for the Revenue Cutter Service by the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Corporation , was authorized 21 April 1910 ; launched on 10 February 1912 ; and placed in commission by the Revenue Cutter Service at its depot at Arundel Cove , Maryland on 19 August 1912 . During the following five years , " Miami " performed duties typical for cutters . She served several times on the winter ice patrol , operating out of New York and Halifax , Nova Scotia , to locate iceberg s which might be hazardous to navigation . Her first patrol began on 13 May 1913 out of Halifax , and her last ended on 11 June 1915 when she was relieved by cutter " Seneca " . On other occasions , she operated out of various stations along the eastern seaboard enforcing navigation and fishing laws . Her most frequent bases of operation during that period were Key West and Tampa , Florida ; Arundel Cove , Maryland ; and New York City . US Coast Guard . On 28 January 1915 , the Revenue Cutter Service and the Lifesaving Service were merged and named the U . S . Coast Guard . A year later , on 1 February 1916 , " Miami " was renamed " Tampa " . US Navy in World War I . On 6 April 1917 , when the United States entered World War I , " Tampa " was transferred to Navy jurisdiction for the duration of hostilities . During the next four months , she received heavier armament by trading her three six - pounders for two three - inch ( 76 mm ) and two four - inch ( 102 mm ) guns , a pair of machine guns and depth charge throwers and racks . After preparations at the Boston Navy Yard , " Tampa " moved to the New York Navy Yard on 16 September and reported for duty to the commanding officer of " Paducah " . Ordered to duty overseas , the warship departed New York on 29 September in company with " Paducah " , " Sterling " , " Hubbard " , and five French - manned , American - made submarine chasers in tow . After stops at Halifax , Nova Scotia , and Ponta Delgada in the Azores , " Tampa " and her sailing mates reached Gibraltar on 27 October 1917 . Her war service lasted just eleven months . During that time , she was assigned ocean escort duty protecting convoys from German submarines on the route between Gibraltar and the southern coast of England . On the average , she spent more than half of her time at sea and steamed more than per month . Between 27 October 1917 and 31 July 1918 , she escorted eighteen convoys between Gibraltar and Great Britain , losing only two ships out of all those escorted . Though she brought her guns into action several times against suspected U - boat positions , the only verifiable run - in with a German undersea raider proved fatal . During the late afternoon of 26 September 1918 , " Tampa " parted company with convoy HG - 107 , which she had just escorted into the Irish Sea from Gibraltar . Ordered to put into Milford Haven , Wales , she proceeded independently toward her destination . At 7 : 30 that evening , as she transited the Bristol Channel , the warship was spotted by " UB - 91 " . According to the submarine war diary entry , the U - boat dived and maneuvered into an attack position , firing one torpedo out of the stern tube at 8 : 15 from a range of about 550 meters . Minutes later , the torpedo hit " Tampa " and exploded portside amidships , throwing up a huge , luminous column of water . The water was shocked by a second detonation two minutes later , most likely caused by Tampa ' s depth charges reaching pressure fuse depth , as the cutter sank with all hands , 115 officers and men as well as 16 passengers at roughly 50° 40 ' N and 6° 19 ' W . Alerted by the convoy flagship , whose radio operator reported having felt the shock of an underwater explosion at about 2045 , search and rescue efforts over the succeeding three days turned up only some wreckage , clearly identified as coming from " Tampa " , and a single unidentified body . Three bodies were later recovered , two from a beach near Lamphey , Wales , and the other at sea by a British patrol boat . " Tampa " was struck from the Navy list as of the date of her sinking . Legacy . The loss of the " Tampa " is commemorated by the United States Coast Guard Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery and in the chapel at the Brookwood American Cemetery and Memorial in Surrey , England . In 1999 , the crewmen of the " Tampa " were posthumously presented with the Purple Heart .