USCGC Seneca ( 1908 ) USCGC " Seneca or before 1915 , USRC " Seneca was a U . S . Coast Guard cutter commissioned for the principal mission of locating and then destroying abandoned shipwrecks that were still afloat and were a menace to navigation . She was designed with excellent seakeeping qualities , a long cruising range , good towing capabilities , and by necessity the capacity to store a large amount of munitions . She was one of five Coast Guard cutters serving with the U . S . Navy in European waters during World War I . Prewar service . " Seneca " was accepted by the Government on 26 June 1908 and was commissioned by the Revenue Cutter Service at the Revenue Marine Yard at Baltimore , Maryland , on 6 November of that year . On 8 November 1908 she proceeded to Tompkinsville , New York , to assume her principal mission as the derelict destroyer for the Atlantic coast . Her cruising district included the Atlantic Ocean to the eastward of the United States bounded by a line from Portland , Maine , to Sable Island , Nova Scotia , thence to the Bermuda Islands , and then to Charleston , South Carolina . On 29 November she destroyed her first derelict , a wreck off Hog Island , and then returned to Tompkinsville . In February 1909 the cutter visited Washington , D . C . and in June visited Philadelphia . On 21 September she was in New York for the Hudson - Fulton Celebration . On 17 May 1910 " Seneca " visited West Point , and on 28 June she patrolled the Harvard - Yale Regatta at New London , Connecticut . In June 1911 , she escorted the presidential yacht , which had President William Taft and his party on board , from Manhattan Beach to Fall River . On 23 May 1912 , she was at Philadelphia representing the Revenue Cutter Service at the Convention of Permanent International Association of Navigation Congresses . On 29 June she patrolled the course of the Intercollegiate Rowing Association at Poughkeepsie , New York . During 4 – 6 September " Seneca " was at New London , Connecticut for the Fifth Convention of Atlantic Deeper Waterways Association . From 12 – 15 October , she patrolled the Navy Mobilization at New York City . On 2 September she patrolled the British International Trophy races at Huntington , Long Island . During the winter of 1912 - 1913 she took the place of " on winter cruising . First International Ice Patrol . On 29 March 1913 , " Seneca " was assigned to the International Ice Patrol . The disaster of 14 April 1912 had resulted in the loss of 1 , 517 lives and a universal demand for a patrol of the ice zone had arisen . Two U . S . Navy scout cruisers , and , had performed this patrol for the remainder of the 1912 ice season , after which the duty was turned over to the Revenue Cutter Service . " Seneca " and USRC " Miami " were the first two cutters to perform this duty in 1913 . They made these patrols out of Halifax , Nova Scotia , alternating patrol duties . Rescue of " Columbia " survivors . On 16 September 1913 she towed the " Lottie Russell " , a derelict , into Halifax . On 12 April 1914 , while on ice patrol , " Seneca " rescued four survivors from a lifeboat which had been drifting in the North Atlantic for ten days . Originally 14 survivors of the British freighter " Columbian " had put to sea in this boat , but ten had died of hunger , thirst , and exposure . On 5 July 1914 she proceeded to Labrador to observe and investigate conditions governing the origins of the ice flows . On 10 August 1914 she was ordered to cooperate with the in the enforcement of the neutrality of the United States after the outbreak of war on the European continent . In the winter of 1914 - 1915 she was again on winter cruising from Gay Head to the Delaware breakwater . Transfer to the newly - formed US Coast Guard . After winter cruising , she conducted another ice patrol only this time as a Coast Guard cutter as the Revenue Cutter Service had merged with the US Life - Saving Service in January , 1915 to create the Coast Guard . She again conducted a winter cruise in the winter of 1915 - 1916 and then an ice patrol in the spring of 1916 . On 13 – 14 September 1916 the crew participated in the Marine Parade at Philadelphia . The winter of 1916 - 1917 was her last winter cruise before the war . World War I . The United States declared war on Germany on 6 April 1917 and " Seneca " and her crew , along with the rest of the Coast Guard , were transferred to the Navy Department . A battery of four guns were installed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard . The cutter was assigned to the Atlantic Patrol Fleet , Squadron Four , with headquarters at Key West , Florida . She arrived there on 22 May , and was assigned the duty to search the waters of Cuba and the Bahama Islands for enemy submarines . On 18 July she was reassigned to Seventh Naval District headquartered at Miami , Florida and assumed coastal patrol duties . Refit . " Seneca " was then selected for convoy duty overseas along with five other larger Coast Guard cutters . She was overhauled and refitted with depth charge equipment at the Morse Dry Dock and Repair Company shipyard in New York . Captain J . H . Brown was detached and Captain William J . Wheeler assumed command before the ship left the United States in the latter part of August . Gibraltar convoy escort . She arrived at Gibraltar on 4 September 1917 and was assigned to Squadron Two of the patrol forces there . She began escorting convoys from Gibraltar to Tangiers and other nearby points . She escorted six of these convoys and sighted one enemy submarine on 2 October . On 19 October she got her first convoy to England , being the lone escort of eleven merchant ships to Pembroke , Wales , where she arrived on 29 October . During this convoy two of the merchant vessels collided , and one , " Usher " , was sunk . On 3 November she escorted 14 ships back to Gibraltar , arriving the 11th . On 26 November a submarine was sighted in the moonlight about distant . " Seneca " fired two shots , forcing the submarine to submerge . On 17 February 1918 , lookouts sighted another submarine at astern . " Seneca " fired one shot , but owing to the darkness of the night , was unable to determine the results . On 4 March , one of the ships in " Seneca " s convoy was torpedoed and sunk , but the submarine was not sighted . On the 22nd , new and improved depth charge releasing gear was installed on the cutter . Rescue of " Cowslip " survivors . Early in the morning of 25 March the men on " Seneca " heard a loud explosion within their convoy , and shortly afterward saw distress rockets in the air . They found the British ship " Cowslip " had been torpedoed and was sinking . Immediately a boat was put over with Third Lieutenant F . W . Brown in charge . They soon returned with 15 of " Cowslip " < nowiki > ' s < / nowiki > men , along with one of " Cowslip " < nowiki > ' s < / nowiki > boats with 19 others . Boatswain P . W . Patterson and a fresh boat crew took " Cowslip " < nowiki > ' s < / nowiki > boat back , while Lieutenant Brown returned with " Seneca " < nowiki > ' s < / nowiki > boat . Patterson ' s boat took 20 survivors on board and towed seven others in a small dinghy . Brown ' s boat rescued the last 19 on board the sinking vessel . Only five officers and one enlisted man were lost , and they had been killed in the explosion . This rescue was beyond the call of " Seneca " < nowiki > ' s < / nowiki > duty as the escort vessels were to attack enemy submarines , but it was understood that when a ship was torpedoed the escorts were not expected to expose themselves to a similar fate by stopping to rescue the survivors . However , Captain Wheeler was commended for taking what was considered a " justifiable risk " . Torpedo near misses . On 29 April 1918 " Seneca " while escorting a convoy near St . Vincent had one torpedo cross her bow fifty feet ahead of her bow and during the avoidance maneuver for that torpedo , a second torpedo passed under her stern , apparently " Seneca " being to close to the attacker for the torpedo to arm . On 19 May " Seneca " joined up with what would be her 20th convoy at Falmouth , England . On the 20th she dropped a depth charge over a suspicious oil spot , whereupon a very heavy oil slick came to the surface . On her next convoy " Seneca " sighted a submarine on 8 June . After firing a torpedo at the cutter that passed close the " Seneca " ' s bow , the submarine submerged . " Seneca " attacked with depth charges and may have sunk the submarine , but they could not remain in the area to investigate further . Rescue of " Queen " survivors . On 25 June , while escorting 29 merchant ships to Gibraltar , " Seneca " < nowiki > ' s < / nowiki > men heard a terrific explosion , and observing the steamer " Queen " sinking , they drove " Seneca " at full speed to the rescue . So badly was the " Queen " hit that within five minutes of the explosion she was completely out of sight under the water , taking 25 of her men with her , including the commodore of the convoy . Twenty - seven survivors were clinging to the small boats and pieces of floating wreckage . " Seneca " < nowiki > ' s < / nowiki > No . 1 lifeboat with Third Lieutenant F . W . Brown in charge , was lowered to pick them up . All 27 were safely on board " Seneca " within 40 minutes . For the remainder of the convoy ' s run , Captain Wheeler assumed command . Submarine false alarm . On her next convoy , the 23rd , she was escorting 25 ships to England when on 13 July one of the ships in the convoy sounded the submarine warning and hoisted a signal reading " submarine to starboard . " " Seneca " immediately stood in that direction , dropping two depth charges on the flank of the convoy as a precautionary measure , and stood full speed in the direction of the submarine some off . " Seneca " then began firing , and expended 28 rounds . Upon closer approach the submarine proved to be a dead whale , floating on its side and bearing a striking resemblance to the conning tower of a submarine . Four holes in the carcass testified to the accuracy of the " Seneca " s guns . Drama of the " Wellington " rescue . The next convoy the " Seneca " escorted arrived at Gibraltar 15 August and the following convoy back to England arrived 2 September . The 26th convoy for " Seneca " , OM - 99 , consisted of 21 ships bound for Gibraltar . On 16 September at 11 : 30 hours the steamship " Wellington " , a ship in convoy OM - 99 , was torpedoed and " Seneca " proceeded at full speed to her assistance . At 11 : 31 a submarine was sighted a few hundred yards from " Wellington " . " Seneca " s crew fired three shots at the submarine before it submerged . Depth charges were dropped and additional shots fired to keep it from resurfacing . " Wellington " was in bad condition , having been torpedoed in the forepeak . Her master believed she would stay afloat , but all but eleven of his men refused to remain on board . " Seneca " First Lieutenant F . W . Brown at once volunteered to assist " Wellington " s master , and almost the entire crew of " Seneca " wanted to go with him . Nineteen of these " Seneca " volunteers were selected to go with Lieutenant Brown to the " Wellington " , while eleven of the 42 men in " Wellington " s crew also remained with the master . Lieutenant Brown was to be in charge of the ship , but the master was to navigate her into the nearest port which was Brest , France . At 12 : 35 " Seneca " left " Wellington " and rejoined the convoy . was on her way to assist " Wellington " , expecting to reach her by 17 : 00 . Arriving on board " Wellington " , Lieutenant Brown posted lookouts , broke out ammunition and started drilling a gun crew , for they were still in sub - infested waters , and on a stricken ship carrying valuable cargo to the allies . Repairs were made below decks and by 12 : 50 hours the ship began to move ahead . By 14 : 10 the speed was increased until they were making . The ship was taking water in the number 2 hold , but by driving the pumps , the crew held it to a level of . At 18 : 46 the ship was down by the head , and although Lieutenant Brown was able to stop her and bring her head back up long enough to regain his course , her head went down again and her engines were helpless . A storm had come up and the seas had grown very heavy , with waves crashing over the bow . There was only one lifeboat on " Wellington " and Lieutenant Brown mustered all the men abreast of this except for the radio operator and three men on the pumps . It was his intention to remain with these four until all hope of saving the ship was gone , the other men meanwhile standing by in the lifeboat . One " Seneca " man and seven " Wellington " men were lowered with the boat , the others to slide down the falls into the boat as soon as it reached the water . Fearful lest the boat be smashed against the ship by the heavy seas , one of " Wellington " s men chopped the painter and the lifeboat with its eight men drifted away rapidly . They tried to row back , but inexperienced in a pulling boat , they were no match for the heavy seas and strong current . Lieutenant Brown was left stranded with 18 of his men and five of the " Wellington " men . He set the men to constructing liferafts . The bow continued settling . The radio operator was in contact with " Warrington " and continued sending position reports . Rockets were fired from " Wellington " , and at 14 : 30 on the 17th answering rockets from " Warrington " were seen off the port bow . " Wellington " listed rapidly and Lieutenant Brown gave the order to abandon ship . He continued signaling with a hand flashlight to " Warrington " about away as the ship ' s keel turned to a sixty degree angle . Then her boilers exploded and the vessel rose up for her final plunge . Lieutenant Brown jumped and swam clear , searching about for something to which he could cling . Responding to cries for help he swam about , and finding men clinging to planks advised them to keep their mouths closed to keep out the sea water . Next he swam to some calcium lights and extinguished them so they would not lure his men away from their planks . After about three and a half hours in the water Brown was picked up in an unconscious state . From his long exposure he developed pneumonia . Eight others of " Seneca " s crew were picked up from the water , but one died shortly afterward . In all , 11 " Seneca " and five " Wellington " men perished . The following awards were made by the Navy : To Acting Machinist William L . Boyce , posthumously : the Navy Distinguished Service Medal and citation . To the following deceased members of the crew , posthumously , the Navy Cross and citation : Water Tender William H . Best ; Cook Russell Elan ; Gunner ' s Mate Second Class P . L . Marvelle ( USN ) ; Boy First Class James J . Nevins ; Coxswain Merton Stellenwarf ; Water Tender R . H . Tingard , and Assistant Master at Arms August Zuleger , Coxswain Carl S . Newbury ; Water Tender M . M . Ovesen ; and Seaman William H . Prime . The remaining living members of the rescue party were awarded the Navy Cross and citation : First Lieutenant F . W . Brown ; Oiler Second Class George W . Christy ; Seaman Raymond J . Gorman ; Assistant Master at Arms D . E . Grimshaw ; Electrician Second Class M . C . Mason ; Seaman Anthony Orhelein ; Coxswain James C . Osborn ; Coxswain Jorge A . Pedersen ; and Machinist First Class M . J . Ryan . Rear Admiral Grant , senior British naval officer at Gibraltar , had this to say of the volunteers : " Lieutenant Brown and the gallant volunteers set an example worthy of the highest traditions of any Service or any Nation . " After the " Wellington " episode the " Seneca " escorted four other convoys , several times encountering submarines . Wartime service summary . She was at Gibraltar on 11 November 1918 when the Armistice was signed , ending World War I . " Seneca " s wartime service included escorting 30 convoys consisting of about 580 ships . Only four were lost , and from them 139 survivors were rescued . Twenty - one responses to submarines were made and only one of these proved to be false — the " dead whale " episode . The cutter had four close calls with torpedoes , and was believed to have sunk one submarine . Postwar service . After the war " Seneca " remained at Gibraltar for several months , then returning to the United States via Algeria , France , and England . Several vessels in distress were assisted during this period . When " Seneca " was returned to the United States Treasury Department on 28 August 1919 , she resumed her station at Tompkinsville . In the spring of 1920 she was back on ice patrol . On 14 July she patrolled the International Yacht Race at Sandy Hook , New Jersey . Again in 1921 and 1922 she was on ice patrol . Run aground and refitted . On 31 July 1922 a new set of guns were installed at the Washington Navy Yard . On 5 August she ran aground in the Potomac River , off Mathias Point , but suffered no serious casualty . After her ice patrol in the spring of 1923 , she patrolled the Harvard - Yale Regatta at New London , Connecticut on 21 June . In July 1923 , she was overhauled in Brooklyn and repainted at Annapolis . Seizure of rum runner . On 15 November 1923 the Commandant ordered the Coast Guard to seize the vessel " Tamoka " ( ex - " Arethusa " ) and arrest her crew . This vessel belonged to William S . McCoy , notorious rum - runner , and had been hovering along the coast between Nassau , Bahamas and Canadian ports , peddling liquor . On 22 August she had fired upon a boat from Manhattan , attempting to board her . At 1030 hours on the morning of 24 November " Seneca " hailed " Tomoka " in latitude 40° 21 . 6 ' North , longitude 73° 49 . 7 ' West and ordered her to heave to and be prepared to be boarded and examined . A surfboat with an armed boarding party in charge of Lieutenant L . W . Perkins was sent to go on board and take charge of the vessel . At first " Tomoka " broke out the British flag and cruised about so that the boarding party would not overtake her . " Seneca " called her gun crews to quarters , cast loose the number one gun , and then ordered " Tomoka " to permit the boat to board . The master then complied . At 12 : 00 the boarding officer reported that he was all right and requested the " Seneca " to go ahead and he would follow with " Tomoka " . " Seneca " shaped a course for the Ambrose Channel lightship , but by 12 : 30 " Tomoka " had still not started to follow . Heading back for the rum - runner " Seneca " was met by her boarding party , which had been chased off " Tomoka " with a machinegun . " Seneca " opens fire . " Seneca " then instructed " Tomoka " that she would be sunk by gunfire unless she proceeded toward New York City . The rum - runner started in that direction , but then suddenly started its engine , hoisted the fore staysail and stood rapidly to eastward . " Seneca " gave chase and opened fire . The first shot was fired across the bow of the fleeing schooner , then the range was gradually decreased . After three warning shots , a fourth shot was fired to hit . The shell landed alongside a few feet from " Tomoka " , and the schooner immediately stopped engines , hauled down the fore staysail and headed into the wind with her foresail idly flapping . " Seneca " mustered a force armed with rifles , called away a boat , and ordered the master to haul down his foresail . The crew of the schooner , without waiting for instructions from the master , immediately jumped to the sail and hauled it down . Boatswain I . E . Johannessen took an armed boarding party on board " Tomoka " and ordered the " rummy " crew below decks . Meanwhile , " Seneca " was lying less than off , with another armed party on the bow . No further difficulty was encountered . The vessels arrived off Staten Island at 23 : 30 and turned " Tomoka " and her crew over to " Lexington " , including Bill McCoy himself . Various missions . After her 1924 ice patrol she was again overhauled , and again patrolled various regattas . On 26 July 1927 she was placed out of commission at Curtis Bay , Maryland but on 20 April 1928 she was recommissioned and reported for duty with the New York Division . On 1 March 1929 she arrived in Washington , D . C . to take part in the inauguration of Herbert Hoover . On 23 September 1932 her permanent station was changed to San Juan , Puerto Rico , and she arrived there on 23 October . On 1 June 1934 her permanent station was changed once again when she moved to Mobile , Alabama , where she served until 28 January 1936 , when she was selected to be decommissioned . Proceeding to the depot at Curtis Bay , " Seneca " had one last opportunity for service when a big freeze came over the Virginia and Maryland coasts . The Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River froze over , stranding several vessels in the ice . " Seneca " was called to the rescue . From 21 – 27 February , she stayed busy breaking ice , freeing and rendering assistance to five ice - bound vessels . Decommissioned . On 21 March 1936 she was decommissioned at the Coast Guard Depot and on 3 September 1936 , she was sold to the Boston Iron and Metal Company of Baltimore for $ 6 , 605 . 00 . " Seneca " was then sold to the Texas Refrigeration Steamship Line and she sailed with them for only a few months before the company went bankrupt . Boston Iron and Metal Company then bought " Seneca " back at auction . Reacquired as training ship . She returned to Coast Guard service in 1941 and was overhauled . In 1942 she was turned over to the state of Pennsylvania for use in training merchant and naval cadets from the maritime academies of the states of Pennsylvania , Massachusetts , and New York . Renamed " Keystone State " , she stayed in that service through 1948 . She was then returned to the Maritime Commission and laid up until she was sold for scrap in Baltimore in 1950 . Notes . < br >