USCGC Fir ( WLM - 212 ) The United States Coast Guard Cutter " Fir " ( WAGL / WLM 212 ) was the last lighthouse tender built specifically for the United States Lighthouse Service to resupply lighthouses and lightships , and to service buoys . " Fir " was built by the Moore Drydock Company in Oakland , California in 1939 . On 22 March 1939 , the U . S . Lighthouse Tender " Fir " was launched . She was steam driven with twin screws , in length , had a beam of , drew of water , and displaced 885 tons . " Fir " was fitted with a reinforced bow and stern , and an ice - belt at her water - line for icebreaking . She was built with classic lines and her spaces were lavishly appointed with mahogany , teak , and brass . The crew did intricate ropework throughout the ship . The cost to build " Fir " was approximately $ 390 , 000 . " Fir ' s " homeport was Seattle , Washington for all but one of her fifty one years of service when she was temporarily assigned to Long Beach , California when was decommissioned on 1 July 1982 . On 1 July 1939 the United States Lighthouse Service became a part of the United States Coast Guard . On 1 October 1940 " Fir " was commissioned as the United States Coast Guard Cutter " Fir " ( WAGL - 212 ) . With the onset of World War II " Fir " was assigned to the U . S . Department of the Navy and painted battleship grey . The following armament was installed for war service : M2 Browning machine gun s , a 3 inch gun , and depth charges . Her wartime duties included picket duty , towing gunnery targets , and patrolling the Washington and Oregon coasts . In 1965 , " Fir " was reclassified as a USCG coastal buoy tender ( WLM ) . On 27 May 1988 , after the decommissioning of , " Fir " gained the distinction as the U . S . Coast Guard ' s oldest commissioned cutter . In accordance with a Coast Guard custom , she displayed gold hull numbers on her bow and was designated as " Queen of the Fleet " on 30 May 1988 . On 1 October 1990 , the 200th anniversary year of the U . S . Coast Guard , " Fir " was honored again with the celebration on her 50th birthday . One year later , on 1 October 1991 " Fir " was decommissioned , and ; on 27 April 1992 was designated a National Historic Landmark by the United States Secretary of the Interior . During her career , " Fir " was a multi - mission ship whose accomplishments mirrored the changing American maritime scene , and the needs of the U . S . Coast Guard for more than half a century . " Fir " s primary duties included resupplying coal , potable water , food , and other vital provisions ; icebreaking , aids to navigation ( ATON ) maintenance , delivery and pick - up of U . S . Mail for lightships and lighthouses on the Washington and Oregon coasts . " Fir " tended the lightships at Umatilla Reef off La Push Washington and Swiftsure Bank at the entrance of the Strait of Juan de Fuca Washington . In addition to servicing aids to navigation ( ATON ) , " Fir " stood war duties during World War II , performed search and rescue missions , marine environmental protection , and law enforcement . For her last project , " Fir " was tasked to do what she was originally built for in 1939 . In July 1991 , " Fir " renovated and restored the Cape Flattery Lighthouse on Tatoosh Island at the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca . There is successor cutter also named " Fir " , , currently in active use by the Coast Guard , which is a cutter . She was launched in 2003 and is based in Astoria , Oregon . History . " Fir " was launched in the United States Lighthouse Service , but completed under the U . S . Coast Guard , making her the last United States Lighthouse Service tender constructed . Sea trials were held on San Francisco Bay on 17 August 1939 . The Trial Board consisted of R . R . Tinkham , Chief Lighthouse Engineer , Portland , Oregon ; W . C . Dibrell , Superintendent of Lighthouses , Ketchikan , Alaska with F . C . Hingsburg , Superintendent of Lighthouses , Portland , Oregon , acting as his alternate ; and F . H . Conant , Assistant Lighthouse Engineer , San Francisco , California . On 18 August 1939 , " Fir " departed for Portland , Oregon . On 30 December 1939 , she received orders to proceed to Lake Union , Seattle , Washington . She was commissioned as the U . S . Coast Guard Cutter " Fir " ( WAGL - 212 ) on 1 October 1940 . On 4 November 1949 " Fir " rescued 19 persons from MV " Andalucia " off Neah Bay , Washington . In 1954 " Fir " assisted the distressed SS " Beloit Victory " near Destruction Island , Washington . In early June 1958 was taken in tow at Tacoma , Washington , by the U . S . Navy Military Sea Transportation Service ' s tugboat , destined for San Diego . California . While very near the Swiftsure Bank lightship at the entrance of the Strait of Juan de Fuca , " Yuma " developed engine troubles . " Yuma ' s " distress call brought " Fir " to her rescue . The crew of the Swiftsure lightship went to general quarters , ready to assist . " Fir " then escorted " Yuma " and " Tinian " to safety . On 9 June 1958 , " Yuma " and " Tinian " arrived at San Diego , California . In 1959 " Fir " was engaged in a major search operation for a downed U . S . Navy plane in her operations area . Brief video footage of " Fir " can seen in a 1961 season episode of Sea Hunt titled " Skipper " . The tender is raising what appears to be a damaged Coast Guard patrol boat . In 1962 " Fir " salvaged a submerged U . S . Coast Guard HO4S helicopter which had crashed in her operations area . In 1968 " Fir " assisted in firefighting operations at Todd Shipyards in Seattle , Washington . On 5 July 1990 " Fir " extinguished a rapidly burning fire in a personal craft at Shilshole Bay , Washington . An entrapped mariner was rescued and his boat was saved . Before decommissioning in 1991 , " Fir " was responsible for 138 lighted and unlighted buoys in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Puget Sound areas . " Fir " was decommissioned on 1 October 1991 , one year after her 50th birthday . Over 600 attendees were on hand to honor the last surviving lighthouse tender in US Coast Guard service . The oldest commissioned cutter award was presented to CDR Philip E . Sherer , USCG , commanding officer of the , by " Fir " s commanding officer , LCDR Nutting , USCG . After decommissioning , " Fir " remained in Seattle , Washington for many years while efforts were made to turn her into a floating museum . When these efforts failed , she was transferred to the United States Maritime Administration ( MARAD ) facility , Suisun Bay , California , in 1997 . Her shafts and rudder locked , she was towed 930 miles by to San Francisco ' s Golden Gate where she was met by a commercial tug that towed her the rest of the way to Suisun Bay . Significant objects were removed from the vessel and stored at a U . S . Coast Guard facility in Forestville , Maryland . On 27 April 1992 " Fir " was placed on the U . S . National Register of Historical Places and designated a US National Historic Landmark . She was transferred to the Liberty Maritime Museum , Sacramento , California on 30 September 2002 . Awards and honors . US Coast Guard Unit Commendation with Operational Distinguishing Device for the period of 21 December 1985 to 21 January 1986 . US Coast Guard Meritorious Unit Commendation with Operational Distinguishing Device for the period of 1 January 1984 to 31 May 1987 . U . S . National Historic Landmark . She was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1992 . At that time , she was to be moored in Staten Island , New York . USCGC " Fir " has had a varied career . As a National Historic Landmark , " Fir " was previously listed as being located in California and New York , but there ' s no other evidence suggesting that she was ever moved to the East coast . The National Historic Landmark program ( incorrectly ) records " Fir " as being in Staten Island , New York . In 2002 , she was transferred to the Liberty Maritime Museum , and towed to the Port of Sacramento . In 2003 , " Fir " was towed to Rio Vista , California , where she was moored on the Sacramento River on the eastern or Sacramento County side of the river across from Rio Vista . In November 2007 , " Fir " was put up for sale at an asking price $ 95 , 000 . The mailing address for the museum is in Sacramento , but the ship was physically located across the river from Rio Vista at . In May 2008 , the webpage reports " Fir is sold ! " . As of June 2010 , " Fir " is moored at Pier 38 , San Francisco . " Fir " is owned by Curt Lind and has been restored by Thomas Young .