USS Nantucket ( IX - 18 ) USS " Ranger , later USS " Rockport and USS " Nantucket " ( PG - 23 / IX - 18 ) , was a gunboat of the United States Navy . A screw steamer with full - rig auxiliary sail , " Ranger " was destined for a very long 65 - year career , serving first as a U . S . Navy gunboat from 1876 to 1920 , and later as a training ship with the United States Merchant Marine Academy from 1920 to 1940 . The ship was finally scrapped in 1958 , but her engine , which is the only one of its type known to be still in existence , was preserved and is on display at the American Merchant Marine Museum of Kings Point , New York . Design and construction . " Ranger " was built by Harlan and Hollingsworth of Wilmington , Delaware . She was laid down in 1873 and launched in 1876 . " Ranger " s engine was designed by the Bureau of Steam Engineering and built by John Roach & Sons of Chester , Pennsylvania . The engine is of the compound back - acting type , with cylinders of 28½ and 42½ inches respectively , and a 42 - inch stroke . The pistons , cylinder liners and bearings are constructed of bronze . At 64 rpm , the 560 ihp engine drove the ship at a speed of 10 knots . Four coal - burning Scotch boiler s supplied steam at a pressure of 80 psi . Service history . " Ranger " was commissioned at League Island Naval Shipyard , Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , 27 November 1876 , with Commander H . D . Manley in command . After completion of fitting out , " Ranger " was assigned to the Atlantic Station , but remained in the Gosport ( Portsmouth ) Navy Yard and Hampton Roads until 8 March 1877 , when she was assigned to the Asiatic Fleet . Following a special fitting out for her new duty , " Ranger " left New York 21 May 1877 , arriving Hong Kong 24 August 1877 , via Gibraltar , Suez Canal , and Malacca Straits . The ship served on the Asiatic Station until the fall of 1879 , protecting American interests and national policy in the Far East . Arriving at Mare Island Navy Yard 24 February 1880 , she was converted into a survey vessel . From 1881 to 1889 , she was engaged in hydrographic survey work off Mexico , Baja California , Central America , and the northern Pacific ; except when protecting American national interests in the politically turbulent Central American nations . While off Ensenada , Mexico , on 18 January 1886 , Landsman John Enright rescued two shipmates from drowning , for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor . In 1890 , " Ranger " , now commanded by Commander George Cook Reiter , became nationally known as the result of the " Barrundia Affair " . Reiter was the senior U . S . naval officer present at the port of San José de Guatemala during the attempted arrest of General J . Martín Barrundia , a rebel Guatemalan general who had unsuccessfully attempted to take over the government during a military insurrection , and was forced into exile by the Guatemalan government . Barrundia had boarded the " SS Acapulco " , an American - flag ship , and requested political asylum in the United States , when the ship stopped at a Guatemalan port . Rather than place a guard on the " SS Acapulco " for General Barrundia or offer him political asylum , Reiter delayed the General ' s asylum request several hours in order to gain the permission of the Guatemalan government , which never came . The " SS Acapulco " was later boarded by Guatemalan officers , and Barrundia killed while resisting arrest in a gunfight aboard the " SS Acapulco " . During the occupation of the ship , the U . S . flag was taken down , arms and supplies were seized , and the Guatemalan flag was raised in its place . The Secretary of the Navy , at the personal direction of president Benjamin Harrison , ordered Lt . Commander Reiter ' s conduct to be investigated ; the Secretary later censured Reiter and relieved him of command . " Ranger " was decommissioned from 14 September 1891 to 26 August 1892 at Mare Island Navy Yard . Upon reactivation , she was assigned to protect American seal fisheries with the Bering Sea Squadron in 1891 . On 31 January 1894 , she relieved " Alliance " in protecting American interests in Central America , where she remained until placed out of commission 26 November 1895 , except for temporary duty in the Bering Sea in May 1894 . Recommissioned 1 November 1899 , she was a survey ship for two years off Mexico and Baja California , then operated with off Central America , protecting American national interests . She was again decommissioned from 11 June 1903 to 30 March 1905 at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard . She departed Puget Sound 16 April 1905 for the Asiatic Station , arriving Cavite 30 May . Due to recurring maintenance problems , she was decommissioned again at Cavite from 21 June 1905 to 10 August 1908 . Departing Cavite 16 August , she arrived Boston 12 December via the Suez Canal , and was decommissioned immediately on 10 November 1908 . On 26 April 1909 , she was loaned to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as a school ship to replace " Enterprise " at the Massachusetts Nautical Training School . Her name was changed to Rockport 30 October 1917 and then to " Nantucket " 20 February 1918 . As " Nantucket " , she operated as a gunboat in the First Naval District during World War I , as well as a training ship for Navy midshipmen . Designated PG - 23 in 1920 , " Nantucket " was redesignated IX - 18 on 1 July 1921 . On 11 November 1940 , she was transferred to the Maritime Commission for final disposition , to be used as a school ship for the Merchant Marine Academy , Kings Point , N . Y . On 30 November 1940 , she was struck from the Navy list and was returned to the state of Massachusetts as a school ship . In 1942 , she was returned to the US Merchant Marine Academy , renamed TV " Emery Rice " , and used once more as a training ship . She was retired in 1944 and subsequently served as a museum ship until being scrapped in 1958 . Though the ship herself was scrapped , the engine — the only back - acting type known to be still in existence — was saved from destruction by the efforts of Admiral Richard R . McNulty . The engine , which weighs 61 tons and has dimensions of 20 × 10 ft × 6 ft high , now features as the centerpiece of a display at the American Merchant Marine Museum in Kings Point , New York .