Taconnet (YTB-417)
1945-1986
A 17th century Abnaki Native American village located at the fork of the Kennebec River near Waterville in what is now Kennebec County, Maine.
(YTB-417: displacement 237; length l00'0"; beam 25'0"; draft 9'7"; speed 12 knots (trial); complement 16; class Sassaba)
Taconnet (YTB-417) was laid down at Curtis Bay, Md., on 23 May 1944 by the Coast Guard Yard; launched on 4 August 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Clyde D. Sterling; completed on 10 February 1945; and delivered to the Navy and commissioned at her building yard on 13 February 1945, Lt. (j.g.) Harold D. Lewis, USNR, in command.
Taconnet served in the Fourteenth Naval District through the end of World War II. Following the war, she continued to operate in the harbors of the Hawaiian Islands until May 1947 when she was placed out of service, in reserve.
In February 1951, the big harbor tug rejoined the active fleet and served at advanced bases in the Pacific area. In February 1962, Taconnet was redesignated a medium harbor tug, YTM-417. The tug continued to operate with the Pacific Fleet until sometime in 1969 or 1970 when she was reassigned to the Eleventh Naval District, operating out of San Diego.
After being taken out of service and being stricken from the Naval Vessel Register, Taconnet was disposed-of by Navy Sale on 1 August 1986. She was subsequently acquired and renamed Garnet (1997), then Silver King, having that name when photographed circa 2015. Her current status [2024] is "decommissioned or lost."
Updated, Robert J. Cressman
Updated 1 February 2024
