Wabaquasset (YTB-724)
1945
A tribe or band of Native Americans who formerly lived west of the Quinnebaug River, in what is now Windham County, Conn. Also the name of the village situated about six miles from the Quinnebaug River, south of the present city of Woodstock, Connecticut.
(YTB-724: tonnage 199; length 94'3"; beam 25'0"; depth of hold 13'6"; class YTB-331; type V2-ME-A1)
Port Hudson, a steel-hulled, metal arc-welded, big harbor tug, was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract (M.C. Hull 440) on 31 December 1941, at Slidell, La., by the Canulette Shipbuilding Co., Inc.; launched on 17 June 1942; sponsored by Miss Jean Canulette; and delivered to the War Shipping Administration (WSA) on 26 April 1943, then turned over to the Moran Towing & Transportation Co. at 11:43 a.m. that same day, under a general agency agreement. Three days later, at 5:20 p.m., the big harbor tug was turned over at New Orleans, La., to the DeBardeleben Coal Co. by general agency agreement.
Five days into the year 1945, Maritime Commission records indicate that the vessel was turned over to the Navy Department under a bareboat agreement and delivered at New Orleans on 5 January 1945. On 24 March 1945, the name Wabaquasset and the designation YTB-724 were approved by the Navy for Port Hudson, but the ship was apparently not taken over for service. Turned over to the Crescent Towing & Salvage Co. of New Orleans, under a general agency agreement, at 9:00 a.m. on 7 June 1945, Port Hudson was purchased by Crescent Towing & Salvage Co. at 5:00 p.m. on 18 February 1946, and remains in active service with that company at the time of this writing (2021).
Updated. Robert J. Cressman
1 April 2021
