Wacondah (S.P. 238)
1917-1919
The Navy retained the name carried by this vessel at the time of her acquisition.
(S.P. 238: tonnage 190 (gross registered); length 177'0" (overall); beam 17'0"; draft 7'3" (mean); speed 18.0 knots(maximum), 15.0 knots (cruising); complement 28; armament 2 6-pounders, 2 machine guns)
The first turbine-driven vessel built in the United States, Revolution was a steel-hulled, single-screw steam yacht designed by Charles L. Seabury and completed in 1901 at Morris Heights, N.Y., by the Charles L. Seabury Co. and the Gas Engine & Power Co., for mining engineer F. Augustus Heinze. One of the first American "express" yachts, Revolution was later acquired by Boston banker Charles Hayden in 1907 and renamed Wacondah.
When the United States entered World War I on 6 April 1917, the Navy soon began gathering ships and small craft from civilian owners to serve as auxiliaries and patrol craft. Inspected at the Third Naval District, Wacondah was acquired by the Navy on 24 May 1917. Fitted out for wartime service, Wacondah was commissioned on 14 September 1917, Lt. (j.g.) Samuel Wainwright, USNRF, in command.
By virtue of her light construction, built for speed rather than sea-keeping, Wacondah was restricted to "sheltered waters." Assigned to the Third Naval District, she operated on local patrol duties out of New York harbor for the duration of the war. Decommissioned and stricken from the Navy List on 21 August 1919, Wacondah was sold on 4 June 1920 to the International Steamship & Trading Co., in whose service she was renamed Intercolonial.
Updated, Robert J. Cressman
29 March 2022
