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Naval History and Heritage Command

Vice Admiral William S. Sims, Commander, United States Naval Forces Operating in European Waters, to Secretary of the British Admiralty Sir Oswyn A. R. Murray

U.S. NAVAL FORCES OPERATING IN EUROPEAN WATERS

U.S.S. MELVILLE, FLAGSHIP.

TELEPHONE, VICTORIA, 9110                 30, GROSVENOR GARDENS,

CABLE ADDRESS, “SIMSADUS”                       LONDON, S.W. 1.

REFERENCE NO. N-8                             29 June 1918.

From:          Force Commander.

To  :          Secretary of the Admiralty.

SUBJECT:       Details of U.S. Submarine Chasers for auxiliary

              patrol service red list.

Enclosures:    Five.1

     1.      The Force Commander is pleased to forward herewith, in compliance with the Admiralty’s request of 18 June 1918, the numbers of U.S. Submarine Chasers operating or about to operate soon in British waters, together with the names of the commanding officers on board, the year the boats were built, their displacements, horse-power, armament and wireless, for inclusion in your auxiliary patrol service red list.

     2.      It is hoped that this information is sufficiently complete and as much as you desired.

          Wm S Sims

CHARACTERISTICS COMMON TO ALL U. S. SUBMARINE CHASERS

Year built                        1917-1918

Displacement, loaded              75 tons

Horse Power                       600

Armament

     1  3” 25 calibre gun

     1  Y-gun depth charge thrower

     10 depth charges in racks ready for dropping

Wireles                           50 miles radius

Source Note: TDS, UK-KeNA, Adm. 37/1622. Sims also attached a 3-page list of thirty-six submarine chasers with their officers. Finally, the attached a roster of officers on the tender for the submarine chasers, the U.S.S. Hannibal, which he described as “4,000 tons, 1,100 horsepower, single screw.” There is a “Note” on Sims’ letter written by someone in the British Admiralty which reads: “The list enclosed is incomplete. He does not include the S/Cs [i.e., submarine chasers] formerly based on Portland & now on Devenport.” This note is signed with initials that the editors could not decipher.

Footnote 1: One of the enclosures is printed below the signature and the remainder are discussed in the source note.

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