View source for USS Wompatuck

{{short description|Tugboat of the United States Navy}}
{{distinguish|USS Wampatuck (YT-337)}}

{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[File:USS Wompatuck 21 April 1899.PNG|300px|USS ''Wompatuck'']]
|Ship caption=USS ''Wompatuck'' underway on 21&nbsp;April&nbsp;1899.
}}
{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag= {{Shipboxflag|United States|1896}}
|Ship name=''Atlas''
|Ship namesake=
|Ship operator=[[Standard Oil Company of New York]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=[[Harlan and Hollingsworth]], [[Wilmington, Delaware|Wilmington]],&nbsp;[[Delaware]]
|Ship original cost=
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|Ship sponsor=
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|Ship completed= 1896
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|Ship fate=Sold to [[United States Navy|U.S.&nbsp;Navy]] 4&nbsp;April&nbsp;1898
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=
|Ship flag= {{navy|United States|1912}}
|Ship name=USS ''Wompatuck''
|Ship namesake=[[Wompatuck]] (ca. 1627–1669), [[Massachusett]] leader
|Ship acquired= 4&nbsp;April&nbsp;1898
|Ship commissioned=6&nbsp;April&nbsp;1898
|Ship decommissioned= 15&nbsp;October&nbsp;1898
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship recommissioned=12&nbsp;November&nbsp;1900
|Ship reclassified=District&nbsp;Harbor&nbsp;Tug&nbsp;(YT-27), 17&nbsp;July&nbsp;1920
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship decommissioned=31&nbsp;July&nbsp;1931
|Ship struck=11&nbsp;February&nbsp;1938
|Ship fate=*Laid up awaiting sale 1938–1941
*Withdrawn from sale list 9&nbsp;July&nbsp;1941 
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship renamed=''YO-64'' 9&nbsp;October&nbsp;1941
|Ship reclassified=[[Fuel oil|Fuel Oil]]&nbsp;[[Barge]]&nbsp;(YO-64) 9&nbsp;October&nbsp;1941
|Ship fate=Lost ca. late&nbsp;December&nbsp;1941 
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship struck=21&nbsp;April&nbsp;1944
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Header caption=
|Ship type= Armed [[Tugboat|tug]]
|Ship displacement={{convert|323|LT|t|0|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship length=*{{convert|130|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} ([[Length overall|overall]])
*{{convert|106|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} ([[Length between perpendiculars|between&nbsp;perpendiculars]])
|Ship beam={{convert|25|ft|6|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft={{convert|12|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} (mean)
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|Ship propulsion=*[[Steam engine]], one shaft 
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|Ship complement=28
|Ship armament=*2 × 6-pounder&nbsp;guns
*1 × 3-pounder&nbsp;gun
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|}
'''USS ''Wompatuck'' (YT-27)''' was an armed [[Tugboat|tug]] in commission in the [[United States Navy]] from 1898 to 1931. Early in her naval career, she saw combat in the [[Spanish–American War]] and the [[Philippine–American War]]. After she was decommissioned, she was selected for conversion into the [[fuel oil]] [[barge]] '''''YO-64''''', but she was lost in the early days of [[World War II]] in the [[Pacific War|Pacific]] before the conversion could be completed.

==Construction, acquisition, and commissioning==

''Wompatuck'' was completed in 1896 as the iron-[[Hull (ship)|hulled]] commercial [[Propeller|screw]] tug '''''Atlas''''' for the [[Standard Oil Company of New York]] by [[Harlan and Hollingsworth]] at [[Wilmington, Delaware|Wilmington]], [[Delaware]]. Amid deteriorating relations with [[Spain]] in the spring of 1898, the U.S. Navy acquired ''Atlas'' from Standard Oil of New York on 4 April 1898. After refitting her for naval service at the [[New York Navy Yard]] in [[Brooklyn, New York|Brooklyn]], [[New York (state)|New York]], the Navy [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] her there as USS ''Wompatuck'' on 6 April 1898.

==Service history==
===Spanish–American War===

Assigned to the [[North Atlantic Squadron]], ''Wompatuck'' departed [[New York City]] on 16 April 1898 and proceeded via [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]], [[Virginia]]; [[Port Royal, South Carolina|Port Royal]], [[South Carolina]]; and [[Key West, Florida|Key West]], [[Florida]], to the [[Caribbean]]. During her journey, the [[Spanish–American War]] began on 25 April 1898, when the [[United States Congress]] declared war on Spain retroactive to 21 April. She arrived off Havana, Cuba, on 30 April 1898, bearing dispatches and mail for the ships of the North Atlantic Squadron [[Blockade|blockading]] [[Cuba]].

====Operations off southeast Cuba====

On 12 May 1898, [[Captain (United States O-6)|Captain]] Charles P. Goodrich, the commanding officer of the [[auxiliary cruiser]] {{USS|St. Louis|1894|6}}, embarked in ''Wompatuck'' with [[United States Marine Corps]] Lieutenant A. W. Catlin, eight U.S. Marines, and 11 volunteer U.S. Navy sailors. ''Wompatuck'' then headed for the mouth of the harbor at [[Santiago de Cuba]] on Cuba′s southeast coast to attempt to cut the [[Submarine communications cable|undersea]] [[telegraph]] cable linking Cuba with [[Jamaica]]. Unluckily for the Americans, a Spanish [[patrol craft]] sighted them; and Goodrich ordered a hasty retirement, "not knowing what might be the resources of the defense in guns and [[Searchlight|search lights]]."

At daybreak on 18 May 1898, ''St. Louis'' and ''Wompatuck'' slowly closed the Santiago de Cuba harbor entrance in a second attempt to locate and destroy the cable. The ''St. Louis''′s [[grapnel]] soon snagged on the telegraph cable; but, almost simultaneously, Spanish [[coastal artillery]] [[Artillery battery|batteries]] opened fire on the two American warships. Although neither ''Wompatuck'' nor ''St. Louis'' was well-suited for a slugging match with coast defense batteries, both stayed on station until they had cut communications between Jamaica and Cuba. In his subsequent action report, Captain Goodrich lauded Lieutenant Jungen's "praise-worthy display of coolness and pluck in battle."

On 19 May 1898, ''St. Louis'' and ''Wompatuck'' attempted to cut Spanish cable connections at [[Guantánamo Bay]] on Cuba′s southeast coast′. ''Wompatuck'' proceeded into the harbor and dragged her hook along the bottom while ''St. Louis'' lay-to outside, her main battery at the ready. Spanish shore batteries soon opened fire and eventually drove the American ships out to sea.

After a brief period of repairs at Key West, ''Wompatuck'' returned to the blockade. She later took part in the landings of [[United States Army]] troops at [[Daiquirí]] on Cuba′s southeast coast to relieve pressure on U.S. Marines entrenched at Guantánamo Bay.

During the Daiquirí operation, ''Wompatuck'' screened U.S. Army [[Transport (ship)|transports]] on the voyage to the landing zone on 22 June 1898 and later towed 18 [[Launch (boat)|launches]], [[whaleboat]]s, and [[Cutter (boat)|cutters]] towards the shore to help land the troops from the transports. After she had pointed the first landing parties toward the beaches, she shelled Spanish defense positions to prevent the Spanish defenders from launching a counterattack against the American force ashore.

====First Battle of Manzanillo====

On 30 June 1898, ''Wompatuck'' joined the [[gunboat]]s {{USS|Hist|1895|6}} and {{USS|Hornet|1898|6}} in reconnoitering the port of [[Manzanillo, Cuba|Manzanillo]], Cuba. They encountered the Spanish 30-[[displacement ton]] gunboat ''[[Spanish gunboat Centinela|Centinela]]'' near [[Niguero Bay]]; ''Wompatuck''′s draft was too great for her to pursue ''Centinela'' as she retreated into shallow water near the coast, but ''Hist'' and ''Hornet'' followed her and, after they exchanged fire with ''Centinela'' and with Spanish troops on shore, ''Centinela''′s crew beached her.

The three American ships then proceeded to Manzanillo itself, where they found numerous [[merchant ship]]s and six Spanish warships, the gunboats ''[[Spanish gunboat Cuba Española|Cuba Española]]'', ''[[Spanish gunboat Delgado Parejo|Delgado Parejo]]'', ''[[Spanish gunboat Estrella|Estrella]]'', ''[[Spanish gunboat Guantánamo|Guantánamo]]'', and ''[[Spanish gunboat Guardián|Guardián]]'' and the [[sailing vessel]] ''Maria''; ''Cuba Española'', ''Guardián'', and ''Maria'' were functioning as immobile armed [[Floating dock (jetty)|pontoons]]. Second in column, ''Wompatuck'' followed ''Hist''′s lead and opened fire on the Spanish ships as soon as she reached firing range. The Spanish ships responded with an intense fusillade of their own. ''Wompatuck''′s forward 3-pounder fired only seven rounds before the stress sheared off [[rivet]]s at the base of the [[Gun mount|mount]], rendering it useless, forcing Jungen to order her helm to be put over to [[Port and starboard|starboard]], causing ''Wompatuck'' to maneuver out of column formation but allowing her to bring her after battery to bear. Jungen reported that this permitted his vessel to maintain a "brisk...and well-directed" fire.

A Spanish shell, meanwhile struck ''Hornet'' and severed a steam line. Escaping steam scalded three men, and at least one of whom died. ''Wompatuck'', seeing ''Hornet'' in distress, stopped, backed down, and passed ''Hornet'' a tow line which ''Wompatuck''′s crew had laid out with foresight earlier that afternoon as she had cleared for action. After her first attempt to pull ''Hornet'' out of danger failed, ''Wompatuck'' came alongside to make certain that the [[towing]] [[hawser]] was securely fastened. Meanwhile, the Spanish had noticed that ''Hornet'' was disabled. The two-ship "nest" provided too good a target to pass up, and the Spaniards concentrated their gunfire on ''Wompatuck'' and ''Hornet''. A "hot and uncomfortable" fire from [[cannon]], [[Mortar (weapon)|mortars]], and [[small arms]] soon fell around the two American warships. ''Wompatuck'' took three minor-caliber shell hits, one of which holed her port whaleboat and passed {{convert|4|ft|m|1}} from Lieutenant Jungen. As the two American vessels crept out of danger, a [[sloop]] full of Spanish soldiers approached them from their disengaged side, hoping that the Americans were too busy to notice them. However, ''Hornet''′s gunners sighted them and got off a well-placed 6-pounder shell which they reported sank the sloop. During the ensuing 55-minute duel, no ships – except possibly the sloop – were lost on either side, but the American ships claimed to have sunk a Spanish "[[torpedo boat]]."

After undergoing repairs, ''Wompatuck'' assisted ''Hist'' and ''Hornet'' in breaking Spanish undersea cables between [[Media Luna, Cuba|Media Luna]] and [[Quizaro Island]] on 11 July 1898.

====Third Battle of Manzanillo====
One week later, on the morning of 18 July 1898, ''Wompatuck'' formed part of an American [[Squadron (naval)|squadron]] that conducted a bold and devastating three-pronged raid on Manzanillo. The American warships, which also included ''Hist'', ''Hornet'', the gunboats {{USS|Helena|PG-9|6}} and {{USS|Wilmington|PG-8|6}}, the armed tug {{USS|Osceola|AT-47|6}}, and the armed [[yacht]] {{USS|Scorpion|PY-3|6}} and were under the overall command of the commanding officer of ''Wilmington'', [[Captain (United States O-6)|Captain]] Chapman C. Todd,<ref>[https://www.history.navy.mil/research/publications/documentary-histories/united-states-navy-s/naval-operations-man.html Naval History and Heritage Command "Naval Operations Manzanillo"]</ref> approached the enemy from three directions through various shipping channels, with ''Helena'' and ''Wilmington'' attacking from the left by entering via a channel on the northern side of [[Manzanillo Bay (Cuba)|Manzanillo Bay]], ''Osceola'' and ''Scorpion'' attacking via a central channel directly opposite the city, and ''Hist'', ''Hornet'', and ''Wompatuck'' approaching from the right through one of the southern entrance channels to the bay.<ref name=nytimeshowtodd>https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1898/07/22/102493236.pdf Anonymous, "How Todd Sunk Seven Ships," ''New York Times'', July 22, 1898, p. 1.</ref> The three groups timed their passages so that would enter the bay simultaneously.<ref name=nytimeshowtodd/>

The American squadron caught the Spanish by surprise, but at 07:04 Spanish coastal artillery batteries opened fire on the American ships.<ref name=mckinley265>[https://books.google.com/books?id=XM_JhNGXCKQC&pg=RA1-PA307&dq=battle+of+manzanillo#PPP7,M1 McKinley, William, ''The Abridgement'', Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1899, p. 265]</ref> At about 07:19, ''Osceola'' and ''Scorpion'' commenced counterbattery fire against the Spanish coastal artillery.<ref name=mckinley265/> While ''Helena'' and ''Wilmington'' opened fire on the merchant [[Steamship|steamers]] ''Gloria'' and ''Jose Garcia'' and the [[blockade runner]] ''Purísima Concepción'', several of the Spanish gunboats in the harbor – ''Cuba Española'', ''Delgado Parejo'', ''Estrella'', ''Guantánamo'', and ''Guardián'' – steamed out to offer battle to the American ships but retreated back to their moorings under heavy fire.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8j0OAAAAIAAJ&dq=battle+of+manzanillo&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 Everett, Marshall, ''Exciting Experiences in Our Wars with Spain and the Filipinos'', Book Publishers Union, 1899, p. 142.]</ref>

Although forced to advance cautiously in the shallow waters of Manzanillo Bay to keep from running aground,<ref name=everett143>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8j0OAAAAIAAJ&dq=battle+of+manzanillo&source=gbs_summary_s&cad=0 Everett, Marshall, ''Exciting Experiences in Our Wars with Spain and the Filipinos'', Book Publishers Union, 1899, p. 143.]</ref> ''Hist'', ''Hornet'', and ''Wompatuck'' pursued the gunboats and engaged them at their moorings.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=XM_JhNGXCKQC&pg=RA1-PA307&dq=battle+of+manzanillo#PPP7,M1 McKinley, William, ''The Abridgement'', Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1899, p. 263]</ref> Deciding that his ships were focusing too much of their attention on the merchant ships in the harbor and the [[Hulk (ship type)|hulk]] ''Maria'', Todd ordered ''Helena'' to shift her fire from them to the gunboats, leaving it to ''Wilmington'' to finish off the merchant steamers. ''Helena'' systematically engaged the Spanish gunboats. Under fire by ''Helena'', ''Hist'', ''Hornet'', and ''Wompatuck'', three of these caught fire and exploded, one was beached and sank, and the fifth ran aground; the Americans assessed her as disabled, and her crew later removed her armor and  [[Scuttling|scuttled]] her. With the entire Spanish flotilla at Manzanillo destroyed or disabled, Todd ordered the American ships to withdraw at 10:22 while ''Helena'' lay down suppressing fire, and the battle was over at 10:35.<ref name=everett143/> The Americans emerged unscathed, but ''Wompatuck''′s 3-pounder again had been put out of action when the [[rivet]]s holding the base of its mount to the ship failed under the stress of firing.

Following the Third Battle of Manzanillo, ''Wompatuck'' underwent repairs at Key West before returning to the waters off Cuba. The Spanish–American War came to an end on 13 August 1898.

===Later career===

''Wompatuck'' departed Guantánamo Bay on 14 August 1898, [[convoy]]ing the torpedo boat {{USS|Rodgers|TB-4|6}} to Key West before proceeding north with the torpedo boat {{USS|Morris|TB-14|6}} in tow and arriving at New York City on 26 August 1898. After repairs, ''Wompatuck'' proceeded on to [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]], [[Massachusetts]], which she visited from 2 to 9 September 1898. After towing the [[Monitor (warship)|monitor]] {{USS|Wyandotte|1864|6}} to [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]], for [[Ship decommissioning|decommissioning]], ''Wompatuck'' returned to New York City on 15 September 1898 and was decommissioned at the New York Navy Yard on 15 October 1898.

Recommissioned at the New York Navy Yard on 12 November 1900, ''Wompatuck'' departed New York City on 10 December 1900 and rendezvoused in [[Hampton Roads]], Virginia, with the gunboat {{USS|Annapolis|PG-10|6}}, the [[Patrol vessel|patrol]] [[yacht]] {{USS|Frolic|1892|6}}, and the tug {{USS|Piscataqua|AT-49|6}}. Underway for [[East Asia]] on 30 December 1900, the ships proceeded via the [[Mediterranean]], the [[Suez Canal]], [[Colombo]], and [[Singapore]] to the [[Philippines]], arriving at [[Naval Base Cavite|Cavite]] on [[Luzon]] on 24 April 1901.

Based at Cavite, ''Wompatuck'' spent the next few years participating in American military operations in the [[Philippine–American War]], performing a wide variety of duties. She cooperated with U.S. Army units at [[Lubang, Occidental Mindoro|Lubang]], [[Tilig]], and [[Luk Bay]] in the spring of 1901 and subsequently provisioned [[lighthouse]]s at [[Kapones Island]], [[Subic Bay|Subig]], and [[Olongapo]]; transported men and mail; and assisted vessels in distress. She carried out regular transportation services between Cavite and Olongapo into the spring of 1903 and later steamed to [[China]] to take part in the [[United States Asiatic Fleet]]'s summer target practices at [[Chefoo]].

Assigned to the naval station at Cavite in 1904 and designated a "district harbor tug" with the [[hull classification symbol]] YT-27 on 17 July 1920, when the Navy adopted its modern, alphanumeric system of hull designations, ''Wompatuck'' performed harbor tug service until decommissioned on 31 July 1931. Her name was struck from the [[Navy list]] on 11 February 1938.

''Wompatuck'' apparently was laid up at Cavite for more than three years, awaiting disposal. However, she was withdrawn from the sale list on 9 July 1941 and selected for conversion into a self-propelled, diesel oil barge. She was reclassified as a "[[fuel oil]] [[barge]]" (YO) and renamed ''YO-64'' on 9 October 1941, but her conversion apparently was incomplete when [[Philippines campaign (1941–1942)|the Philippines fell to the Japanese]] in the early months of [[World War II]] in the [[Pacific War|Pacific]]. While no records have been found delineating her fate after war broke out in East Asia, it can be assumed that she was either captured by the Japanese when they took Cavite on 2 January 1942 or was [[Scuttling|scuttled]] by American or Filipino forces to prevent her capture. ''YO-64'' was struck from the Navy list on 21 April 1944.

==References==
===Footnotes===
{{reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* {{DANFS|https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/w/wompatuck.html}}
* {{navsource|14/08027|YO-64 ex Wompatuck (YT-27) (1931 - 1938) USS Wompatuck (YT-27) (1920 - 1931) USS Wompatuck (1898 - 1920)}}

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[[Category:Tugs of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:Spanish–American War ships of the United States]]
[[Category:Philippine–American War ships of the United States]]
[[Category:World War I auxiliary ships of the United States]]
[[Category:World War II auxiliary ships of the United States]]
[[Category:1896 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built by Harlan and Hollingsworth]]
[[Category:Ships of ExxonMobil]]