Cherry, 1932
A tree of the genus Prunus, bearing small globe-shaped or heart-shaped fruit with a small hard stone, especially P. avium, the common sweet cherry, and P. cerasus, the sour cherry.
Builder: Leathem D. Smith Dock Company, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
Length: 86' 3"
Beam: 23' 6"
Draft: 9' 6"
Displacement: 254 tons
Cost: $109,017.33
Commissioned: 19 May 1932
Decommissioned: 1December 1964
Disposition: Sold on 20 May 1965
Machinery: 1 Winton diesel to one electric motor; 300 BHP; single propeller; re-engined in 1950 with a General Motors diesel
Performance & Endurance:
Max: 9.0 knots
Cruising: 8.0 knots; 1,600 mile range
Deck Gear: Steel derrick, 7 1/2 ton capacity; electric hoist
Complement: 7 - 10
Armament: None (small arms?)
Electronics: None
Tender History:
The United States Tender Cherry entered service in 1932. She was built as a 86-foot bay and sound tender. She was assigned to the 10th Lighthouse District and was based out of Buffalo, New York. She was responsible for maintaining the aids to navigation in Lake Erie and the Niagara River.
She received the designation and hull number WAGL 258 in 1942. During the war, she was assigned to the 9th Naval District and continued operating out of Buffalo. In 1950 her original engine were replaced with a General Motors diesel. On 22 October 1951 she carried the Marine Board of Investigation to the site of raising of tug Sachem off Dunkirk, New York.
From 15 September 1959 through the rest of her service life she operated out of Sault Ste. Marie. She was placed out of service and decommissioned on 1 December 1964 and was sold on 20 May 1965.
Sources:
Douglas Peterson. United States Lighthouse Service Tenders, 1840-1939. Annapolis: Eastwind Publishing, 2000.
Robert Scheina. U.S. Coast Guard Cutters & Craft of World War II. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1982.
Robert Scheina. U.S. Coast Guard Cutters & Craft, 1946 - 1990. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1990.