Nettle, 1879
A plant of the genus Urtica, having toothed leaves covered with hairs that secrete a stinging fluid that affects the skin on contact.
Builder: New York
Length: 58'
Beam: 9' 10"
Draft: 4' 6"
Displacement: 22 tons
Cost: $3,900
Commissioned: 1879
Decommissioned: 1911
Disposition: Sold
Machinery: Single Scotch-type coal-fired boiler; double steam engines; 25 IHP; single propeller
Performance & Endurance:
Max:
Cruising:
Deck Gear: None
Complement: 4 men
Armament: None
Tender History:
The Nettle was a small engineering tender that was initially assigned to the 5th Lighthouse District. She was used in the construction and maintenance of unmanned lights on Lake Champlain. She later saw service in the 7th, then the 5th, and finally the 3rd lighthouse districts. She was rebuilt in 1882 and in 1885 received a new boiler and a new engine in 1889. Her boiler was replaced again in 1893 and in 1900.
She was decommissioned in 1911 and was sold. She then operated as a freighter until 1923.
Sources:
Douglas Peterson. United States Lighthouse Service Tenders, 1840-1939. Annapolis: Eastwind Publishing, 2000.