USCGC Tiger

USCGC Tiger (WSC-152) 20 December 1928
History
United States
Name	Tiger
Owner	United States Coast Guard
Builder	American Brown Boveri Electric Corp., Camden, New Jersey
Yard number	346
Way number	J
Laid down	1 February 1927
Launched	18 April 1927
Acquired	29 April 1927
Commissioned	3 May 1927
Decommissioned	12 November 1947
Identification	WPC-152
Honors and awards	Was awarded 1 Battle Star
Fate	Sold on 14 June 1948 as Polar Merchant, floating hulk in Tacoma, Washington
General characteristics
Class and type	Active-class patrol boat
Displacement	232 tons
Length	125 ft (38.1 m)
Beam	23.6 ft (7.2 m)
Draft	7.6 ft (2.3 m)
Propulsion	2 × 6-cylinder, 300 hp (220 kW) engines
Speed	10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement	3 officers and 17 men
Armament	1 3"/27 caliber gun (1927) 2 depth charge racks were added during World War II

The USCGC Tiger (WSC-152) was an Active-class patrol boat of the United States Coast Guard. The vessel guarded the entrance to Pearl Harbor all day and night on December 7, during the Attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II.^[1]

Design and construction

USCGC Tiger (WSC-152) was the 28th of 35 ships in the Active class patrol boat, designed to serve as a "mother ship" in support of Prohibition against bootleggers and smugglers along the coasts. They were meant to be able to stay at sea for long periods of time in any kinds of weather, and were able to expand berthing space via hammocks of the need arises, such as if a large amount of survivors were on board. Built by the American Brown Boveri Electric Corporation of Camden, New Jersey, she was laid down on 1 February 1927.^[2] The cutter was launched on 18 April 1927, transferred to the Coast Guard on 29 April 1927 and commissioned on 3 May 1927.^[3] Like the rest of her class, she was 125 feet (38 m) long, had a 22-foot-6-inch (6.86 m) beam and a 7-foot-6-inch (2.29 m) draft. A single 3-inch (76 mm) gun was mounted as the offensive weapon as launch.^[2] She was numbered as hull No. 346 before being given a name, and launched from slipway J with five other sister ships.^[3]

Service history

Tiger was placed in commission at 11:25 am on 3 May 1927.^[4] The vessel operated out of Coast Guard Base Two in Stapleton, New York, until shifting to Norfolk, Virginia, arriving there on 6 June 1933. Subsequently, the 125 ft (38.1 m) cutter was transferred to the Territory of Hawaii and operated out of Honolulu. In mid-1941, she came under jurisdiction of the United States Navy and was assigned to the local defense force of the 14th Naval District. Equipped with depth charges and listening gear, Tiger then operated out of Honolulu in company with her sister ship USCGC Reliance and the 327 ft (99.7 m) USCGC Taney into late 1941. On December 7, the Imperial Japanese Navy launched a surprise attack on the Pacific Fleet at its Pearl Harbor base.^[1]

Tiger, patrolling off Barber's Point that morning, won her first Battle Star for participation during the attack.^[1]

Fate

She was decommissioned on 12 November 1947.^[5] On 14 June 1948 the cutter was sold as Polar Merchant #257391,^[3] before being completely stripped and used as a floating hull in Tacoma, Washington in 2018.^[6]

References

1. "Tiger (WSC-152)". 10 September 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
2. Flynn, James (2012). "U. S. Coast Guard Patrol Craft Major Classes −100-feet to 150 feet in Length" (PDF).
3. "Comments and Corrections: Ask Infoser". Warship International. 55 (1): 23–25. 2018. ISSN 0043-0374. JSTOR 44894866.
4. United States (1989). Record of movements: vessels of the United States Coast Guard, 1790 – December 31, 1933. A bicentennial publication. Washington: Dept. of Transportation, U.S. Coast Guard.
5. Jim Flynn (2012). "U. S. Coast Guard Patrol Craft – Major Classes" (PDF). 1: 11–12. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
6. Wong, Lui Kit (16 March 2018). "USCGC Tiger served at Pearl Harbor, used as floating hull at Tyee Marina". The News Tribune.