This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(February 2013) |
USS Lapwing (AM-1) and other ships of the squadron anchored in the Hudson River, off New York City | |
Class overview | |
---|---|
Operators | United States Navy |
Succeeded by | Raven-class minesweeper |
Built | 1917–1919 |
In commission | 1918–1953 |
Planned | 51 |
Completed | 49 |
Cancelled | 2 |
Lost | 16 |
Retired | 35 |
Preserved | 0 |
Notes | Although technically not "preserved", USS Auk has been abandoned in Venezuela since 1962 and is still there in its original configuration albeit partially sunk. |
General characteristics | |
Type | Minesweeper |
Displacement | 840 long tons (853 t) |
Length | 187 ft 10 in (57.25 m) |
Beam | 35 ft 5 in (10.80 m) |
Draft | 15 ft (4.6 m) |
Propulsion | Reciprocating engine |
Speed | 14 knots (16 mph; 26 km/h) |
Complement | 75 |
Armament | 2 × 3 in (76 mm)/50 caliber guns and/or 2 × .30cal machine guns |
The Lapwing-class minesweeper, often called the Bird class, was an early "AM-type" oceangoing minesweeper of the United States Navy. Seven ships of the class were commissioned during World War I, and served well into the 1950s. A number were refitted to serve as ocean-going tugs, salvage vessels, seaplane tenders, or submarine rescue ships.
The propulsion system consisted of 2 Babcock & Wilcox 200psi boilers and a 1,400shp Harlan and Hollingsworth triple expansion reciprocating steam engine.
The table makes no distinction between classification as "Minesweeper No. X" and "AM-X". This change affected all boats equally ca. 1920.
All boats reclassified as Fleet Tugs (AT) where later again reclassified as Fleet Tug, Old (ATO) (ca. 1944). The table treats them the same. Brant and Grebe were never reclassified as ATO.
Ship name | Hull number | Builder | Commissioned | Decommissioned | Fate |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lapwing | AM-1 | Todd Brooklyn | 12 Jun 1918 | 11 Apr 1922 | Sold, 19 August 1946; fate unknown |
AVP-1 | 1 Sep 1932 | 29 Nov 1945 | |||
Owl | AM-2 | 11 Jul 1918 | Sold for scrap, 27 June 1947 | ||
AT-137 | 1 Jun 1942 | 26 Jul 1946 | |||
Robin | AM-3 | 29 Aug 1918 | Sold for scrap, 1945 | ||
AT-140 | 1 Jun 1942 | 9 Nov 1945 | |||
Swallow | AM-4 | 8 Oct 1918 | n/a | Ran aground, 19 February 1938; later sank | |
Tanager | AM-5 | Staten Island Shipbuilding Company | 28 Jun 1918 | n/a | Sank, 4 May 1942 |
Cardinal | AM-6 | 23 Aug 1918 | n/a | Ran aground, 6 June 1923; later sank | |
Oriole | AM-7 | 5 Nov 1918 15 Aug 1938 | 3 May 1922 | Sold 1947 | |
AT-136 | 1 Jun 1942 | 6 Feb 1946 | |||
Curlew | AM-8 | 7 Jan 1919 | n/a | Ran aground, 15 December 1925; later sank | |
Finch | AM-9 | Standard Shipbuilding Company | 10 Sep 1918 | n/a | Sank, 10 Apr 1942;salvaged later sunk 12 January 1945 |
Heron | AM-10 | 30 Oct 1918 18 Sep 1924 | 6 Apr 1922 | Sold for scrap, 25 July 1947 | |
AVP-2 | 27 Jan 1936 | 12 Feb 1946 | |||
Condor | AM-11 | never | never | Construction cancelled, 4 December 1918 | |
Plover | AM-12 | never | never | Construction cancelled, 4 December 1918 | |
Turkey | AM-13 | Merchant Shipbuilding Corporation | 13 Dec 1918 | 12 Apr 1922 | Sold for scrap, 30 December 1946 |
AT-143 | 1 Jun 1942 | 6 Nov 1945 | |||
Woodcock | AM-14 | 19 Feb 1919 21 Feb 1924 | 5 May 1922 | Sold for scrap, 19 December 1947 | |
AT-145 | 1 Jun 1942 | 30 Sep 1946 | |||
Quail | AM-15 | 29 Apr 1919 | n/a | Scuttled to prevent capture, 5 May 1942 | |
Partridge | AM-16 | 17 Jun 1919 | n/a | Sank, 11 June 1944 | |
Eider | AM-17 | Pusey and Jones | 23 Jan 1919 | 18 Apr 1922 | Fate unknown |
YNG-20 | 7 Oct 1940 | 28 Nov 1945 | |||
Thrush | AM-18 | 25 Apr 1919 | 3 Apr 1922 | Sold to a commercial interest, 21 August 1946; Sank, 10 March 1951 | |
AVP-3 | 31 Oct 1935 | 13 Dec 1945 | |||
Avocet | AM-19 | Baltimore Dry Dock and Shipbuilding | 17 Sep 1918 8 Sep 1925 | 3 Apr 1922 | Sold for scrap, 12 December 1946 |
AVP-4 | 22 Jan 1936 | 10 Dec 1945 | |||
Bobolink | AM-20 | 28 Jan 1919 | Fate unknown | ||
AT-131 | 1 Jun 1942 | 22 Feb 1946 | |||
Lark | AM-21 | 12 Apr 1919 | Fate unknown | ||
AT-168 | 1 Mar 1944 | 7 February 1946 | |||
Widgeon | AM-22 | Sun Shipbuilding and Drydock Company | 27 Jul 1918 | Sold for scrap, 5 March 1948 | |
ASR-1 | 22 Jun 1936 | 5 Feb 1947 | |||
Teal | AM-23 | 20 Aug 1918 | Fate unknown | ||
AVP-5 | 22 Jan 1936 | 23 Nov 1945 | |||
Brant | AM-24 | 5 Sep 1918 | Fate unknown | ||
AT-132 | 1 Jun 1942 | ||||
ARS-32 | 1 Sep 1942 | 19 Dec 1945 | |||
Kingfisher | AM-25 | Puget Sound Navy Yard | 27 May 1918 | Fate unknown | |
AT-135 | 1 Jun 1942 | 6 Feb 1946 | |||
Rail | AM-26 | 5 Jun 1918 | Fate unknown | ||
AT-139 | 1 Jun 1942 | 29 Apr 1946 | |||
Pelican | AM-27 | Gas Engine and Power Company | 10 Oct 1918 | Sold for scrap, November 1946 | |
AVP-6 | 22 Jan 1936 | 30 Nov 1945 | |||
Falcon | AM-28 | 12 Nov 1918 | Fate unknown | ||
ASR-2 | 12 Sep 1929 | 18 Jun 1946 | |||
Osprey | AM-29 | 7 Jan 1919 | 12 Dec 1920 | Sold for scrap, 1952 | |
ARS-2 | 17 Sep 1941 | 13 Feb 1947 | |||
Seagull | AM-30 | 7 Mar 1919 | Fate unknown | ||
AT-141 | 1 Jun 1942 | 5 Sep 1946 | |||
Tern | AM-31 | 17 May 1919 | Fate unknown | ||
AT-142 | 1 Jun 1942 | 23 Nov 1945 | |||
Flamingo | AM-32 [1] | New Jersey Dry Dock and Transportation Company | 12 Feb 1919 | 17 Mar 1953 | Sold for scrap, 22 July 1953 |
Penguin | AM-33 | 21 Nov 1918 | n/a | Scuttled to prevent capture, 8 December 1941 | |
Swan | AM-34 | Alabama Drydock and Shipbuilding Company | 31 Jan 1919 | Fate unknown | |
AVP-7 | 22 Jan 1936 | 13 Dec 1945 | |||
Whipporwill | AM-35 | 1 Apr 1919 | Fate unknown | ||
AT-169 | 1 Mar 1944 | 17 Apr 1946 | |||
Bittern | AM-36 | 28 May 1919 | n/a | Scuttled following incapacitating damage, 10 December 1941 | |
Sanderling | AM-37 | Todd Brooklyn | 4 Dec 1918 | 2 May 1922 | Accidentally sank while under tow, 26 June 1937 |
Auk | AM-38 | 31 Jan 1919 | 28 Jan 1947 | Transferred to Venezuela, 9 June 1947; decommissioned in 1962 and abandoned as of 2019 | |
Chewink | AM-39 | 9 Apr 1919 | 4 Feb 1947 | Sunk as a target, 31 July 1947 | |
ASR-3 | 9 April 1919 | 4 February 1947 | |||
Cormorant | AM-40 AT-133 | 15 May 1919 | 29 March 1946 | Fate unknown | |
AM-40 AT-133 | 15 May 1919 | 29 March 1946 | |||
Gannet | AM-41 | 10 July 1919 | n/a | Sunk, 7 June 1942 | |
AVP-8 | 10 July 1919 | n/a | |||
Grebe | AM-43 | Staten Island Shipbuilding Company | 1 May 1919 | n/a | Ran aground, 6 December 1942; destroyed by hurricane, 1–2 January 1943 |
AT-134 | 1 May 1919 | n/a | |||
Mallard | AM-44 | 25 Jun 1919 | 10 Dec 1946 | Sunk as a target, 22 May 1947 | |
ASR-4 | 25 Jun 1919 | 10 Dec 1946 | |||
Ortolan | AM-45 | 17 Sep 1919 | 18 Mar 1947 | Fate unknown | |
ASR-5 | 17 Sep 1919 | 18 Mar 1947 | |||
Peacock | AM-46 | 27 Dec 1919 | n/a | Sunk, 24 August 1940 | |
Pigeon | AM-47 | Baltimore Dry Dock and Shipbuilding | 15 July 1919 | n/a | Sunk, 4 May 1942 |
ASR-6 | 15 July 1919 | n/a | |||
Redwing | AM-48 | 17 October 1919 | n/a | Sunk, 29 June 1943 | |
ARS-4 | 17 October 1919 | n/a | |||
Sandpiper | AM-51 | Philadelphia Navy Yard | 9 October 1919 | 10 December 1945 | Fate unknown |
AVP-9 | 9 October 1919 | 10 December 1945 | |||
Vireo | AM-52 | 16 October 1919 | 18 April 1946 | Fate unknown | |
AT-144 | 16 October 1919 | 18 April 1946 | |||
Warbler | AM-53 | 22 December 1919 | 29 March 1946 | Fate unknown | |
ARS-11 | 22 December 1919 | 29 March 1946 | |||
Willet | AM-54 | 29 January 1920 | 1 December 1947 | Sold for scrap 2 November 1948 | |
ARS-12 | 29 January 1920 | 1 December 1947 |
The United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) use a hull classification symbol to identify their ships by type and by individual ship within a type. The system is analogous to the pennant number system that the Royal Navy and other European and Commonwealth navies use.
USS Bobolink (AM-20/AT-131/ATO-131) was a Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the United States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Lapwing (AM-1/AVP-1) was the lead ship of her class of minesweeper – the first minesweeper of the United States Navy. She was named after a bird, the lapwing, an abundant crested plover of Europe, Asia, and northern Africa, noted for its slow, irregular, flapping flight and its shrill wailing cry.
USS Lapwing was a YMS-1-class minesweeper of the YMS-135 subclass built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was named after the lapwing.
USS Owl (AM-2) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Cardinal (AM-6) was a Lapwing-class minesweeper in the United States Navy. She was named after the cardinal bird.
USS Robin (AM-3) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Oriole (AM-7) was a Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Woodcock (AM-14) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the United States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Partridge (AM-16) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the United States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Turkey (AM-13) was a Lapwing-class minesweeper the United States Navy, thus named after the bird, not after the country which in 1917 was an enemy in the ongoing World War I. The minesweeper was acquired by for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
The first USS Lark (AM-21) was a Lapwing-class minesweeper in the United States Navy. She was named for the lark.
USS Seagull (AM-30) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the United States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
The second USS Tern (AM-31) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Cormorant (AM-40) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the United States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Gannet (AM-41) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper built for the United States Navy near the end of World War I.
USS Kingfisher (AM-25/AT-135/ATO-135) was an Lapwing-class minesweeper acquired by the U.S. Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
USS Whippoorwill (AM-35) was a Lapwing-class minesweeper of the United States Navy.
USS Vireo (AM-52) was a U.S. Navy Lapwing-class minesweeper, No. 52, reclassified on 1 June 1942 as a fleet tug. The bulk of her combat career was served in this capacity.
USS Bagaduce (AT-21/ATO-21) was the lead ship of the Bagaduce class of fleet tugs for the United States Navy. She was the first ship of the U.S. Navy of that name, and is named for the Bagaduce River and a peninsula in Hancock County, Maine.