The Asheville-class gunboats were a class of small warships built for the United States Navy in response to the Cuban Missile Crisis. The class is named for a city in western North Carolina and the seat of Buncombe County. All Asheville-class gunboats have since been donated to museums, scheduled for scrapping, or transferred to the Greek, Turkish, Colombian and South Korean Navies. The last two Asheville-class gunboats in US service were USS Chehalis and USS Grand Rapids, which were operated by the Naval Surface Warfare Center until they were stricken in 2016.
USS PGM-7 was a gunboat that served in the United States Navy during World War 2. She was commissioned as USS SC-1072, an SC-497 Class Submarine Chaser on 28 June 1943. She was reclassified as a PGM-1 Class Motor Gunboat on 10 December 1943. She was dispatched to the Solomon Islands for patrol service.
USS PGM-17 was a PGM-9-class motor gunboat built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was laid down and launched as USS PC-1189, a PC-461-class submarine chaser, but was renamed and reclassified before her November 1944 commissioning. She ran aground near Okinawa in May 1945. She was salvaged a month later, but was never repaired. She was towed to deep water and sunk in October 1945.
USS PGM-18 was a PGM-9-class motor gunboat built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was built and originally commissioned as USS PC-1255, a PC-461-class submarine chaser, and was decommissioned and converted in late 1944. USS PGM-18 struck a mine off the coast of Okinawa in April 1945; 13 men lost their lives when PGM-18 sank.
The PGM-1-class motor gunboats were a class of eight gunboats converted for the United States Navy from 1943 to 1944 and were succeeded by the PGM-9-class motor gunboats. All eight PGM-1s were converted from SC-497-class submarine chasers. The PGM-1s were created to support PT boats in the Pacific, but were too slow to keep up. The PGM-1s were discontinued and the PGM-9s, also too slow, were shifted to support minesweeping ships instead.
USS PGM-1 was a PGM-1 class motor gunboat that served in the United States Navy during World War II.
USS PGM-2 was a PGM-1 class motor gunboat that served in the United States Navy during World War II. She was originally laid down as an SC-497 class submarine chaser on 16 July 1942 by the Robinson Marine in Benton Harbor, Michigan, and launched on 17 June 1943. She was commissioned as USS SC-757 on 12 August 1943. She was later converted to a PGM-1 class motor gunboat and renamed PGM-2 on 10 December 1943. After the war, she was sold and transferred to the Foreign Liquidations Commission at Subic Bay, Philippines on 20 May 1947. Her exact fate is unknown.
USS PGM-3 was a PGM-1 class motor gunboat that served in the United States Navy during World War II. She was originally laid down as an SC-497 class submarine chaser on 7 September 1942 by the Peterson Boat Works in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and launched on 12 April 1943. She was commissioned as USS SC-1035 on 17 May 1943. She was later converted to a PGM-1 class motor gunboat and renamed PGM-3 on 10 December 1943. After the war she was transferred to the Foreign Liquidations Commission on 20 May 1947. She was turned over to the Chinese Navy at the mouth of the Yangtze River in the summer of 1947.
USS PGM-4 was a PGM-1 class motor gunboat that served in the United States Navy during World War II. She was originally laid down as an SC-497 class submarine chaser on 11 April 1942 by the Wilmington Boat Works, Inc. in Wilmington, California and launched on 7 September 1942. She was commissioned as USS SC-1053 on 17 March 1943. She was later converted to a PGM-1 class motor gunboat and renamed PGM-4 on 10 December 1943. After the war she was transferred to the Foreign Liquidations Commission on 9 June 1947. Her exact fate is unknown.
USS PGM-6 was a PGM-1 class motor gunboat that served in the United States Navy during World War II. She was originally laid down as a SC-497 class submarine chaser on 6 February 1943 by the Mathis Yacht Building Company in Camden, New Jersey and launched on 20 May 1943. She was commissioned as USS SC-1071 on 8 June 1943. She was later converted to a PGM-1 class motor gunboat and renamed PGM-6 on 10 December 1943. During the war she took part in the Pacific Theater. After the war she was transferred to the Foreign Liquidations Commission on 7 May 1947. Her exact fate is unknown.
USS PGM-8 was a PGM-1 class motor gunboat that served in the United States Navy during World War II. She was originally laid down as a SC-497 class submarine chaser on 2 November 1942 by the Wilmington Boat Works in Wilmington, California and launched on 1 May 1943. She was commissioned as USS SC-1366 on 12 August 1943. She was later converted to a PGM-1 class motor gunboat and renamed PGM-8 on 10 December 1943. After the war she was transferred to the Foreign Liquidations Commission in May 1947. Her exact fate is unknown.
The SC-497-class submarine chasers were a class of 438 submarine chasers built primarily for the United States Navy from 1941–1944. The SC-497s were based on the experimental submarine chaser, USS SC-453. Submarine chasers of this variety were collectively nicknamed "the splinter fleet" due to their wooden hulls.
USS SC-497 was a SC-497 class submarine chaser that served in the United States Navy and later the Free French Navy during World War II. She was originally laid down as PC-497 on 29 November 1941 by the Westergard Boat Works in Rockport, Texas, and launched on 4 July 1941. She was commissioned as USS PC-497 on 16 October 1942. She was later reclassified as a SC-497 class submarine chaser and renamed SC-497. She was transferred to the Free French Navy as part of the Lend-Lease program on 18 March 1944 as CH-96. The transfer was made permanent on 15 August 1944. She was renamed CH-724 in 1952 and later P-724 before being withdrawn from service on 23 October 1980. Her exact fate is unknown.
USS SC-501 was a SC-497 class submarine chaser that served in the United States Coast Guard and later the United States Navy during World War II. She was originally laid down as PC-501 on 29 April 1941 by the Seabrook Yacht Corporation in Houston, Texas, and launched on 24 January 1942. She was reclassified SC-501 on 8 April 1943, and acquired from the Coast Guard on 9 April 1943. She was reclassified as Unclassified Miscellaneous Vessel IX-100 on 21 April 1943 and named Racer on 3 May 1943. She was in service from 27 May 1943 to 21 May 1946. She was struck from the Navy Register on 5 June 1946 and sold to the private market on 20 December 1946.
USS PGM-9 was a PGM-9-class motor gunboat in service with the United States Navy during World War II.
USS PGM-10 was a PGM-9-class motor gunboat that was in service with the United States Navy during World War II, and transferred to the Philippine Navy shortly thereafter.
USS PGM-11 was a PGM-9-class motor gunboat in service with the United States Navy during World War II.
USS PGM-32 was a PGM-9-class motor gunboat in service with the United States Navy during the end of World War II, and briefly post-war.
Wilmington Boat Works, Inc. or WILBO was a shipbuilding company in Wilmington, California. To support the World War 2 demand for ships Victory Shipbuilding built: Tugboats, crash rescue boats and sub chasers. Wilmington Boat Works opened in 1920 building Fishing boat and yachts, by Hugh Angelman, Willard Buchanan and Tom Smith. After the Korean War the shipyard closed in 1958. The shipyard was located at 400 Yacht Street, Wilmington, the site of the current USC boatyard.
United States 