USS St. Augustine

USS St. Augustine
History
United States
Name	Viking
Namesake	Viking
Owner	George L. Baker
Builder	Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Newport News, Virginia
Cost	$1,250,000 [1]
Launched	1929
Fate	Sold in 1938
United States
Name	Noparo
Namesake	An acronym blending parts of the first names of the owners three children (Norman, Pamela and Robert)
Owner	Norman B. Woolworth
Acquired	1938
Fate	Acquired by the US Navy, 5 December 1940
United States
Name	USS St. Augustine
Namesake	St. Augustine, Florida
Builder	Bethlehem Steel Corp., Boston, Massachusetts (Conversion)
Acquired	5 December 1940
Commissioned	16 January 1941
Stricken	22 January 1944
Fate	Sunk in collision, 6 January 1944
General characteristics (USS St. Augustine)
Type	Patrol gunboat
Displacement	Full: 1,720 long tons (1,748 t)
Length	272 ft 2 in (82.96 m)
Beam	36 ft (11 m)
Draft	14 ft 6 in (4.42 m)
Propulsion	Turbo-electric 2 × shafts
Speed	14 knots (16 mph; 26 km/h)
Complement	185
Armament	2 × 3 in (76 mm)/50 cal guns

USS St. Augustine (PG-54) was a patrol gunboat of the United States Navy during World War II, originally built in 1929 as the steel-hulled yacht Viking (later named Noparo).

History

USS St. Augustine (PG-54) was built in 1929 by Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. in Newport News, Virginia. She was originally a steel-hulled yacht named Viking and later named Noparo. ^{[2] [3]} She was purchased by the US Navy on 5 December 1940 and was sent to Bethlehem Steel Corp. in Boston, Massachusetts where she was converted into a patrol gunboat. She was named St. Augustine on 9 January 1941 and commissioned as USS St. Augustine on 16 January 1941. ^{[2] [3]}

St. Augustine was assigned to the 1st Naval District and operated out of Boston as a patrol ship until 1942. ^{[3] [4]} She was transferred to the Eastern Sea Frontier where she escorted convoys between New York City and various Caribbean ports. ^{[3] [4]} On the night of 6 January 1944, while leading a convoy from New York to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, St. Augustine was accidentally rammed by merchant tanker Camas Meadows off the coast of Cape May, New Jersey. ^{[2] [4]} St. Augustine foundered within five minutes, and 115 of the 145 crewmembers on board were killed. ^[3]

References

1. Associated Press, "Barbara Hutton's Yacht Sinks After Collision", The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Washington, Saturday 8 January 1944, Volume 61, Number 239, page 5.
2. Gunboat Photo Archive: St. Augustine (PG 54) , retrieved 18 December 2008
3. St Augustine PG-54 , retrieved 18 December 2008
4. USS Saint Augustine (PG-54), 1941-1944, archived from the original on 25 November 2002, retrieved 18 December 2008