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Intro to USS Potomac (Existing intro paragraph)
“She is now preserved in Oakland, California, as a National Historic Landmark”> and the only presidential yacht open to the public.[1]
Service history: 1934-1945 (Existing)[edit]
”in 1936”> The ship now commissioned USS Potomac was categorized as AG-25 which indicates the Navy ship designation of Auxiliary Miscellaneous and number 25th in this designation.[1]
The Potomac was formerly a submarine chaser named Electra[2] that was commissioned on October 25, 1934 to stop vessels importing illegal beverages into the United States.[3] She was chosen to be the new presidential yacht after the Secret Service deemed the USS Sequoia as a fire hazard.[4] The thought of having a wooden boat that could easily catch fire was not appealing to FDR who as a child witnessed his aunt burn to death in an oil lamp accident.[1] He also wanted a vessel in which he could move independently and go fishing.[1]
The painted steal Coast Guard cutter was dubbed the “Floating Whitehouse”.[5]
“political meetings”>The USS Potomac served as a place where relationships were built and deals were made.[5] There were approximately $60,000 in upgrades made when converting the ship into a presidential yacht to make the vessel wheel chair accessible.[4] These upgrades included the addition of a false smokestack, a new salon, installation of brass fixtures, the presidential stateroom and bath, three guest cabins and teak decks. Additions to the fantail include a vast leather settee, patio furniture and bullet-proof glass.[4] In the additional smokestack, there was an elevator with a pulley system designed so that President Franklin D. Roosevelt could transport himself to the boat deck.[4] The fantail couch is designed so that each sitting party has their legs completely stretched out when sitting back and the president could sit equally as his guests with his legs supported.[5] An antiaircraft machine gun was installed and mounted when the president was onboard.[1] Ship ballast was added to the vessel to account for these upgrades. [1]
“Mount Vernon”> This was the first visit by British Royalty to an American President.[6]
It is rumored that the 1935 Wagner Act was signed onboard the ship.[7]
Ship logs have been recovered documenting voyages to the Gulf of Mexico and Dry Tortugas, Florida.[8]
On March, 28 1941, President Roosevelt delivered a Fireside Chat to the nation from the radio room of the USS Potomac in which he stated “the time calls for courage and more courage.”[9]
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, the yacht was considered a potential target and used more cautiously by the president.[8]
Service history: 1945-1980 (Existing)[edit]
The USS Potomac was decommissioned by President Truman who chose the larger USS Williamsburg as his presidential yacht.[6] The date of the decommission by the Coast Guard was May 23, 1946.[3]
“Commission”> where she served as one of forty fishery enforcement boats for the infamous clam, crab, fish and oyster fisherman of the area until 1960.[3]
Records from 1961 show registration of the vessel by Neptune Lines, Inc. in Wilmington, Delaware as a yacht with call sign WA9710.[3]
In 1963, she was registered by Hydro-Capitol in New Port Beach, California as a museum ship with call sign WA9710.[3]
“The hospital was able to sell it that same year for US $75,000”> correction $65,000.[3]
The Potomac was then registered to Marie Augustina Pagliasso in 1967 in Sanger, California with the call sign WA9710.[3]
Records show the USS Potomac’s home port was Los Angeles from 1963 to 1967.[3]
In January of 1970, the vessel was out of documentation.[3]
It’s rumored that a certain owner planned on turning the yacht into a floating disco.[4]
In 1962, there was a failed attempt to attend World’s Fair in Seattle due to engine trouble in Long Beach.[5]
Service history: 1980- present (Existing)[edit]
In 1980, the USS Potomac was involved in a large scale drug running operation in Mexico which led to a drug bust at San Francisco’s Pier 26. Although there were no drugs found aboard the yacht but the yacht it had been traveling with, the vessel was confiscated by law enforcement and taken to Treasure Island.[3]
The vessel is said to have sank due to a hull that had not been properly maintained and thinned. The vessel was already taking on water for some time before it finally sank alongside Treasure Island (Scott, 2015).[5]
It took two weeks for the ship to be refloated by the Navy (Williams, 2013) before she was auctioned off to the Port of Oakland who was the first and only bidder for $15,000.[4]
With a $2.5 million government grant, James Roosevelt, FDR’s eldest son, began restoring the yacht. In April of 1993, the restored Potomac sailed her first cruise.[5]
The Preservation of the Presidential Yacht Potomac Association (New)[edit]
The yacht became culturally significant to Oakland when it was place at Jack London Square after being restored. The yacht became a destination for tourists at the Port of Oakland.[10]
Michael Roosevelt, a grandson of FDR, is the chair for the non-profit organization Preservation of the Presidential Yacht Potomac.[4]
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- ^ a b c d e f Jaffee, W. (1998). The Presidential Yacht Potomac. Palo Alto: The Glencannon Press.
- ^ Scheina, R. (1982). U.S. Coast Guard cutters & craft of World War II. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Williams, G. (2013). World War II U.S. Navy vessels in private hands: The boats and ships sold and registered for commercial and recreational purposes under the American flag. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company.
- ^ a b c d e f g Belcher, N. (1997, July). FDR's presidential yacht: The USS Potomac. Historic Traveler, 3(6), 16-19.
- ^ a b c d e f Scott, M. (2015, May). USS Potomac The ‘Floating White House’ A look at the restoration of FDR’s presidential yacht. Smart Business Northern California, 8(6), 5-6 & 10-11.
- ^ a b Kumar, M. (1984). News Notes. Presidential Studies Quarterly,14(2), 310-315. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/27550088
- ^ Oakland Post (1997, May 21). Potomac Offering Tours. https://login.ezproxy.csum.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/367066255?accountid=10353
- ^ a b Adams, F. (1943). Mr. Roosevelt Continues, as President and Author. The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America, 37(3), 223-232. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/24293540
- ^ International Business Machines Corporation Collection (1941). Series: Sound Recordings of Franklin D. Roosevelt Speeches, 1935 - 1945 Collection: International Business Machines Corporation Collection, 1935 - 1945: President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Address from the USS Potomac. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/653182
- ^ Schwarzer, M. (2014). A Tale of Two Waterfronts: Oakland's Jack London Square Competes with San Francisco. California History, 91(4), 6-30.