The Coast Guard decommissioned many of its older cutters within 2 years after the war
Several ships came from the Navy in 1946, but only 2 205′ Fleet Tugs and 2 213′ Rescue Vessels remained in service in 1947
Ocean Weather Stations became prominent in the 1950s to support the fast growing transoceanic commercial aviation industry
Budget constraints allowed only 1 patrol boat and 2 inland tender classes to be commissioned before the 1960s
The Coast Guard relied on ships the Navy was decommissioning to fill the ranks
These Navy ships were newer than the old Cutters they were replacing
The Coast Guard also acquired Eagle in 1946
The Coast Guard acquired 12 Edsall-Class DEs to man OWS during the Korean War
CGC Courier performed a special mission for many years in the 50s and 60s
The budget strings loosened in the 1960s and 9 new classes were commissioned
The 1970s brought surface effect ships into the Fleet
The 1980s brought 2 new white hulls (the first in 20 years) and a new class of tugs
125 Active Class “Buck and a Quarters”
Part of a massive expansion by ADM Frederick Billard
Commissioned as Second Class Cruising Cutters without hull numbers
Hull numbers were assigned in 1939, reclassified as Subchasers
Numbers were assigned alphabetically, not by date of commission
Active was the lead ship and was assigned the lowest hull number
The 125s were officially referred to as the Active Class
Reclassified as Coastal Patrol Boats after the war
Reclassified as Medium Endurance Cutters in 1967
Morris was the last operational 125 – decommissioned in 1970
Cuyahoga was an OCS training cutter until 1978
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Active | WPC | 125 | 1927 – 1963 | ||
USCGC | Agassiz | WPC/WMEC | 126 | 1927 – 1969 | CGH | |
USCGC | Alert | WPC/WMEC | 127 | 1927 – 1969 | CGH | |
USCGC | Bedloe | WPC | 128 | 1927 – 1944 | Lost in storm | CGP |
USCGC | Bonham | WPC | 129 | 1926 – 1959 | ||
USCGC | Boutwell | WPC | 130 | 1927 – 1964 | ||
USCGC | Cahoone | WPC/WMEC | 131 | 1927 – 1968 | CGH | |
USCGC | Cartigan | WPC/WMEC | 132 | 1927 – 1968 | CGH | |
USCGC | Colfax | WPC | 133 | 1927 – 1954 | ||
USCGC | Crawford | WPC | 134 | 1927 – 1947 | ||
USCGC | Diligence | WPC | 135 | 1927 – 1961 | ||
USCGC | Dix | WPC | 136 | 1927 – 1948 | ||
USCGC | Ewing | WPC/WMEC | 137 | 1927 – 1969 | ||
USCGC | Faunce | WPC | 138 | 1927 – 1948 | ||
USCGC | Frederick Lee | WPC | 139 | 1927 – 1964 | ||
USCGC | General Greene | WPC/WMEC | 140 | 1927 – 1968 | Sold off – later seized by CG smuggling drugs | CGH CGP |
USCGC | Harriet Lane | WPC | 141 | 1927 – 1946 | ||
USCGC | Jackson | WPC | 142 | 1927 – 1944 | Lost in a storm | CGP |
USCGC | Kimball | WPC/WMEC | 143 | 1927 – 1968 | ||
USCGC | Legare | WPC/WMEC | 144 | 1927 – 1968 | ||
USCGC | Marion | WPC | 145 | 1927 – 1962 | ||
USCGC | McLane | WPC | 146 | 1927 – 1968 | Sank RO-32 on 9 July 1942 | |
USCGC | Morris | WPC | 147 | 1927 – 1970 | To Sea Scout Program | |
USCGC | Nemaha | WPC | 148 | 1927 – 1948 | ||
USCGC | Pulaski | WPC | 149 | 1927 – 1948 | ||
USCGC | Reliance | WPC | 150 | 1927 – 1947 | ||
USCGC | Rush | WPC | 151 | 1927 – 1947 | ||
USCGC | Tiger | WPC | 152 | 1927 – 1947 | CGH | |
USCGC | Travis | WPC | 153 | 1927 – 1962 | ||
USCGC | Vigilant | WPC | 154 | 1927 – 1956 | ||
USCGC | Woodbury | WPC | 155 | 1927 – 1946 | ||
USCGC | Yeaton | WPC/WMEC | 156 | 1927 – 1969 | ||
USCGC | Cuyahoga | WPC/WMEC | 157 | 1927 – 1978 | Typical operations until 1957 1957 to 1959: OCS training cutter in New London 1959: Transferred to Yorktown as OCS training cutter 20 October 1978: Lost in collision with MV Santa Cruz II |
CGH |
165’A Algonquin Class Patrol Gunboat
Part of a massive expansion by Commandant ADM Frederick Billard
Based on the Tallapoosa design
Designed with a cutaway forefoot for light (up to 2′) icebreaking
Commissioned as First Class Cruising Cutters without hull numbers
Hull numbers were assigned in 1939 and reclassified Patrol Gunboats
Numbers were assigned alphabetically, not by date of commission
Escanaba was lead ship, but Algonquin was assigned lowest number
The 165As were officially referred to as Algonquin Class
Tahoma was decommissioned in 1953
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Algonquin | WPG | 75 | 1934 – 1948 | CGH | |
USCGC | Comanche | WPG | 76 | 1934 – 1947 | CGH | |
USCGC | Mohawk | WPG | 78 | 1935 – 1948 | To Delaware Bay and River Pilots Assoc to Miami Dade Historical Museum |
CGH |
USCGC | Onondaga | WPG | 79 | 1934 – 1947 | ||
USCGC | Tahoma | WPG | 80 | 1934 – 1953 | CGH |
165’B Thetis Class
Part of a massive expansion by ADM Frederick Billard
Commissioned as Second Class Cruising Cutters without hull numbers
Hull numbers were assigned in 1939, reclassified Coastal Patrol Boats
Numbers were assigned alphabetically, not by date of commission
Thetis was the lead ship, but Argo was assigned the lowest hull number
The 165Bs were officially referred to as the Thetis Class
Ariadne was decommissioned in 1967
Model: No
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Argo | WPC | 100 | 1933 – 1948 | CGH | |
USCGC | Ariadne | WPC/WMEC | 101 | 1934 – 1969 | Wiki | |
USCGC | Atalanta | WPC | 102 | 1934 – 1950 | ||
USCGC | Aurora | WPC/WMEC | 103 | 1931 – 1968 | CGH | |
USCGC | Calypso | WPC | 104 | 1942 – 1947 | Link | |
USCGC | Cyane | WPC | 105 | 1934 – 1950 | CGH | |
USCGC | Daphne | WPC | 106 | 1934 – 1946 | ||
USCGC | Dione | WPC | 107 | 1934 – 1963 | CGH | |
USCGC | Galatea | WPC | 108 | 1933 – 1948 | ||
USCGC | Hermes | WPC | 109 | 1932 – 1948 | ||
USCGC | Icarus | WPC | 110 | 1932 – 1946 | Sank U-352 – To Dominican Republic | CGH |
USCGC | Nemesis | WPC | 111 | 1934 – 1964 | Wiki | |
USCGC | Nike | WPC | 112 | 1934 – 1964 | ||
USCGC | Pandora | WPC | 113 | 1934 – 1959 | ||
USCGC | Perseus | WPC | 114 | 1932 – 1959 | ||
USCGC | Thetis | WPC | 115 | 1931 – 1947 | Sank U-157 | |
USCGC | Triton | WPC/WMEC | 116 | 1934 – 1967 | ||
USCGC | Electra | WPC | 187 | 1934 – 1936 | 1936 – Decommissioned 1936 – 1945 USS Potomac (AG-25) – President Roosevelt’s yacht 1945 – Recommissioned as CGC Electra 1946 – Maryland Tidewater Fisheries Commission 1960 – Privately owned 1980 – Seized as a drug runner Currently owned by the Potomac Association in Oakland |
NS CGP |
230′ Storis Class
Built as a supply cutter for the Greenland patrol
Basically a stretched 180′ buoy tender with an Duck on the fantail
Stationed in Boston after the war
1 July 1957 Set out with CGCs Spar and Bramble to find
a deep water channel through the Arctic Ocean
This transit ended the 450 year search for the Northwest Passage
Returned to Greenland via the passage and then transited to Alaska
via the Panama Canal becoming the first cutter to
circumnavigate the North American Continent
Performed ice breaking duty until 1972
Converted to Medium Endurance Cutter
Decommissioned in 2007
Known as the Galloping Coast of the Alaskan Coast
Queen of the Fleet 1991 to 2007
Model: No
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Storis | WAGB/WAGO/WMEC | 38 | 1942 – 2007 | CGH |
180′ Cactus Class
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Picture |
USCGC | Evergreen | WAGL/WLB WAGO/WMEC |
295 | 1943 – 1990 | 1943: Commissioned as an Auxiliary Buoy Tender 1967: Redesignated as a Large Buoy Tender 1975: Redesignated as an Oceanographic Research Vessel 1986: Redesignated as a Medium Endurance Cutter |
CGH |
205′ Navajo Class
Acquired from the Navy to replace retiring 125s and 165s
Originally classified as Fleet Tugs
Some retained their navy name and hull numbers
Others were renamed and/or renumbered
Known only as 205s – no other class designation
Reclassified as Medium Endurance Cutters in 1967
Tamaroa was decommissioned in 1994
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Cherokee (ex USS Cherokee AT/ATF 66) |
WAT/WMEC | 165 | 1946 – 1990 | NS | |
USCGC | Tamaroa (ex USS Zuni AT/ATF 95) |
WAT/WMEC | 166 | 1946 – 1994 | Commissioned in 1943 as USS Zuni Acquired by the Coast Guard in 1946 Served in NY until 1985, then in New Castle, NH 14 March 1963 – Became the first Coast Guard submarine In drydock when disgruntled crewman opened the seacocks sinking both the drydock and the Tam Most famous for participating in the “No Name Storm of Halloween 1991” Made famous by the book and movie Perfect Storm The cutter in the movie was digital The producers chose to depict Tam as a sleek new cutter with a flight deck even though she was a matronly old tug boat The last of the post-war Navy acquisitions to de decommissioned Currently a museum ship in Richmond, VA |
CGH |
USCGC | Avoyel | WAT/WMEC | 150 | 1956 – 1969 | NS | |
USCGC | Chilula | WAT/WMEC | 153 | 1956 – 1991 | NS | |
USCGC | Lipan | WMEC | 85 | 1980 – 1988 | Wiki | |
USCGC | Ute | WMEC | 76 | 1980 – 1988 | NS |
213′ Diver Class
Acquired from the Navy to replace retiring 125s and 165s
Originally classified as Fleet Tugs
Some retained their navy name and hull numbers
Others were renamed and/or renumbered
Known only as 213s – no other class designation
Reclassified Medium Endurance Cutters in 1967
Acushnet was decommissioned in 2011
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Acushnet (ex USS Shackle ARS 9) |
WAT/WMEC | 167 | 1946 – 2012 | Commissioned in 1944 as USS Shackle (ARS 9) Transferred to the Coast Guard in 1946 Served in Boston Took part in the Two Tankers Rescue in 1952 and on International Ice Patrol cruises 1968 to 1971: Oceanographic Research Cutter (WAGO) Attached to Office of Naval Research and Scripps Oceanographic Institute as part of the NOAA National Data Buoy Project Became known as NOAA’s Ark 1978: designated a Medium Endurance Cutter 1990: transferred to Eureka, CA and operated in Alaskan waters 1998: Transferred to Ketchikan, AK Queen of the Fleet from 2007 to 2011 |
CGH |
USCGC | Yocona (ex USS Seize ARS 26) |
/WAT/WMEC | 168 | 1946 – 1996 | CGH NS |
|
USCGC | Escape | WMEC | 6 | 1980 – 1988 | CGH NS |
143 Sotoyomo Class
Acquired from the Navy to replace retiring 125s and 165s
Originally classified as Fleet Tugs
Some retained their navy name and hull numbers
Others were renamed and/or renumbered
Known only as 143s – no other class designation
Reclassified as Medium Endurance Cutters in 1967
Comanche was decommissioned in 1980
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Classn | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Comanche (ex USS Wampanoag ATA 202) |
WATA/WMEC | 202 | 1959 – 1980 | Wiki | |
USCGC | Modoc (ex USS Bagaduce ATR 121) |
WATA/WMEC | 194 | 1959 – 1979 | Pearl Modoc – B&B in Gig Harbor WA | CGH |
210′ Reliance Class
Commissioned as Coastal Patrol Boats
With the 378s, first new CG built capital ship since 1936
The 210s were officially referred to as the Reliance Class
Reclassified as Medium Endurance Cutters in 1967
Will be replaced by the National Security Cutter, Medium
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Reliance | WPC/WMEC | 615 | 1964 – Active | CGP | |
USCGC | Diligence | WPC/WMEC | 616 | 1946 – Active | CGH CGP |
|
USCGC | Vigilant | WPC/WMEC | 617 | 1964 – Active | CGH CGP |
|
USCGC | Active | WPC/WMEC | 618 | 1965 – Active | CGH CGP |
|
USCGC | Confidence | WPC/WMEC | 619 | 1966 – Active | CGH CGP |
|
USCGC | Resolute | WPC/WMEC | 620 | 1966 – Active | CGH CGP |
|
USCGC | Valiant | WPC/WMEC | 621 | 1967 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Courageous | WPC/WMEC | 622 | 1968 – Active | ||
USCGC | Steadfast | WPC/WMEC | 623 | 1968 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Dauntless | WPC/WMEC | 624 | 1968 – Active | CGH CGP |
|
USCGC | Venturous | WPC/WMEC | 625 | 1968 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Dependable | WPC/WMEC | 626 | 1968 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Vigorous | WPC/WMEC | 627 | 1969 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Durable | WPC/WMEC | 628 | 1968 – Active | ||
USCGC | Decisive | WPC/WMEC | 629 | 1968 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Alert | WPC/WMEC | 630 | 1969 – Active | CGH CGP |
270 Famous Class Medium Endurance Cutter
Designed to replace the 327s
Commissioned as Medium Endurance Cutters
Named for famous cutters of the past
The 270s are officially referred to as the Famous Class
Will remain in service for the foreseeable future
Model: Yes
Designation | Name | Class | Hull | Service | Comments | Pictures |
USCGC | Bear | WMEC | 901 | 1983 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Tampa | WMEC | 902 | 1984 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Harriet Lane | WMEC | 903 | 1984 – Active | CGH CGH |
|
USCGC | Northland | WMEC | 904 | 1984 – Active | ||
USCGC | Spencer | WMEC | 905 | 1986 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Seneca | WMEC | 906 | 1987 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Escanaba | WMEC | 907 | 1987 – Active | ||
USCGC | Tahoma | WMEC | 908 | 1988 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Campbell | WMEC | 909 | 1988 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Thetis | WMEC | 910 | 1989 – Active | ||
USCGC | Forward | WMEC | 911 | 1990 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Legare | WMEC | 912 | 1990 – Active | CGH | |
USCGC | Mohawk | WMEC | 913 | 1991 – Active | CGH |