USCGC Ingham (WHEC-35)

USCGC Ingham (WPG/WAGC/WHEC-35) is one of only two preserved Treasury-class United States Coast Guard Cutters. Originally Samuel D. Ingham, she was the fourth cutter to be named for Treasury Secretary Samuel D. Ingham. She was the most decorated vessel in the Coast Guard fleet and was the only cutter to ever be awarded two Presidential Unit Citations.

USCGC Ingham (WHEC-35)
History
United States
Name
  • Samuel D. Ingham
  • Ingham (May 1937)
NamesakeSamuel D. Ingham
Awarded30 January 1934
BuilderPhiladelphia Naval Shipyard
Laid down1 May 1935
Launched3 June 1936
Sponsored byKatherine Ingham Brush
Commissioned12 September 1936
Decommissioned27 May 1988
Reclassified
  • WPG-35 (1 July 1941)
  • WAGC-35 (24 July 1944)
  • WHEC-35 (1 May 1965)
MottoNever too old to serve
StatusMuseum ship
General characteristics
Displacement2,700 long tons (2,700 t)
Length327 ft (100 m)
Beam41 ft (12 m)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Range8,270 nmi (15,320 km; 9,520 mi)
Complement
  • (1937) 12 officers, 4 warrants, 107 enlisted
  • (1941) 16 officers, 5 warrants, 202 enlisted
  • (1966) 10 officers, 3 warrants, 134 enlisted
Armament
Aircraft carriedoriginally 1 Grumman Duck seaplane, later removed
USCGC Ingham
Ingham preserved in Key West.
USCGC Ingham (WHEC-35) is located in Florida
USCGC Ingham (WHEC-35)
LocationKey West, Florida
Coordinates24°33′08.1″N 81°48′27.7″W
Built1935
ArchitectUS Coast Guard; Philadelphia Navy Yard
NRHP reference No.92001879
Significant dates
Added to NRHP27 April 1992[2]
Designated NHL27 April 1992[3]

History 1934–1988

Ingham was built at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. The Treasury Department awarded her contract on 30 January 1934. Her keel was laid on 1 May 1935, and she was launched on 3 June 1936, along with her sisters USCGC William J. Duane (WPG-33), USCGC Taney (WHEC-37) and the USCGC George W. Campbell (WPG-32). Ingham was christened by Ms. Katherine Ingham Brush on that date and the new cutter was formally commissioned on 12 September 1936.

Ingham at U.S. Navy Yard, S.C., 11 Oct 1944

Ingham served with distinction during World War II on convoy duty. Protecting ships ferrying vital supplies to Britain, Ingham battled stormy weather, German U-boats, and enemy aircraft. On 15 December 1942, during one crossing, Ingham engaged and sank the enemy submarine U-626.[4] After 1944, Ingham served as an amphibious flagship and she would later take part in three campaigns in the Pacific Theater. Ingham was the last active warship in the US fleet with a U-Boat kill.

Convoys escorted
Convoy Escort Group Dates Notes
HX 164 10–19 Dec 1941[5] from Newfoundland to Iceland
ON 49 27 Dec 1941-5 Jan 1942[6] from Iceland to Newfoundland
HX 171 22–30 Jan 1942[5] from Newfoundland to Iceland
ON 63 7–13 Feb 1942[6] from Iceland to Newfoundland
HX 177 MOEF group A2 1–8 March 1942[5] from Newfoundland to Northern Ireland
ON 77 MOEF group A2 18–26 March 1942[6] from Northern Ireland to Newfoundland
HX 190 MOEF group A3 20–27 May 1942[5] from Newfoundland to Northern Ireland
ON 102 MOEF group A3 10–17 June 1942[6] from Northern Ireland to Iceland
ON 116 25–29 July 1942[6] Iceland shuttle
SC 93 29 July 1942[7] Iceland shuttle
ON 117 31 July-3 Aug 1942[6] Iceland shuttle
ON 124 24–27 Aug 1942[6] Iceland shuttle
SC 97 29 Aug-1 Sep 1942[7] Iceland shuttle
ON 132 21–24 Sep 1942[6] Iceland shuttle
SC 101 28–30 Sep 1942[7] Iceland shuttle
ON 136 5–9 Oct 1942[6] Iceland shuttle
SC 103 10 Oct 1942[7] Iceland shuttle
Convoy SC 107 5–7 Nov 1942[7] Iceland shuttle
ON 144 8–15 Nov 1942[6] Iceland shuttle
ON 152 11–15 Dec 1942[6] Iceland shuttle
SC 112 16–21 Dec 1942[7] Iceland shuttle
ON 160 14–21 Jan 1943[6] Iceland shuttle
HX 223 23–27 Jan 1943[5] Iceland shuttle
ON 175 4 Feb 1943[6] Iceland shuttle
Convoy SC 118 5–9 Feb 1943[7] Iceland shuttle
Convoy SC 121 9–11 March 1943[7] Iceland shuttle
Convoys HX 229/SC 122 19–21 March 1943[7] Iceland shuttle

Post-war service

In August 1966, Ingham rescued lone sailor William Willis off the US eastern seabord, landing him at the Argentia Coast Guard station.[8]

Ingham in 1953
USCGC Ingham Logbook July 1968
USCG Ingham Logbook August 1968

Ingham earned two Presidential Unit Citations for her service in Operation SEA LORDS and Operation SWIFT RAIDER during the Vietnam War on a deployment from 3 August 1968 to 28 February 1969.

On completion of her deployment to Vietnam, Ingham returned to regular Coast Guard duties, serving until 1988, when she was decommissioned. At that time, Ingham was the second oldest commissioned U.S. warship afloat, second only to USS Constitution in Boston, Massachusetts.[3]

Museum Ship and Memorial
Ingham at Patriots Point in 1990

Acquired by Patriot's Point (located near Charleston, South Carolina) in 1989, Ingham was displayed along with the aircraft carrier Yorktown, the destroyer Laffey, and the submarine Clamagore until 20 August 2009.

On 20 August 2009 Ingham was towed to the Coast Guard piers in North Charleston, South Carolina for minor repairs and to await dry docking. She underwent a short dry docking period at Detyen's Shipyard in North Charleston and was then towed to Key West, Florida arriving there on 24 November 2009. She is now a member of Key West Maritime Memorial Museum.[9][10]

The Commandant of the Coast Guard has declared Ingham the National Memorial to Coast Guardsmen Killed in Action in World War II and Vietnam. These 912 casualties are identified on a memorial plaque on Ingham's quarterdeck.[11] Ingham was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1992.[3][12]

Awards
Ribbons and Medals painted on in January 2010.

References
  1. "Ingham, 1936".
  2. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 23 January 2007.
  3. "USCGC Ingham". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on 24 January 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2008.
  4. Cressman, Robert (2000). "Chapter IV: 1942". The official chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-149-3. OCLC 41977179. Retrieved 15 December 2007.
  5. "HX convoys". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  6. "ON convoys". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  7. "SC convoys". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2011.
  8. Willis, William The Hundred Lives of an Ancient Mariner London 1967 pp174,188
  9. "Historic cutter en route to Miami". The State. Columbia, South Carolina: The McClatchy Company. 22 August 2009. Archived from the original on 24 August 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2009.
  10. "USCGC Ingraham WHEC-35". Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum. Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2009.
  11. "HNSA Web Page: USS Ingham". Archived from the original on 22 October 2013. Retrieved 28 March 2008.
  12. Delgado, James P. (1 November 1991). "Maritime Heritage of the United States NHL Theme Study—Large Vessels Registration: Ingham / U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Ingham (WPG-35)" (pdf). National Park Service. Retrieved 27 June 2009. and
    "Accompanying three photos, exterior, from 1944, 1953, and 1990". Retrieved 2 September 2012.
  13. "U.S. Coast Guard Cutter History". Archived from the original on 20 May 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
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