Sea Cloud

Sea Cloud was built in Kiel, Germany, as a barque for Marjorie Merriweather Post and her second husband Edward F. Hutton of Wall Street's E. F. Hutton & Co.[2][3] The yacht interiors and features were personally designed by Post, who took a course in marine engineering, and had full size interior mocks-ups done in a New York warehouse.[4][5] She was launched in 1931 as Hussar V as a replacement for the Hussar IV. At the time of her construction, she was the largest private yacht in the world.[6] The maiden voyage was in November 1931, from the shipyard in Germany to Bermuda, where the ship was received by Hutton and Post on November 30, 1931.[5]

In 1935, the United States Ambassador to the Soviet Union, Joseph E. Davies, married Marjorie Merriweather Post.[6] Mr. and Mrs. Davies renamed the ship Sea Cloud.[2] Although Mrs. Davies owned the ship, she allowed Mr. Davies to claim ownership of the vessel. Those Davies entertained on the ship included Queen Elisabeth of Belgium.[6] Soviet and United States officials stayed and met on the vessel.[7]

When Mrs. Davies first offered the ship to the U.S. Department of the Navy in 1941, the Navy turned her down. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt objected to the ship entering service, remarking that the ship was too beautiful to be sacrificed.[8] On January 7, 1942, the Navy reassessed its position and chartered the ship for $1 per year.[2] The Navy sent Sea Cloud from Georgetown, South Carolina, to the United States Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay, Maryland, to be refitted as a "weather observation station vessel", and had the four masts removed and hull painted battleship gray.[2][7] Sea Cloud was commissioned as a United States Coast Guard Cutter on April 4, 1942, and assigned to the Eastern Sea Frontier, with a permanent home port in Boston.[2]

During 1942, Sea Cloud mostly served as a weather ship at Weather Patrol Station Number Two (position 52°0′N 42°30′W). On June 6, 1942, the ship rescued eight survivors from the schooner Maria da Gloria.[2] On August 3, 1942 and August 4, 1942, Sea Cloud served at Weather Patrol Station Number One while USS Manhasset was converted to a weather ship.[2]

In 1943, the Navy asked for control of Sea Cloud and Nourmahal, another former yacht converted into a weather ship. On April 9, 1943, the United States Navy commissioned Sea Cloud as USS Sea Cloud (IX-99), though she maintained a Coast Guard crew.[2] She was assigned to Task Force 24.

Relieving USCGC Conifer in February 1944, Sea Cloud patrolled a 100-square-mile (260 km²) area near the New England coast, generating weather reports for the First Naval District. On February 27, 1944, Sea Cloud traveled to be refurbished at Atlantic Yard in East Boston, afterwards taking over a new one-hundred square mile area at Weather Station Number One.[2]

On April 5, 1944, Sea Cloud received radar indication of a small target at position 39°27′N 62°30′W, bearing 350° at 3,000 yards (2,700 m).[2] General quarters were sounded and battle stations manned, but contact was lost ten minutes later. The target was identified as a submarine, but after Sea Cloud carried out standard anti-submarine drills with no evidence of damage being inflicted, she returned to port.[2]

After minor repairs, Sea Cloud was rebased to Argentia, Newfoundland, where she was assigned to Weather Station Number Three. While patrolling the area on June 11, 1944, the crew spotted a Navy Grumman TBF Avenger, exchanging recognition signals. Sea Cloud received orders to report to the escort carrier Croatan and join the five other escort ships under her command. The envoy searched for a raft reported in the area, but returned with no sightings. After this event, Sea Cloud was once again reassigned to Weather Station Number Four. After a search for a downed aircraft, she returned to port in Boston. Sea Cloud was decommissioned on November 4, 1944, at the Bethlehem Steel Atlantic Yard and returned to Davies, along with $175,000 for conversion to pre-war appearance.[2]

For her wartime service, Sea Cloud was awarded the American Campaign Medal and the World War Two Victory Medal.

Following her return, Sea Cloud received a reassembled rigging in 1947, and a new set of twenty-nine sails in 1949.[13] The vessel was painted white, and a gold eagle painted on the bow. The ship's reconstruction took nearly four years. Post retained ownership of Sea Cloud in the aftermath of her divorce from Mr. Davies, since she had originally brought the ship into the marriage. After evaluating the cost of running a year-round crew of seventy-two, Post decided to sell the ship.[6]

In the beginning Sea Cloud featured royal-sails over single topgallant- and double top-sails on the fore and mizzen masts. The main mast was equipped with a royal-sail over double topgallant- and double top-sails. Today the first three masts are rigged with double top-sails, single topgallants, royals and a main skysail.

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  Marjorie Merriweather Post Cabin 1
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  E.F. Hutton Cabin 2
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  LT Carlton Skinner with several of his black crewmembers on Sea Cloud
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  Sea Cloud with masts removed and camouflaged in grey for Coast Guard service
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  Eagle Figurehead
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  Wheelhouse with U.S. Naval service commendation

• SV Hussar IV
• Sea Cloud II
• E.F. Hutton, Yachts: named Hussar
• Clarence Samuels
• List of cruise ships
• List of large sailing vessels

Wikimedia Commons has media related to IMO 8843446.

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

USS Sea Cloud, IX 99, Racial Integration for Naval Efficiency

• Official website of Sea Cloud Cruises, the current operator of the ship
• Sea Cloud at Ship Spotting World including additional photography and videos
• Numerous video clips of Sea Cloud
• "Full sail in the Med on a grand old tall ship" - review in The Australian of a cruise on the Sea Cloud.
• "Sea Cloud" – review by Douglas Ward in The Daily Telegraph, London.
• "Sea Cloud: The Ship is the Destination" – review in TravelLady Magazine.