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| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSWoodcock |
| Builder | Merchant Shipbuilding Corporation,Chester, Pennsylvania |
| Laid down | 19 October 1917 |
| Launched | 12 May 1918 |
| Commissioned | 19 February 1919, as Minesweeper No. 14 |
| Decommissioned | 30 September 1946 |
| Reclassified |
|
| Stricken | 23 April 1947 |
| Fate | Sold for scrap, 19 December 1947 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Lapwing-classminesweeper |
| Displacement | 950 long tons (965 t) |
| Length | 187 ft 10 in (57.25 m) |
| Beam | 35 ft 6 in (10.82 m) |
| Draft | 9 ft 10 in (3.00 m) |
| Speed | 14knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Complement | 85 |
| Armament | 2 ×3 in (76 mm) guns |
USSWoodcock (AM-14) was anLapwing-classminesweeper acquired by theUnited States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing.
Woodcock was named, by the U.S. Navy, for thewoodcock, a game bird that frequents wooded areas.
Woodcock (Minesweeper No. 14) was laid down on 19 October 1917 atChester, Pennsylvania, by theChester Shipbuilding Co.; launched on 12 May 1918; sponsored by Mrs. Lewis T. Kniskern; and commissioned at thePhiladelphia Navy Yard on 19 February 1919.
After performing experimental minesweeping work atNewport, Rhode Island, and tendinglightships at New York,Woodcock sailed for theOrkney Islands and reachedKirkwall, Scotland, on 10 July 1919. Over the ensuing months, the ship operated in theNorth Sea on mine-sweeping duties with theAtlantic Fleet'sminesweeping detachment. During that time,Woodcock spent 54 days in theminefields and 28 in port for needed upkeep and voyage repairs occasioned by the heavy weather often encountered by the ships of the detachment.
Upon conclusion of the sweeping operations, the ship returned to theU.S. East Coast and operated withMine Squadron 1,Mine Division 5, Atlantic Fleet, until she was decommissioned at thePortsmouth Navy Yard inKittery, Maine, on 5 May 1922. Meanwhile, she had been classified as AM-14 on 17 July 1920.
Woodcock remained in reserve at Portsmouth until recommissioned there on 21 February 1924. She then became station ship atPort-au-Prince, Haiti, to supportU.S. Marine Corps peace-keeping forces there. As such,Woodcock was one of the threeLapwing-class minesweepers re-commissioned for service asgunboats . Her sister-ships,Penguin (AM-33) andPigeon (AM-47), were sent to theAsiatic Fleet for duty with theYangtze Patrol.
Outside yearly return voyages to a navy yard in the United States such as that ofCharleston, South Carolina, for repairs and alterations,Woodcock remained inHaitian waters, based onPort-au-Prince, through the spring of 1934. That summer, when PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt decided to pull theU.S. Marine Corps occupation force – a veritable fixture inHaitian history since August 1916 – out ofHaiti,Woodcock took part in that important troop lift. On 15 August 1934, amidst impressive shoreside ceremonies and "most friendly feelings displayed by the populace,"Woodcock — in company withBridge (AF-1),Argonne (AS-10), andU.S. Army transportChateau Thierry — embarked 79 officers and 747 enlisted men of the1st Marine Brigade, the last of the occupation troops, and took them back to the United States.
Soon thereafter, theminesweeper — or quasi-gunboat – shifted toGuantanamo Bay, Cuba. She served as a district craft – occasionally exercising with thefleet during its winter maneuvers and participating in some of the Fleet's amphibious exercises under the aegis of the Commandant,15th Naval District, through the outbreak of war in Europe in the autumn of 1939.
DuringWorld War II,Woodcock operated under the auspices of thePanama Sea Frontier Command, working between thePanama Canal Zone andNew Orleans, Louisiana. While performing towing, salvage, and local escort duties, she assisted vessels in distress and stood by to protect them until help arrived. During her service inGulf of Mexico waters, the ship was twice reclassified – first becoming an ocean-goingtug, AT-145, on 1 June 1942; then an ocean-going tug (old), ATO-145, on 15 May 1944.
Following the war,Woodcock continued local operations out ofCristobal, Panama and called at theGalapagos Islands in the spring of 1946. Retained until the arrival ofRecovery (ARS-43),Woodcock performed her final towing service that summer. She took Floating WorkshopYR-64 from Cristobal to New York, reaching the latter port on 27 August 1946. After getting underway the following day,Woodcock headed south; arrived atCharleston on 31 August; and reported to Commandant,6th Naval District, for disposition.
Decommissioned atCharleston on 30 September 1946,Woodcock was struck from theNavy List on 23 April 1947 and transferred to theMaritime Commission on 4 August of the same year. She was sold to the Potomac Shipwrecking Co., Inc., ofPope's Creek, Maryland, on 19 December 1947.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.
