USS Triton (YT-10)
.jpg) USS Triton at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., ca. 1900. | |
| Career (United States) | 100x35px |
|---|---|
| Name: | USS Triton |
| Namesake: | Triton, in Greek mythology a demigod of the sea who was the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite, possessed a man's body above the waist and that of a fish below, and used his conch-shell trumpet alternately to summon storms and to still the sea |
| Builder: | J. H. Dialogue, Camden, New Jersey |
| Completed: | 1889 |
| Acquired: | September 1889 |
| Commissioned: | 1889 |
| Decommissioned: | early 1930 |
| Reclassified: | From Harbor Tug No. 10 to YT-10 17 July 1921 |
| Struck: | 19 May 1930 |
| Fate: | Sold 15 September 1930 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Harbor tug |
| Displacement: | 212 tons |
| Length: | 96 ft 9 in (29.49 m) between perpendiculars |
| Beam: | 20 ft 9 in (6.32 m) |
| Draft: | 9 ft (2.7 m) mean |
| Propulsion: | Steam engine, one shaft |
| Speed: | 13 knots |
| Armament: | none |
The first USS Triton (Harbor Tug No. 10), later YT-10, was a United States Navy harbor tug in commission from 1889 to 1930.
Triton was built as a steam-powered, steel-hulled commercial tug in 1889 at Camden, New Jersey, by J. H. Dialogue. The U.S. Navy purchased her in September 1889 and commissioned her shortly thereafter as USS Triton (Harbor Tug No. 10).
Triton spent her entire career operating from the Washington Navy Yard at Washington, D.C. She frequently steamed down the Potomac River to the naval reservation at Indian Head, Maryland; during 1900 alone, she recorded 198 round-trips between Washington and Indian Head. During Triton's career, Indian Head was home first to the Naval Proving Grounds in the 1890s and then to the Naval Powder Factory during the first half of the 20th century; in all probability, Triton towed barges to Indian Head laden with materials to be used there in the testing of naval guns and in the production of gunpowder and explosives.
On 17 July 1921, the Navy changed Triton's designation from "Harbor Tug No. 10" to "YT-10" in accordance with the new system of alphanumeric hull designations adopted that day.
decommissioned early in 1930, Triton was stricken from the Navy List on 19 May 1930. She was sold on 15 September 1930.
References
- This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
- Department of the Navy: Navy History and Heritage Command: Online Library of Selected Images: U.S. Navy Ships: USS Triton (1889-1930, later YT-10)
- NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive YT-10 Triton
