USS Resolute (1894)
.jpg) USS Resolute off Portsmouth, New Hampshire, probably while serving as a marker ship for trials of the new battleship USS Kearsarge (BB-5) in May-September 1899.[1] | |
| Career (United States) | 100x35px |
|---|---|
| Name: | USS Resolute |
| Namesake: | Resolute: marked by firm determination; resolved. |
| Builder: | Delaware River Shipbuilding and Engine Works, Chester, Pennsylvania |
| Launched: | 10 February 1894 |
| Acquired: | 21 April 1898 |
| Commissioned: | 11 May 1898 |
| Decommissioned: | 15 December 1899 |
| Fate: | Transferred to United States Department of War 22 January 1900 |
| Notes: |
In service as commercial passenger ship SS Yorktown 1894-1898, as U.S. Army transport Rawlins 1900-1902, and as commercial passenger ship SS Powhatan, SS Cuba, and SS Seneca 1902-1926 Burned and sank 1926 Refloated 2 September 1928 Later scrapped |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Auxiliary cruiser and transport |
| Displacement: | 4,175 tons |
| Length: | 310 ft (94 m) |
| Beam: | 40 ft (12 m) |
| Draft: | 18 ft (5.5 m) |
| Depth of hold: | 26 ft 9 in (8.15 m) |
| Propulsion: | Steam engine |
| Speed: | 16 knots |
| Complement: | 87 |
| Armament: | 4 x 6-pounder guns |
The second USS Resolute was an auxiliary cruiser and transport that served in the United States Navy from 1898 to 1899. She served during the Spanish-American War.
Contents
Construction, acquisition, and commissioning
Resolute was launched on 10 February 1894 as the iron-hulled passenger ship SS Yorktown by Delaware River Shipbuilding and Engine Works at Chester, Pennsylvania. The U.S. Navy purchased her from her owner, the Old Dominion Steamship Company, on 21 April 1898 for service during the Spanish-American War and commissioned her as USS Resolute on 11 May 1898 with Commander Joseph G. Eaton in command.
Departing New York City on 25 May 1898, Resolute's first assignment was to cruise between St. Nicholas Mole, Haiti, and Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, in search of the Spanish Navy squadron commanded by Admiral Pascual Cervera y Topete. After calling at Key West, Florida, on 8 June 1898, Resolute returned to the southeast Cuban coast to assist the U.S. fleet in scouting, relying on her high speed for protection. She was present on 3 July 1898 at the Battle of Santiago de Cuba, steaming eastward to warn United States Army transports of the Spanish squadron's emergence from the harbor of Santiago de Cuba. Subsequently, Resolute transported Spanish prisoners-of-war to the United States, departing the Cuban coast on 8 July 1898 for Charleston, South Carolina; Newport News, Virginia; Tompkinsville, New York; and New York City.
Resolute returned to the Cuban war zone late in July 1898. She engaged Spanish shore batteries at Manzanillo, Cuba, on 13 August 1898, but again returned to New York on 23 August 1898 as the war came to a close.
During October 1898, Resolute embarked the Evacuation Commission at Nuevitas, Cuba, for transportation to Havana, Cuba, and Key West, and again to Havana. Then she returned American troops home to the United States.
Resolute was out of service until December 1898 while being fumigated following an outbreak of yellow fever on board. She then steamed between Havana and Key West on transport missions through March 1899. Her final service was as a marker vessel for the steam trials of the new battleship USS Kearsarge (BB-5) at Portsmouth, New Hampshire, from May to September 1899.
Resolute arrived at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 2 October 1899, and was decommissioned there on 15 December 1899 at League Island Navy Yard.
Later career, 1900-1928
Resolute was transferred to the United States Department of War on 22 January 1900 for service as the United States Army Transport USAT Rawlins. Returned to mercantile service in 1902, she operated under the names SS Powhatan, SS Cuba, and SS Seneca until 1926, when she burned and sank at New York City. She was refloated on 2 September 1928 and subsequently scrapped.
Notes
- ↑ The suggestion at the U.S. Naval Historical Center Online Library of Selected Images (see http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-r/reslte-2.htm) that the photo possibly shows Resolute in July 1898 while transporting Spanish prisoners-of-war captured during the Spanish-American War does not appear possible, as the ship operated off Portsmouth only during the Kearsarge trials of 1899.
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: Naval Historical Center Online Library of Selected Images: U.S. Navy Ships: USS Resolute (1898-1900)
