USS ''Impetuous'' (PYc-46) was a private

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

purchased by the Navy in August 1940 that served as a

patrol boat A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and th ...

of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in Central America. The yacht was built as ''Paragon'', the first of at least two Davol yachts to bear the name, in 1915 for Charles J. Davol of

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

. In 1916 Davol sold the yacht to John Fred Betz, 3d of Philadelphia who renamed the yacht ''Sybilla III'' which served as the

Section Patrol A Section Patrol Craft was a civilian vessel registered by the United States Navy for potential wartime service before, during, and shortly after World War I. Historical overview The SP/ID registration system In 1916, with World War I raging a ...

yacht USS ''Sybilla III'' (SP-104) from May 1917 to December 1918. ''Sybilla III'' remained in Betz's ownership until sale in 1935 to R. Livingston Sullivan of Philadelphia who renamed the yacht ''Arlis''. On 12 August 1940 the Navy purchased the yacht placing it in commission as USS ''PC-454'' on 16 October. The vessel was given the name ''Impetuous'' and reclassified PYc-46 on 15 July 1943. The yacht was decommissioned at Philadelphia 31 August 1944 and transferred to the

War Shipping Administration The War Shipping Administration (WSA) was a World War II emergency war agency of the US government, tasked to purchase and operate the civilian shipping tonnage the United States needed for fighting the war. Both shipbuilding under the Maritime C ...

for sale.

Yacht ''Paragon''

''Paragon'' was built for Charles J. Davol of Providence, Rhode Island in 1915 by Robert Jacob Inc., City Island,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

. The yacht was designed by Swasey, Raymond & Page, Boston, somewhat along the lines of the U.S. Navy torpedo destroyers.Davol's initials are seen as "J. J.", "C. A." and "C. J." in some references but is spelled out as Charles J. in others. A particularly interesting one is found i
''Power Boating'' (December 1916)
regarding Fred Betz owner of the smaller yacht, ''Sybilla II'' purchasing ''Paragon'' from Charles J. Davol. Davol was president and treasurer of the

Davol Rubber Company The Davol Rubber Company ( ) is a historic industrial site at Davol Square, at Point and Eddy Streets in Providence, Rhode Island. The building was constructed in 1880 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. It is located a ...

. He maintained moorings for his yachts near his

North Kingstown, Rhode Island North Kingstown is a town in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States, and is part of the Providence metropolitan area. The population was 27,732 in the 2020 census. North Kingstown is home to the birthplace of American portraitist Gilber ...

estate "Wildacres" which composed most of

Quonset Point Quonset Point (), also known simply as Quonset, is a small peninsula in Narragansett Bay in the town of North Kingstown, Rhode Island. Its name is widely known from the Quonset hut, which was first manufactured there. ''Quonset'' is an Algonqui ...

. He was a member of seven yacht clubs.''Paragon'' (1929) Bath Iron Works, 140 ft 1.o.a., became . Davol died in 1937 and the estate and yachts were sold. The yacht had two 200 horsepower six cylinder gasoline engines with bore and stroke. In keeping with its naval look there was a polished and enameled functional quick firing gun mounted aft. ''Paragon'' was registered "during the week ending April 24, 1915" as a gas powered yacht at Providence, R. I. with U.S. Official Number 213128, signal LFJB, , , registry length of , beam and depth of . Additional dimensions are listed in ''Lloyd's Register of American Yachts 1917'' for the yacht after sale and rename as length overall , length on waterline , extreme breadth , depth and draft of .

Yacht ''Sybilla III''

By December 1916Possibly 6 November 1916 a
Ships Documents of Rhode Island
shows a yacht ''Paragon'' owned by Charles J. Davol with similar specifications surrendering Rhode Island documents on that date. the yacht had been sold to John Fred Betz, 3d who owned a slightly smaller, , yacht named ''Sybilla II''. ''Paragon'' was renamed by Betz ''Sybilla III'' registered in Philadelphia.Betz, one of the family owners of John F. Betz & Sons Brewery, was also owner of ''Sybilla II'' acquired by the Navy under free lease on 24 May 1917 to be commissioned as . The sale had been negotiated by the naval architectural firm Gielow & Orr during a period in which the government was buying yachts for potential wartime use and gentlemen yachtsmen were buying suitable yachts to enroll in the Naval Coast Defense Reserve or turn yachts over to the Naval Coast Patrol on the "free rental" of $1 per month. ''Sybilla III'' was acquired 14 May 1917 under free lease from Betz and commissioned the same day as USS ''Sybilla III'' (SP-104) for service in the

. The yacht served in the

Fourth Naval District The naval district was a U.S. Navy military and administrative command ashore. Apart from Naval District Washington, the Districts were disestablished and renamed Navy Regions about 1999, and are now under Commander, Naval Installations Comman ...

for a rental of $1 per month plus cost of restoration after use. On 24 December 1918 the yacht was returned to Betz and name struck from the

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...

(NVR). In the 1932-33 register ''Sybilla III'' is shown with a new signal, KNMU, and diesel engines. In the 1935-36 register the vessel is shown as ''Arlis'' owned by R. Livingston Sullivan of Philadelphia.

USS ''Impetuous'' (PYc-46)

The Navy acquired ''Arlis'' from Sullivan for $70,000 on 12 August 1940, converted the yacht at a cost of $50,000 and commissioned the vessel USS ''PC-454'' on 16 October with assignment to the

15th Naval District The naval district was a U.S. Navy military and administrative command ashore. Apart from Naval District Washington, the Districts were disestablished and renamed Navy Regions about 1999, and are now under Commander, Naval Installations Command ...

. ''PC-454'' arrived in the Canal Zone in mid-November 1940 to patrol the approaches to the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a Channel ( ...

. From November 1940 to August 1944 she performed escort and antisubmarine patrol operations off

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. The patrol vessel was named and reclassified ''Impetuous'' (PYc-46) on 15 July 1943. On 31 August 1944, the patrol yacht arrived in Philadelphia and was decommissioned there on 27 September, struck from the Naval Register on 14 October and sold by the War Shipping Administration on 14 June 1945.

Footnotes

References

External links

''Paragon'' newly built

Interior, 1915

Cockpit & gun, 1915
*

(Archived at HyperWar) {{DEFAULTSORT:Impetuous (PYc-46) 1915 ships Ships built in City Island, Bronx Individual yachts World War I patrol vessels of the United States World War II patrol vessels of the United States