USS ''Liberty III'' (SP-1229), sometimes written ''Liberty # 3'', and also referred to during her naval career as ''Liberty'' and as ''Pilot Boat Liberty, No. 3'', was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

patrol vessel 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 they ...

in commission from 1917 to 1919. The ''Liberty'' was a pilot boat from 1896-1917. She was a replacement for the pilot boat ''D. J. Lawlor''. After

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the ''Liberty'' returned to pilot service until 1934 when she was purchased as a yacht.

Construction and service

Pilot boat

The ''Liberty, No. 3'' was built as a

civilian A civilian is a person who is not a member of an armed force. It is war crime, illegal under the law of armed conflict to target civilians with military attacks, along with numerous other considerations for civilians during times of war. If a civi ...

schooner A schooner ( ) is a type of sailing ship, sailing vessel defined by its Rig (sailing), rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more Mast (sailing), masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than t ...

-rigged

pilot boat A pilot boat is a type of boat used to transport maritime pilots between land and the inbound or outbound ships that they are piloting. Pilot boats were once sailing boats that had to be fast because the first pilot to reach the incoming ship ...

in 1896 by John Bishop at his

shipyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are shipbuilding, built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Compared to shipyards, which are sometimes m ...

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. The registered

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was John Henry Low and owner was Susie Low. On March 30, 1896, 1896, the ''Liberty'' was launched from the John Bishop shipyard, to take the place of the ill-fated pilot-boat '' D. J. Lawlor'', No. 3. The boat was built for pilots James Murdock, John H. Low, C. K. Nelson and John Ward. She was 104 feet long, 118-tons and cost $17,000. She was built to beat the popular ''Hesper''. On January 31, 1897, boatkeeper Charles Benthram was left in charge of the ''Liberty, No. 3'' after the last pilot was placed on board the steamship ''Sachem''. He tried to enter the

port of Boston The Port of Boston (Automated Manifest System, AMS Seaport Code: 0401, UN/LOCODE: US BOS) is a major seaport located in Boston Harbor and adjacent to the Boston, Massachusetts, City of Boston. It is the largest port in Massachusetts and one of th ...

in foggy weather, but decided to stay at the

Boston Light Boston Light is a lighthouse located on Little Brewster Island in outer Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. The first lighthouse to be built on the site dates back to 1716, and was the first lighthouse to be built in what is now the United States. The ...

. The boat drifted 50 miles. After two days at sea the weather finally became calm and he was able to return to Boston. Benthram received his training by his uncle, Captain Thomas Cooper, on the pilot boat ''Columbia'' No. 2. On April 29, 1900, Captain J. H. Low, James M. Murdock, C. K. Nelson, J. C. Fawcett, and E. G. Martin were pilots on the ''Liberty, No. 3''. On April 10, 1902, Bruce B. McLean, James M. Murdock, John H. Low, C. K. Nelson, F. J. Gevalt, and William McMillian were

pallbearer A pallbearer is one of several participants who help carry the casket at a funeral. They may wear white gloves in order to prevent damaging the casket and to show respect to the deceased person. Some traditions distinguish between the roles o ...

s at the funeral for Captain E. G. Martin. They were also and pilots of the Captain Martin's pilot boat ''Liberty''. On October 8, 1916, Watson Shields Dolliver was on the pilot boat ''Liberty'' when he helped ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

'' transfer a reporter from the pilot boat to board the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company steamer SS ''Kansan'' that was headed for Boston with news about the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

U-53

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

. The ''Globe'' had the story out in the morning papers before anyone else. On 4 May 1917, a pilot boat model of the ''Liberty, No. 3'' was presented by the pilots of

Boston Harbor Boston Harbor is a natural harbor and estuary of Massachusetts Bay, located adjacent to Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Port of Boston, a major shipping facility in the Northeastern United States. History 17th century Since its dis ...

, some of which were Captains John H. Low, James H. Reid Jr., Joseph Fawcett, Nathaniel W. Abbott.

Acquired by US Navy

On 10 September 1917 the U.S. Navy acquired her under a free

lease A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the user (referred to as the ''lessee'') to pay the owner (referred to as the ''lessor'') for the use of an asset. Property, buildings and vehicles are common assets that are leased. Industrial ...

from her owner, the Boston Pilots Relief Society, for use as a

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 ...

boat during

. She was enrolled in the Naval Coast Defense Reserve on 15 September 1917 and commissioned on 20 September 1917 as USS ''Liberty III'' (SP-1229). Assigned to the

1st Naval District United States Naval Districts is a system created by the United States Navy to organize military facilities, numbered sequentially by geographic region, for the operational and administrative control of naval bases and shore commands in the Unit ...

in northern

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

and based at

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, Massachusetts, ''Liberty III'' served for the rest of World War I as a harbor entrance patrol boat, guiding the movements of ships that navigated the defensive sea area of the port of Boston. The Navy decommissioned ''Liberty III'' on 8 January 1919 and returned her to the Boston Pilots Relief Society the same day.

End of service

On 8 September 1934, the ''Liberty'' was purchased by Roscoe H. Prior, president of the American Stevedoring Corporation of Boston. The new owner raced her in international cup races.

Notes

References