Miami-class cutter USCGC Tampa photographed in harbour, prior to the First World War. Completed in 1912 as the U.S. Revenue Cutter Miami, this ship was renamed Tampa in February 1916. On 26 September 1918, while operating in the English Channel, she was torpedoed and sunk by the German Submarine UB-91. All 131 persons on board Tampa were lost with her, the largest loss of life in combat on any U.S. combatant during the First World War. Official U.S. Navy photo NH 1226 from the U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command
A new Long Blue Line story about the loss of Tampa was published May 25. The otherwise excellent article made a statement that, “In 1914, near the start of the war, the British Admiralty began to introduce the convoy system to merchant shipping.”
As I recalled there was a long delay in introducing the convoy system and an American admiral was largely responsible for its introduction. Anyway, it prompted me to do a little research and found this article, “Protecting Allied Ships during WWI: The Convoy System Comes to Gibraltar,” from the American Battlefields Monuments Commission, which explains how the system was introduced and why convoys to and from Gibraltar were so important. It shows how rapidly the system was implemented once the decision was made.
“In March of 1917 alone, 25 percent of merchant ships headed to Britain were sunk.”.
“On April 25, 1917, shortly after the United States officially joined the war, American Adm. W. S. Sims urged the British War Cabinet to adopt a convoy system…By May 1st the British government agreed to a trial convoy.”
“On May 3rd the Navy reported a need for 36 destroyers and 100 smaller anti-submarine vessels for Europe.”
“On May 10th the first convoy of the war sailed for Britain from Gibraltar. It arrived in England on the 22nd without loss and the Admiralty immediately mandated all ships bound for England arrive in convoy.”
“The U.S. Navy decided to establish “Base No. 9” at Gibraltar on July 5th. The next day Adm. Sims, and Adm. Jellicoe specifically requested seven gunboats and an armed American yacht for Gibraltar. In response the U.S. Navy alerted 11 ships to prepare for “distant service” at Gibraltar under Rear Adm. Henry B. Wilson a week later. This force was augmented by six additional U.S. Coast Guard ships by the end of July.”
“The American vessels were placed on convoy duty almost as soon as they arrived. They assumed control of nearly all the convoys between England and Gibraltar, coordinating with American coastal forces off France and Ireland.”
The Coast Guard story is more accurate with regard to Tampa’s arrival,
“On September 29, 1917, Tampa sailed out of New York, bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia… On October 6th, the cutter departed Halifax and was the last Coast Guard cutter to arrive in Gibraltar, in the evening of October 26th. The following day, Tampa reported for duty and was assigned ocean escort duty for its first convoy to England.
These ships are all remarkably close in size to the WMEC210 Reliance class. What the other five cutters did is summarized below, from Wikipedia:
Algonquin, no caption/date; Neg. No. 148-2; Marine Photo Shop-Joe D. Williamson photo.
“Late in September, Algonquin began a 16-month tour of duty in Europe, safely escorting 750 ships on ten round trips between Gibraltar and the United Kingdom and 10 round trips between Gibraltar and the Azores”
Then USS Manning, probably 1918, as outfitted for convoy duty. She and sister Algonquin were armed with four 4-inch guns with 1,500 shells stored in two magazines fore and aft, two racks capable of carrying 16 300-pound depth charges, and four 30.06 Colt “potato digger” machine guns. A small arms locker would be filled with a pair of .30-06 Lewis guns, 18 .45 caliber Colt pistols, and 15 Springfield rifles. Photo from U.S. Warships of World War I, by P.H. Silverstone
“On 30 July 1917, Manning along with the cutters Algonquin, Ossipee, Seneca, Tampa, and Yamacraw were ordered to be outfitted for “distant service” in an unspecified region. The six cutters were outfitted with 3-inch guns and depth charge racks and were assigned duty as convoy escorts based at Gibraltar. Manning sailed for Europe on 29 August 1917 with an increased wartime complement of eight officers, four warrant officers, and 96 enlisted sailors.”
USCGC Ossipee Moored at the Boston Navy Yard in April, 1932, Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection
“While the cutter (USCGC Ossipee) was within the war zone, she was associated with thirty-two convoys and convoyed 596 vessels. In 23 of these, she served as the ocean escort. She also made three special cruises. Ossipee or other ships of her convoys observed submarines or evidence of their presence eight times, and the convoys were actually attacked seven times, with the loss of four merchant ships sunk. Ossipee, herself, was attacked once, barely escaping destruction as the torpedo missed her by 15–20 feet (4.6–6.1 m).” (This entry is much more detailed about how the convoy system worked and what Ossipee did than the other ship’s histories. –Chuck)
USRC Seneca, 1908
“Seneca‘s wartime service included escorting 30 convoys consisting of about 580 ships. Only four were lost, and from them 139 survivors were rescued. Twenty-one responses to submarines were made and only one of these proved to be false… The cutter had four close calls with torpedoes, and was believed to have sunk one submarine.” Eleven Seneca crew members (one of whom was USN) were lost in an attempt to save the torpedoed ship Wellington. The attempt resulted in 19 Navy Crosses and a Distinguished Service Medal.
USCGC Yamacraw, c. 1914.
“During convoy missions escorting merchant vessels…(Yamacraw)…performed a rescue, saving four survivors of a torpedo attack. On escort duty Yamacraw cruised over 36,000 miles.”
Coast Guard Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron (HITRON) aircrew personnel embarked aboard Coast Guard Cutter Midgett (WMSL 757) display airborne use of force weapons from behind three bullet-damaged outboard engine cowlings in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, Aug. 28, 2025. On Aug. 25, HITRON used airborne use of force to stop the non-compliant vessel, marking the unit’s 1,000th drug interdiction since the unit’s inception in 1999, which resulted in Midgett crew members seizing approximately 3,606 pounds of suspected cocaine worth an estimated $46 million and apprehending six suspected narco-traffickers. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)
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