Pre-NOAA Research and Survey Ships - US Coast & Geodetic Survey ~ Shipbuilding History

Pre-NOAA Research and Survey Ships - US Coast & Geodetic Survey

(Ships Withdrawn From Service Before NOAA's Formation in 1970)

Most recent update: September 13, 2015.

NOAA was created in 1970 from the combination of the Coast and Geodetic Survey (formed in 1807 as the Coast Survey), the Weather Bureau (formed in 1870 as a unit of the Army Signal Corps) and the Fish and Wildlife Service (formed in 1871 as the Commission of Fish and Fisheries and later called the Bureau of Fisheries). This table attempts to list all the ships that served the USC&GS but ended their service before 1970. Those vessels that have served since 1970, whether still active or now inactive, are listed here. There are a lot of gaps and uncertainties in this table:

If you have an addition or correction for this page, please send it in.

Name	Builder	Location	LOA	Built	From	To	History
Built for the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey (listed by year of build)
Jersey				1834	1834	1841
Nautilus			76	1838	1838	1859
Vanderbilt			48	1842	1842	1855
Phoenix			70	1845	1845	1857
Bancroft			60	1846	1846	1862
George M. Bache				1847	1847	1859
Brisk	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	60	1847	1847	1880	sold 1884
John Y. Mason			63	1847	1847	1861
Corwin			125	1850	1850	1867
Franklin			60	1850	1850	1859	hotel ship
Hassler			61	1851	1851	1872
Meredith			63	1851	1851	1872
Bouncer				1853	1853	1855	lost 1855
Joseph Henry	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	70	1853	1853	1875	sold 1875
Agassiz	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	70	1854	1854	1875
Arago	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	81	1854	1854	1863
Bowditch			70	1854	1854	1874
Humboldt			76	1854	1854	1872
Varina	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	91	1854	1854	1875
Bolles			70	1855	1855
Twilight			85	1856	1856	1861	captured 1861
Howell Cobb			70	1857	1857	1861
Torrey	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	70	1857	1857	1875
James Hall				1859	1859	1874
Caswell	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	74	1860	1860	1870
George M. Bache	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	76	1861	1861	1886
Beauty				1870	1870	1884
Arago	Maury & Steinburg	New York NY	93	1871	1871	1890	to USLHS 1890
Alexander D. Bache	Pusey & Jones	Wilmington DE	153	1871	1871	1927	later Bache 1901, sold as Kingfisher 1927
Fathomer	C. Sharp	Philadelphia PA	76	1871	1871	1881	sold 1884
Ferdinand R. Hassler	Dialogue & Wood	Camden NJ	160	1871	1871	1895	sold as Clara Nevada, lost 1898
Hitchcock	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	86	1871	1871	1889	sold 1891
Scoresby	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	76	1871	1871	1891	sank 1891
Silliman	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	83	1871	1871	1888	to USN 1888
Steadfast	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	70	1871	1871	1884
Palinurus	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	84	1873	1873	1889
Quick	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	60	1873	1873	1899
research	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	75	1873	1873	1886
George S. Blake	Fardy & Woodall	Baltimore MD	148	1874	1874	1905
Baton Rouge	S. D. Bardmore	Louisville KY	95	1875	1875	1881	sold
Earnest	W. E. Woodall	Baltimore MD	89	1875	1875	1891
Thomas R. Gedney	Delamater SY	New York NY	140	1875	1875	1915
Ready	W. E. Woodall	Baltimore MD		1875	1875	1886
Drift	W. E. Woodall	Baltimore MD	76	1876	1876	1892
Kincheloe				1876	1876	1882
Fuca	J. F. P. Mitchell		45	1882	1882	1904
Carlile P. Patterson	James D. Leary	Brooklyn NY	163	1883	1883	1918	sold 1919
Cosmos	Mare Island NSY	Vallejo CA	52	1887	1887	1927	sold 1927
Spy	A. C. Brown	Tottenville NY	51	1888	1888	1905
Transit	A. C. Brown	Tottenville NY	60	1888	1888	1909
Taku	G. W. Kneass	San Francisco CA	70	1898	1898	1917
Pathfinder	Crescent SY	Elizabethport NJ	193	1899	1899	1940	lost 1942
Hydrographer	James Reilly Supply	Port Jefferson NY	101	1901	1901	1928
Explorer	Pusey & Jones	Wilmington DE	135	1904	1904	1939	to National Youth Authority 1939
Surveyor	Manitowoc SB	Manitowoc WI	186	1917	1917	1956
Marindin	Canton Lumber	Baltimore MD	60	1919	1919	1944
Mitchell	Canton Lumber	Baltimore MD	60	1919	1919	1944
Ogden	Canton Lumber	Baltimore MD	60	1919	1919	1944
Rogers	Canton Lumber	Baltimore MD	60	1919	1919	1944
Gilbert	Leathem D. Smith	Sturgeon Bay WI	77	1929	1929	1962
Westdahl		Portland OR	77	1929	1929	1946
Hydrographer	Spear Engineering	Norfolk VA	165	1930	1930	1967	to USN 1942 as AGS-2, returned 1946
Perkins			103	1933	1933		later Cowie 1941
E. Lester Jones	Astoria Marine	Astoria OR	88	1940	1940	1967
Explorer	Lake Washington SY	Seattle WA	220	1942	1942	1968
Pathfinder	Lake Washington SY	Seattle WA	229	1942	1942	1971	scrapped 1972
Hilgard	Robinson Marine	Benton Harbor MI	66	1942	1942	1967
Wainwright	Robinson Marine	Benton Harbor MI	66	1942	1942	1967
Acquired by the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey from other sources (listed by year of acquisition)
Experiment	Washington NSY	Washington DC	90	1831	1835	1839	from USN 1835, returned 1839
Gallatin	New York NSY	Brooklyn NY	77	1831	1840	1859	captured by CSA
Wave	Brown & Bell	New York NY	96	1832	1845	1858
Bibb			160		1847	1879	from USRCS
Legare	R. & G. Schuyler	New York NY	160	1843	1847	1854	from USRCS
Belle			60		1848	1857	from USAQMD, lost 1857
Crawford			60	1843	1848	1861	from USRCS, returned 1861
Ewing	Abraham Cooper		91	1841	1848	1857	from USRCS
Gerdes					1848	1861	hotel ship
Petrel			71	1846	1848	1860	ex-Aiken Eclipse, captured 1860, sunk 1861
Robert J. Walker	Joseph Tomlinson	New York NY	133	1844	1848	1860	lost 1860
Hetzel			150		1849	1874	from USAQMD, abandoned 1874
Jefferson	Charles Knapp	Pittsburgh PA	160	1845	1849	1851	from USRCS, sank 1851
Morris			92		1849	1935	from USAQMD
Madison			79		1850	1858
Baltimore					1851	1858
Guthrie			66	1849	1851	1861
			172	1836	1852	1862	ex-Goldhunter, sold 1862
R. H. Fauntleroy			83		1854	1881	sold 1881
Benjamin Peirce			70		1855	1868
Sophia					1855	1861
Vixen					1855	1864
J. W. Bailey			70		1856	1873
Dana			70		1856	1876
Fire Fly					1856	1860
Arctic			172	1856	1857	1857	ex-Thomas Haight, to USLHS 1857
Sachem			121		1861	1862	On loan from USN
Marcy			91		1862	1875	from USRCS
Curlew			159		1864	1865
Barataria			95		1867	1885
Endeavor		Norfolk VA	117	1862	1867	1883	ex-CSA gunboat Lady Davis
Lincoln	Fardy Bros.	Baltimore MD	165	1864	1867		from USRCS
Sagadahoc			45		1867	1886
Yukon			84		1873	1894
Lively			46		1876	1886
McArthur	Mare Island NSY	Vallejo CA	121	1874	1876	1915
Eagre	Van Dusen	Williamsburg NY	140	1875	1878	1903	ex-Mohawk
Daisy			100	1869	1885	1891	sold 1891
Matchless		Key West FL	100	1859	1885	1915
Yukon		New York	75	1898	1898	1923	sold 1923
Marinduque		Uraga, Japan	132	1901	1905	1932	served in the Philippines
Romblon		Uraga, Japan	132	1901	1905	1921	served in the Philippines
Fathomer	HK & Whampoa DY	Hong Kong HK	152	1904	1906	1941	ex-Orchid (USLHS), lost at Bataan 1942
Isis			180		1915	1920	sank 1920
Discoverer	Todd Shipyards	Brooklyn NY	180	1918	1918	1922	ex-Auk (AM-38), Discoverer (ARS-3), sold 1947
Audwin		Morris Heights NY	53	1911	1919	1927	sold 1927
Elsie III			52		1919	1944	from USN
Helianthus		Bristol RI	64	1912	1919	1939	from USN, returned to USN
Lydonia	Pusey & Jones	Wilmington DE	185	1911	1919	1947
Natoma	Charles L. Seabury	Morris Heights NY	119	1913	1919	1935	ex-SP-666 (USN)
Onward	Charles L. Seabury	Morris Heights NY	140	1906	1919	1921	ex-Galatea, Ungava, from USN
Ranger	Robert Jacob	City Island NY	133	1910	1919	1933	ex-Thomas Slocum, from USN 1919, sold 1933
Scandinavia	Taylor Marine Rwy.	Norfolk VA	61	1916	1919		ex-SP-3363 (USN)
Sialia	Pusey & Jones	Wilmington DE	207	1914	1919	1920	ex-SP-543 (USN), sold 1920 as Yankee Clipper
Wenonah	George S. Lawley	Boston MA	163	1912	1919	1922	from USN, returned to USN
Wildcat			65		1919	1945
Mikawe		Bay City MI	64	1916	1920	1939	ex-MB Mikawe (USN)
Pioneer	Gas Engine & Power	Morris Heights NY	187	1918	1922	1941	ex-Osprey (AM-28), Crusader (ARS-2)
Guide	New Jersey Dry Dock	Brooklyn NY	188	1919	1923	1953	ex-Flamingo (AM-32), Viking (ARS-1), scrapped 1953
Echo	Portsmouth NSY		65	1902	1928	1938	ex-YFB-32, sold 1938
Oceanographer	T. S. Marvel	Newburgh NY	304	1899	1930	1942	ex-Corsair, scrapped 1942
Davidson	Luders Marine	Stamford CT	75	1925	1933	1935	ex-a (CG-242)
Dickins	Dachel Carter	Benton Harbor MI	75	1925	1933	1935	ex-Volo (CG-144)
Faris	Colonna's	Norfolk VA	75	1924	1933	1946	ex-Sonic (CG-223)
Miller	Chance Marine	Annapolis MD	75	1933	1933	1935	from USRCS
Pratt	Gibbs Gas Engine Co.	Jacksonville FL	75	1924	1933	1937	ex-Patrol (CG-295)
Ritter	Dachel Carter	Benton Harbor MI	75	1925	1933	1935	ex-Sono (CG-145), returned to USCG
Welker	Rice Bros.	East Boothbay ME	75	1925	1933	1937	ex-CG-139, to USAQMD
George D. Cowie	Great Lakes BB	Chicago IL	103		1941	1962	ex-Rhea III, sold 1962
Guide			140		1941	1942	ex-Comoco, Coronia, Andradite (PYc-11), returned to USN 1942
Pioneer	Germania Werft	Kiel, Germany	208	1929	1941	1942	from USN, returned to USN
Pratt			78		1941	1942	ex-Midnight Sun (YP-96)
Bowen	Calderwood		111	1943	1945	1957	ex-SC-1361 (USN), scrapped 1957
Sosbee	Hodgson Bros.	East Boothbay ME	68	1930	1945	1961
Bowie	Greenport Constn.	Greenport NY	136	1943	1946	1967	ex-PCS-1405 (USN), sold 1967
Derickson	Ballard Marine	Seattle WA	136	1944	1946	1954	ex-PC-1458 (USN), sold 1954
Hodgson	Burger & Burger	Manitowoc WI	136	1944	1946	1967	ex-PCS-1450 (USN), sold 1967
Parker	Elizabeth City SY	Elizabeth City NC	111	1943	1946	1957	ex-SC-1277 (USN), scrapped 1957
Pioneer	Lake Washington SY	Seattle WA	312		1946	1966	ex-Mobjack (AGP-7)
Stirni	Calderwood SY	Manchester MA	111	1943	1946	1957	ex-SC-1358 (USN)
Tulip	HK & Whampoa DY	Hong Kong HK	190	1904	1947	1950	served in the Philippines
Scott	Thornycroft	Southampton UK	73	1950	1955	1964	sold 1965
Marmer	Spedden SB	Baltimore MD	100	1932	1957	1968	ex-Walter Wyman (USPHS)
Research							served in the Philippines
Peter G. Washington				1837		1846	ex-USRCS, wrecked 1846