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USS Washington (ACR-11)
Encyclopedia
The seventh USS Washington (ACR-11), also referred to as "Armored Cruiser No. 11", and later renamed Seattle and renumbered CA-11 and IX-39, was a United States Navy
Tennessee-class
armored cruiser
. She was laid down on 23 September 1903 at Camden, New Jersey
, by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, launched on 18 March 1905, sponsored by Miss Helen Stewart Wilson (daughter of United States Senator
John L. Wilson
of Washington state), and commissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 7 August 1906, Captain
James D. Adams in command.
, whence she departed a week later as an escort for which was then carrying President Theodore Roosevelt
to Panama
for an inspection of progress of work constructing the Panama Canal
. During that voyage, the armored cruiser touched at Hampton Roads and Piney Point, Virginia; Colón, Panama
; Chiriqui Lagoon; and Mona Passage
before she returned to Newport News on 26 November. She headed back toward the Delaware Capes on 8 December, arrived at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on the 11th, and remained there undergoing repairs into the spring of 1907.
Washington departed League Island
on 11 April and arrived at Hampton Roads the next day. She remained there into May participating in festivities of the Jamestown Exposition
which commemorated the founding of Jamestown, Virginia
in 1607. She returned northward soon thereafter, spending most of May undergoing docking and tests at the New York Navy Yard. She then shook down off Tompkinsville, New York (Staten Island), from 28 May to 5 June before she returned to Hampton Roads for further observances at the Jamestown Exposition.
Washington departed Hampton Roads on 11 June and proceeded via Bradford, Rhode Island
, to Newport where she joined before heading across the Atlantic on the 14th, bound for European waters. The sister ships visited the French ports of Royan
, Île-d'Aix
, La Pallice, and Brest
from 23 June-25 July, before returning to Tompkinsville in August to run speed trials.
Following those trials and a period of yard work at the New York Navy Yard, Washington set sail for the Pacific Station, again in company with Tennessee. The two armored cruisers subsequently called at Hampton Roads; Port of Spain
, Trinidad
; Rio de Janeiro
, Brazil; Montevideo
, Uruguay
; Punta Arenas, Chile
; Callao
, Peru
; Acapulco
, Mexico
; and Pichilinque Bay, Mexico; before they joined the Pacific Fleet
in time to fire target practices with them at Magdalena Bay
, Mexico, from late December 1907-January 1908. Washington subsequently operated both in company with the Fleet and on independent tactical exercises out of Magdalena Bay into March, operating also off Santa Barbara
, San Francisco
, and San Diego
, as well as San Pedro, California
. Other ports visited by the armored cruiser into the summer of 1908 included Redondo Beach
, Venice
, Monterey
, and Angel Island
in California
; and Port Townsend
, Port Angeles
, Seattle
, Tacoma
, and Bremerton
in Washington. She was among the units of the Fleet reviewed by the Secretary of the Navy at San Francisco from 6 May and 17 May.
Washington operated off the west coast into 1909 before she made preparations to sail in company with the Armored Cruiser Squadron to "show the flag" in the Far East
. She accordingly got underway from San Francisco on 5 September 1909 and called, in succession, at Honolulu, Hawaii
; from 10–20 September; and Nares Harbor, Admiralty Islands
- where she coaled ship from 17–25 October - before she arrived at Manila
, Philippine Islands on 30 October.
After visiting Woosung
(near Shanghai
), China, from 14–30 December 1909, Washington and her sisters called at Yokohama
, Japan, from 3–20 January 1910, and Honolulu from 31 January-8 February, before returning to the west coast. Washington made port back at San Francisco via Port Discovery, Washington
and Bremerton on 3 March. She then returned to Bremerton where she commenced a period of repairs on 21 March.
Washington next operated off the west coast into the autumn of 1910, holding target practices off Santa Cruz, California
, before returning to San Francisco. She coaled ship at Tiburon, California
on 7–8 August before shifting to San Francisco to prepare for her next deployment. On 14 August, she departed San Francisco, bound for South America on the first leg of her voyage to the east coast to join the Atlantic Fleet
. With the ships of the 1st Division of the Pacific Fleet, Washington visited Valparaíso
, Chile
, and took part in the observances of the Chilean Centennial Celebration from 10–23 September. She then resumed her voyage around South America, touching at Talcahauano and Punta Arenas, Chile; Rio de Janeiro; Carlisle Bay, Barbados
; and St. Thomas, Danish West Indies
; before she arrived at Culebra, Puerto Rico
on 2 November to prepare for target practice with the Fleet.
Washingtons next area of operations was the Tidewater area of Virginia — especially Hampton Roads and Lynnhaven Bay — before the armored cruiser underwent repairs at the Norfolk Navy Yard from 20 December 1910-2 January 1911. The armored cruiser subsequently underwent another period of repairs at the Portsmouth Navy Yard before heading south with stores and material for delivery to the 5th Division of the Fleet in Cuba
n waters. She arrived at Guantánamo Bay on 20 March and remained there into the summer, conducting trials and exercises with the 5th Division. She then returned northward and stopped at Hampton Roads from 21–24 June before pushing on to New York, where she arrived on the 25th.
The armored cruiser operated off the northeastern seaboard through the summer, holding exercises and maneuvers in areas ranging from Cape Cod Bay
to Hampton Roads. During that time, she cruised briefly with the Naval Militia
from 19–21 July; acted as a reference ship for torpedo practice off Sandwich Island, Massachusetts
on 2 August; witnessed the as that ship fired at the target hulk San Marcos (former ) on 27–28 August, and then conducted battle practice with the Fleet off the southern drill grounds. In early November, Washington was among the ships of the Fleet reviewed by President William Howard Taft
.
The cruiser then participated in a search problem out of Newport, R.I. from 9–18 November before she sailed for the West Indies in company with , arriving at Santo Domingo
, Dominican Republic
on 26 November. Washington subsequently returned home to Hampton Roads in company with her sistership and went into drydock at the Norfolk Navy Yard three days before Christmas of 1911.
After returning to the Fleet and participating in maneuvers in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, in late January and early February 1912, Washington steamed back to the Norfolk Navy Yard where, between 13 February and 19 February, she underwent special preparations to embark the Secretary of State
and his party. The armored cruiser then shifted to Key West
where she embarked the Secretary on 23 February. In the ensuing weeks, Washington carried the Philander C. Knox
and his guests to such ports as Colón, Panama; Port Limón, Costa Rica
; Puerto Barrios
, Guatemala
; La Guaira
, Venezuela
; Santo Domingo; St. Thomas; Puerto Cabello
, Venezuela; San Juan; Port-au-Prince
; Guantánamo Bay; Kingston, Jamaica
; and Havana
, before disembarking her distinguished guests at Piney Point, Maryland
, on 16 April.
The high point of the spring of 1912 for Washington was her service as temporary flagship
for the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet, while she was at the Philadelphia Navy Yard from 19 April-3 May. The warship subsequently paused at New York from 9–12 May and at the Portsmouth Navy Yard for an inspection by the Board of Inspection and Survey
for ships before she conducted maneuvers out of Provincetown and Newport and then received Rear Admiral
Hugo Osterhaus
— the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet — aboard on 26 May. After shifting to Hampton Roads, Washington embarked a detachment of additional marines on 27 May, took on stores; and set out that day for Key West. There, she awaited further orders from 30 May-10 June, while President Taft concentrated a strong naval force there to prepare for possible action which might be required by internal problems in Cuba.
In the late spring and early summer, a rebellion on that Caribbean island occasioned a show of force by the United States. Washington accordingly departed Key West on 10 June and arrived at Havana later that day. She remained there on "duty in connection with the Cuban rebellion" until 1 July, when she shifted to Guantánamo. The rebellion on the island was put down by the Cuban Government, resulting in the withdrawal of the American naval and marine representation there. Accordingly, Washington sailed to Hampton Roads, where she discharged her marines and equipment and went into "first reserve" at the Portsmouth Navy Yard on 9 July.
Washington remained inactive until 8 October, when she sailed for New York to participate in the Naval Review
held there from 10–15 October and then resumed her reserve status at Portsmouth on 17 October. Shifted subsequently from Portsmouth to the New York Navy Yard — via President Roads, Massachusetts, and Tompkinsville, Staten Island — Washington was assigned duty as receiving ship at the navy yard on 20 July.
The armored cruiser was placed in commission again on 23 April 1914, Captain Edward W. Eberle in command. Later that spring, the armored cruiser took aboard drafts of men from Norfolk and Port Royal, South Carolina
on 30 April and 2 May; touched at Key West, and proceeded to Santo Domingo.
Once again there was unrest in the Dominican Republic. A revolution in the northern province of Santiago, against the rule of Provisional President José Bordas Valdés
, had been quelled; but one in the province of Puerto Plata
— near the capital of Santo Domingo itself — continued unchecked and was marked by severe fighting, fighting so severe that "marked apprehension" existed in Washington.
On 1 May, had been ordered to Dominican waters, but a further show of force seemed to be in order. Accordingly, Washington was chosen to "show the flag" in those troubled waters. She departed Key West on 4 May and arrived at the beleaguered city of Puerto Plata on 6 May to protect American interests, joining the Petrel. Six days later, Captain Eberle invited representatives of both warring parties — the insurgents and the government — out to his ship, in an attempt to persuade both sides to come to an amicable settlement.
Unfortunately, the attempt failed, and the fighting continued. The insurgents were aided by a recent large consignment of guns and ammunition smuggled across the Haiti
an border that had given them new blood. The revolutionaries soon recaptured the key city of La Vega and were successfully holding Puerto Plata. Government forces, laying siege to that port and shelling the insurgents, clearly endangered the lives of the neutral citizens still living in the city. Captain Eberle objected to the bombardment and warned President Valdés repeatedly.
Washington departed Puerto Plata on 6 June with the conflict between the insurgents and the government of President Valdes still unresolved. Her place had been taken by . Washington coaled ship and took on stores at Guantánamo Bay from 7–10 June before she sailed for Veracruz
, Mexico. She then remained in Mexican waters from 14–24 June before she shifted to Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, to protect American interests there during an outbreak of violence that summer.
Washington remained at Cap-Haïtien
into July. In the meantime, the situation in the Dominican Republic had worsened when government shellings of rebel positions in Puerto Plata resulted in an inevitable "incident". On 26 June, a stray shell killed an English woman in Puerto Plata causing the gunboat Machias to shift to a berth in the inner harbor and shell one of President Valdes' batteries, silencing it with a few well placed shots. During early July, Machias again fired her guns in anger when stray shots hit the ship.
In view of those developments, Washington returned to Puerto Plata on 9 July and remained there into the autumn, keeping a vigil to protect American lives and property and standing by to land her landing force if the situation required it. That August, Captain Eberle's attempts to bring about a conference finally bore fruit. The United States government sent a commission — consisting of John Franklin Fort
, the former governor of New Jersey
, James M. Sullivan, the American Minister to Santo Domingo; and Charles Smith, a New Hampshire lawyer — to mediate a peace in the Dominican Republic.
Both sides ultimately accepted the American suggestions which provided for the establishment of a constitutional government and the institution of elections under United States "observation."
Washington left Santo Domingo on 20 November; but, later that month, continued high feelings over the closely contested election resulted in further unrest - unrest met by the dispatch of additional Marines to Santo Domingo. For Washington, however, her part in the Dominican intervention of 1914 was over. She sailed for home and arrived at Philadelphia on 24 November and became flagship of the Cruiser Squadron.
Following an overhaul at the Portsmouth Navy Yard from 12 December 1914-11 January 1915, Washington sailed — via President Roads, Massachusetts (where she took on ammunition on 11 January) — for Hampton Roads, arriving there on 14 January. After a five-day visit, during which she took on stores and provisions and an expeditionary force of marines, Washington sailed for the Caribbean once more.
Two revolutions had rocked Haiti in 1914; a third, in January 1915, led by General Vilbrun Guillaume Sam, had resulted only in further unrest for that troubled nation. Washington arrived at Cap-Haïtien on 23 January, a week after General Sam's troops had invested it. The armored cruiser, flying the flag of Rear Admiral William B. Caperton
and commanded by Captain Edward L. Beach, Sr.
— the father of the future naval officer
who would win fame as a famous submariner and author — stayed in port there until the 26th investigating "political conditions" before she shifted to the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, on 27 January. There, she again observed local political conditions in the wake of General Sam's takeover of the government before sailing, via Guantánamo, for Mexican waters.
Washington conducted sub-caliber practices, observed political conditions, and conducted torpedo practices off the ports of Tampico
, Tuxpan
, Progreso
, and Veracruz into the summer. Receiving provisions and stores from the supply ship off Progreso on 26–27 June, the armored cruiser sailed for Guantánamo where she coaled and took on water on 30 June. She sailed the same day for Cap-Haïtien, as all reports from the American minister there indicated that yet another crisis was brewing.
While Washington awaited further developments at Cap-Haïtien, events in Port-au-Prince deteriorated, moving American chargé d'affaires
Davis to send a telegram on 27 July to the Secretary of State, Robert Lansing
, reporting the troubled conditions. He reported that President Sam and some of his men had been surrounded in the presidential palace and that the presence of American war vessels was desirable.
In accordance with that message, the Navy dispatched Washington to that port. Meanwhile, Sam took refuge in the French legation where he hoped that diplomatic immunity would prevail. The mobs of angry Haitians, however, were not concerned with such international niceties: they invaded the legation at 10:30 on 28 July 1915, forcibly removed former President Sam, killed and dismembered him, and paraded portions of his body on poles around the city.
Washington arrived at Port-au-Prince that day. Upon reviewing the situation, Admiral Caperton acted quickly. He ordered marines and a landing force ashore from his flagship to protect not only American interests but those of other foreign nations as well. Washington remained at Port-au-Prince into the winter. During that time, the United States effectively ran Haiti. On 12 August, Philippe Sudré Dartiguenave
was elected president; and his government was recognized by the United States on 17 September.
Ending that lengthy in-port period, Washington departed Port-au-Prince on 31 January 1916 and arrived at Guantánamo the following day. There, she transferred passengers and stores to other ships of the Fleet and later transferred a company of marines to Norfolk soon after her arrival in Hampton Roads on 5 February. The armored cruiser steamed north, via New York and Boston; reached Portsmouth, New Hampshire
on 29 February; and began an overhaul in the navy yard there which lasted until the end of March. Then, on 31 March, she was placed in reserve.
On 9 November 1916, Washington was renamed Seattle (retaining her classification as Armored Cruiser No. 11). She was simultaneously taken out of reserve and recommissioned for duty as flagship of the Destroyer Force.
Seattle arrived at New York on 3 June to be fitted out at the New York Navy Yard for war service. She sailed on 14 June as an escort for the first American convoy
to European waters and as flagship for Rear Admiral
Albert Gleaves
. At 22:15 on 22 June, she encountered her first enemy submarine
s at 48°00′N 25°50′W.
Shortly before the convoy was attacked, Seattles helm jammed; and she sheered out of formation sharply, sounding her whistle to warn the other vessels. A few minutes later, the ship was brought back on course. Soon lookouts noted a white streak in the water 50 yd (45.7 m) ahead of the vessel, crossing from starboard to port at right angles to Seattles course. Admiral Gleaves, asleep in the charthouse at the time, awoke and was on the bridge in time to see the armored cruiser's gun crews manning their weapons and the transport De Kalb opening fire on the U-boat.
Subsequently, the destroyer attacked an enemy submersible but failed to sink the German submarine. Later information indicated that the enemy, probably aware of the approach of the first American expeditionary forces, had dispatched a pair of submarines to lie in wait for it. The attack, conducted under "ideal" conditions, was, fortunately for the Americans, unsuccessful. Admiral Gleaves, in his report to the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet, on 12 July, reported unequivocally: "their [the enemy's] failure to score hits was probably due to the attack being precipitated by the fortuitous circumstances of the Seattle's helm jamming and the sounding of her whistle, leading the enemy to suppose he had been discovered."
Seattle operated on comparatively uneventful escort duties for the remainder of World War I, completing her ninth round-trip voyage at New York on 27 October 1918.
s from France until 5 July 1919. Later, after all of her special troop fittings had been removed, Seattle sailed for the west coast to join the Pacific Fleet.
Reviewed by President Woodrow Wilson
on 12 September at her namesake city — Seattle — the armored cruiser shifted to the Puget Sound Navy Yard where she was placed in "reduced commission". While in that inactive status, Seattle was reclassified a heavy cruiser
— CA-11 — on 17 July 1920.
Placed in full commission again on 1 March 1923, Captain George L. P. Stone in command, Seattle became the flagship for the Commander in Chief, United States Fleet
. In that role, over the next four years, she wore the four-starred flags of a succession of officers: Admiral
s Hilary P. Jones
, Robert Coontz
, Samuel S. Robison (who was embarked in the ship at the time of the Australian cruise of 1925), and Charles F. Hughes. During that time, the armored cruiser operated from Seattle to Hawaii and from Panama to Australia.
Subsequently returning to the Atlantic in June 1927, Seattle passed in review before President Calvin Coolidge
on 3 June. After a cruise along the east coast, the ship arrived at New York on 29 August to assume duties as the receiving ship at that port. On 1 July 1931, the ship's designation was changed to "unclassified".
As receiving ship, Seattle served as a floating barracks — a "clearance house for personnel" — at New York into the 1940s. Ships and stations transferred men to her for attending various schools in the 3rd Naval District; she provided men for tugs and other district craft, as well as naval escorts for patriotic functions (parades and funerals, etc.) and, on board her, crews for ships preparing to go into commission were assembled. Among those ships was the light cruiser
.
On 17 February 1941, the erstwhile armored cruiser was reclassified as IX-39. She was ultimately placed out of commission at New York on 28 June 1946 and was struck from the Navy List
on 19 July of the same year. Sold on 3 December to Hugo Neu of New York City, the former flagship of the United States Fleet and receiving ship at New York was subsequently scrapped.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
Tennessee-class
Tennessee class cruiser
The Tennessee-class armored cruisers were four ships of the US Navy built between 1903–1906. The first pair were authorized in 1902 and the second in 1904...
armored cruiser
Armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Like other types of cruiser, the armored cruiser was a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship, and fast enough to outrun any battleships it encountered.The first...
. She was laid down on 23 September 1903 at Camden, New Jersey
Camden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...
, by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, launched on 18 March 1905, sponsored by Miss Helen Stewart Wilson (daughter of United States Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
John L. Wilson
John L. Wilson
John Lockwood Wilson was an American lawyer and politician from the U.S. states of Indiana and Washington. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate...
of Washington state), and commissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 7 August 1906, Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
James D. Adams in command.
Pre-World War I
Washington was fitted out there until 1 November when she got underway for Hampton RoadsHampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
, whence she departed a week later as an escort for which was then carrying President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
to Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
for an inspection of progress of work constructing the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
. During that voyage, the armored cruiser touched at Hampton Roads and Piney Point, Virginia; Colón, Panama
Colón, Panama
Colón is a sea port on the Caribbean Sea coast of Panama. The city lies near the Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal. It is capital of Panama's Colón Province and has traditionally been known as Panama's second city....
; Chiriqui Lagoon; and Mona Passage
Mona Passage
The Mona Passage is a strait that separates the islands of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico. The Mona Passage connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean Sea, and is an important shipping route between the Atlantic and the Panama Canal....
before she returned to Newport News on 26 November. She headed back toward the Delaware Capes on 8 December, arrived at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on the 11th, and remained there undergoing repairs into the spring of 1907.
Washington departed League Island
League Island
League Island was an island in the Delaware River, part of the city of Philadelphia, just upstream from the mouth of the Schuylkill River, which was the site of the Philadelphia shipyard, which eventually became the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, now known as the Philadelphia Naval Business...
on 11 April and arrived at Hampton Roads the next day. She remained there into May participating in festivities of the Jamestown Exposition
Jamestown Exposition
The Jamestown Exposition was one of the many world's fairs and expositions that were popular in the United States in the early part of the 20th century...
which commemorated the founding of Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown was a settlement in the Colony of Virginia. Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607 , it was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States, following several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke...
in 1607. She returned northward soon thereafter, spending most of May undergoing docking and tests at the New York Navy Yard. She then shook down off Tompkinsville, New York (Staten Island), from 28 May to 5 June before she returned to Hampton Roads for further observances at the Jamestown Exposition.
Washington departed Hampton Roads on 11 June and proceeded via Bradford, Rhode Island
Bradford, Rhode Island
Bradford is a census-designated place and historic district in the town of Westerly in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 1,497 at the 2000 census...
, to Newport where she joined before heading across the Atlantic on the 14th, bound for European waters. The sister ships visited the French ports of Royan
Royan
Royan is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department, along the Atlantic Ocean, in southwestern France.A seaside resort, Royan is in the heart of an urban area estimated at 38,638 inhabitants, which makes it the fourth-largest conurbation in the department, after La Rochelle, Rochefort and Saintes...
, Île-d'Aix
Île-d'Aix
Île-d'Aix is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department off the west coast of France. It occupies the territory of small island of Île d'Aix in the Atlantic. It is a popular place for tourist day-trips during the summer months.-Location:...
, La Pallice, and Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
from 23 June-25 July, before returning to Tompkinsville in August to run speed trials.
Following those trials and a period of yard work at the New York Navy Yard, Washington set sail for the Pacific Station, again in company with Tennessee. The two armored cruisers subsequently called at Hampton Roads; Port of Spain
Port of Spain
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...
, Trinidad
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
; Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, Brazil; Montevideo
Montevideo
Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...
, Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
; Punta Arenas, Chile
Punta Arenas, Chile
Punta Arenas is a commune and the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antartica Chilena. The city was officially renamed Magallanes in 1927, but in 1938 it was changed back to Punta Arenas...
; Callao
Callao
Callao is the largest and most important port in Peru. The city is coterminous with the Constitutional Province of Callao, the only province of the Callao Region. Callao is located west of Lima, the country's capital, and is part of the Lima Metropolitan Area, a large metropolis that holds almost...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
; Acapulco
Acapulco
Acapulco is a city, municipality and major sea port in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, southwest from Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semi-circular bay and has been a port since the early colonial period of Mexico’s history...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
; and Pichilinque Bay, Mexico; before they joined the Pacific Fleet
United States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...
in time to fire target practices with them at Magdalena Bay
Magdalena Bay
Bahía Magdalena is a 50 km long bay in Comondú Municipality along the western coast of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. It is protected from the Pacific Ocean by the sandy barrier islands of Isla Magdalena and Isla Santa Margarita....
, Mexico, from late December 1907-January 1908. Washington subsequently operated both in company with the Fleet and on independent tactical exercises out of Magdalena Bay into March, operating also off Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, California
Santa Barbara is the county seat of Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States, the city lies between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean...
, San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, and San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, as well as San Pedro, California
San Pedro, Los Angeles, California
San Pedro is a port district of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. It was annexed in 1909 and is a major seaport of the area...
. Other ports visited by the armored cruiser into the summer of 1908 included Redondo Beach
Redondo Beach, California
Redondo Beach is one of the three Beach Cities located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 66,748 at the 2010 census, up from 63,261 at the 2000 census. The city is located in the South Bay region of the greater Los Angeles area.Redondo Beach was originally part of...
, Venice
Venice, Los Angeles, California
Venice is a beachfront district on the Westside of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is known for its canals, beaches and circus-like Ocean Front Walk, a two-and-a-half mile pedestrian-only promenade that features performers, fortune-tellers, artists, and vendors...
, Monterey
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
, and Angel Island
Angel Island, California
Angel Island is an island in San Francisco Bay that offers expansive views of the San Francisco skyline, the Marin County Headlands and Mount Tamalpais. The entire island is included within Angel Island State Park, and is administered by California State Parks. It has been used for a variety of...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
; and Port Townsend
Port Townsend, Washington
Port Townsend is a city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States, approximately north-northwest of Seattle . The population was 9,113 at the 2010 census an increase of 9.3% over the 2000 census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County...
, Port Angeles
Port Angeles, Washington
Port Angeles is a city in and the county seat of Clallam County, Washington, United States. The population was 19,038 at the 2010 census. The area's harbor was dubbed Puerto de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles by Spanish explorer Francisco de Eliza in 1791, but by the mid-19th century the name had...
, Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Tacoma
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
, and Bremerton
Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States. The population was 38,790 at the 2011 State Estimate, making it the largest city on the Olympic Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerton Annex of Naval Base Kitsap...
in Washington. She was among the units of the Fleet reviewed by the Secretary of the Navy at San Francisco from 6 May and 17 May.
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
. She accordingly got underway from San Francisco on 5 September 1909 and called, in succession, at Honolulu, Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
; from 10–20 September; and Nares Harbor, Admiralty Islands
Admiralty Islands
The Admiralty Islands are a group of eighteen islands in the Bismarck Archipelago, to the north of New Guinea in the south Pacific Ocean. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, after the largest island. These rainforest-covered islands form part of Manus Province, the smallest and...
- where she coaled ship from 17–25 October - before she arrived at Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, Philippine Islands on 30 October.
After visiting Woosung
Wusong
Wusong,Chinese: s , t , p Wúsōng. formerly Woosung, was a port town located fourteen miles downriver from Shanghai.The Battle of Woosung occurred on 16 June 1842 between British and Chinese forces during the First Opium War. It was the site of China's first telegraph wires and first railroad, both...
(near Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
), China, from 14–30 December 1909, Washington and her sisters called at Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
, Japan, from 3–20 January 1910, and Honolulu from 31 January-8 February, before returning to the west coast. Washington made port back at San Francisco via Port Discovery, Washington
Port Discovery, Washington
Port Discovery, Washington is the historical name of what is now called Discovery Bay, a bay in the U.S. state of Washington on the south side of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. It was also called Port Discovery Bay for some time, a name that can be found on maps from...
and Bremerton on 3 March. She then returned to Bremerton where she commenced a period of repairs on 21 March.
Washington next operated off the west coast into the autumn of 1910, holding target practices off Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz, California
Santa Cruz is the county seat and largest city of Santa Cruz County, California in the US. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Santa Cruz had a total population of 59,946...
, before returning to San Francisco. She coaled ship at Tiburon, California
Tiburon, California
Tiburon is an incorporated town in Marin County, California. It occupies most of the Tiburon Peninsula, which reaches south into the San Francisco Bay. The smaller city of Belvedere occupies the south-east part of the peninsula and is contiguous with Tiburon...
on 7–8 August before shifting to San Francisco to prepare for her next deployment. On 14 August, she departed San Francisco, bound for South America on the first leg of her voyage to the east coast to join the Atlantic Fleet
United States Fleet Forces Command
The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...
. With the ships of the 1st Division of the Pacific Fleet, Washington visited Valparaíso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, and took part in the observances of the Chilean Centennial Celebration from 10–23 September. She then resumed her voyage around South America, touching at Talcahauano and Punta Arenas, Chile; Rio de Janeiro; Carlisle Bay, Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
; and St. Thomas, Danish West Indies
Danish West Indies
The Danish West Indies or "Danish Antilles", were a colony of Denmark-Norway and later Denmark in the Caribbean. They were sold to the United States in 1916 in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies and became the United States Virgin Islands in 1917...
; before she arrived at Culebra, Puerto Rico
Culebra, Puerto Rico
Isla Culebra is an island-municipality of Puerto Rico originally called Isla Pasaje and Isla de San Ildefonso. It is located approximately east of the Puerto Rican mainland, west of St. Thomas and north of Vieques. Culebra is spread over 5 wards and Culebra Pueblo...
on 2 November to prepare for target practice with the Fleet.
Washingtons next area of operations was the Tidewater area of Virginia — especially Hampton Roads and Lynnhaven Bay — before the armored cruiser underwent repairs at the Norfolk Navy Yard from 20 December 1910-2 January 1911. The armored cruiser subsequently underwent another period of repairs at the Portsmouth Navy Yard before heading south with stores and material for delivery to the 5th Division of the Fleet in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n waters. She arrived at Guantánamo Bay on 20 March and remained there into the summer, conducting trials and exercises with the 5th Division. She then returned northward and stopped at Hampton Roads from 21–24 June before pushing on to New York, where she arrived on the 25th.
The armored cruiser operated off the northeastern seaboard through the summer, holding exercises and maneuvers in areas ranging from Cape Cod Bay
Cape Cod Bay
Cape Cod Bay is a large bay of the Atlantic Ocean adjacent to the U.S. state of Massachusetts. Measuring below a line drawn from Brant Rock in Marshfield to Race Point in Provincetown, Massachusetts, it is enclosed by Cape Cod to the south and east, and Plymouth County, Massachusetts, to the west....
to Hampton Roads. During that time, she cruised briefly with the Naval Militia
Naval militia
A naval militia in the United States is a reserve military organization administered under the authority of a state government. It is often composed of Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard reservists, retirees and volunteers. They are distinguishable from the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, which is a...
from 19–21 July; acted as a reference ship for torpedo practice off Sandwich Island, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
on 2 August; witnessed the as that ship fired at the target hulk San Marcos (former ) on 27–28 August, and then conducted battle practice with the Fleet off the southern drill grounds. In early November, Washington was among the ships of the Fleet reviewed by President William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
.
The cruiser then participated in a search problem out of Newport, R.I. from 9–18 November before she sailed for the West Indies in company with , arriving at Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
, Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
on 26 November. Washington subsequently returned home to Hampton Roads in company with her sistership and went into drydock at the Norfolk Navy Yard three days before Christmas of 1911.
After returning to the Fleet and participating in maneuvers in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, in late January and early February 1912, Washington steamed back to the Norfolk Navy Yard where, between 13 February and 19 February, she underwent special preparations to embark the Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
and his party. The armored cruiser then shifted to Key West
Key West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. Key West is home to the southernmost point in the Continental United States; the island is about from Cuba....
where she embarked the Secretary on 23 February. In the ensuing weeks, Washington carried the Philander C. Knox
Philander C. Knox
Philander Chase Knox was an American lawyer and politician who served as United States Attorney General , a Senator from Pennsylvania and Secretary of State ....
and his guests to such ports as Colón, Panama; Port Limón, Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
; Puerto Barrios
Puerto Barrios
Puerto Barrios is a city in Guatemala, located within the Gulf of Honduras at. The bay in which the harbour is located is called Bahia de Amatique. Puerto Barrios is the departmental seat of Izabal department and the administrative seat of Puerto Barrios municipality.Puerto Barrios was named after...
, Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
; La Guaira
La Guaira
La Guaira is the capital city of the Venezuelan state of Vargas and the country's chief port. It was founded in 1577 as an outlet for Caracas, to the southeast. The town and the port were badly damaged during the December 1999 floods and mudslides that affected much of the region...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
; Santo Domingo; St. Thomas; Puerto Cabello
Puerto Cabello
Puerto Cabello is a city on the north coast of Venezuela. It is located in Carabobo State about 75 km west of Caracas. As of 2001, the city has a population of around 154,000 people. The city is the home to the largest port in the country and is thus a vital cog in the country's vast oil...
, Venezuela; San Juan; Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince
Port-au-Prince is the capital and largest city of the Caribbean nation of Haiti. The city's population was 704,776 as of the 2003 census, and was officially estimated to have reached 897,859 in 2009....
; Guantánamo Bay; Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
; and Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
, before disembarking her distinguished guests at Piney Point, Maryland
Piney Point, Maryland
Piney Point is an unincorporated community in St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. It is known for the Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education, a popular seafood restaurant, beautiful houses along the beach, a lighthouse, and a "Museum." The Piney Point post office also...
, on 16 April.
The high point of the spring of 1912 for Washington was her service as temporary flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
for the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet, while she was at the Philadelphia Navy Yard from 19 April-3 May. The warship subsequently paused at New York from 9–12 May and at the Portsmouth Navy Yard for an inspection by the Board of Inspection and Survey
Board of Inspection and Survey
The Board of Inspection and Survey is a U.S. Navy organization whose purpose is to inspect and assess material condition of Naval vessels.The Board is currently headquartered at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia.- INSURV teams :...
for ships before she conducted maneuvers out of Provincetown and Newport and then received Rear Admiral
Rear admiral (United States)
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. The uniformed services of the United States are unique in having two grades of rear admirals.- Rear admiral :...
Hugo Osterhaus
Hugo Osterhaus
Hugo Osterhaus was a Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. He was the son of Civil War Major General Peter J. Osterhaus and father of Navy Admiral Hugo Wilson Osterhaus , and is buried on Arlington National Cemetery.-U.S...
— the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet — aboard on 26 May. After shifting to Hampton Roads, Washington embarked a detachment of additional marines on 27 May, took on stores; and set out that day for Key West. There, she awaited further orders from 30 May-10 June, while President Taft concentrated a strong naval force there to prepare for possible action which might be required by internal problems in Cuba.
In the late spring and early summer, a rebellion on that Caribbean island occasioned a show of force by the United States. Washington accordingly departed Key West on 10 June and arrived at Havana later that day. She remained there on "duty in connection with the Cuban rebellion" until 1 July, when she shifted to Guantánamo. The rebellion on the island was put down by the Cuban Government, resulting in the withdrawal of the American naval and marine representation there. Accordingly, Washington sailed to Hampton Roads, where she discharged her marines and equipment and went into "first reserve" at the Portsmouth Navy Yard on 9 July.
Washington remained inactive until 8 October, when she sailed for New York to participate in the Naval Review
Naval Review
A Naval Review is an event, where the whole of the US Navy is paraded to be reviewed by the president or the Secretary of the Navy. It often includes delegates from other national navies. It is more regular and frequent than its British equivalent, the Fleet Review, and often occurs on a Navy...
held there from 10–15 October and then resumed her reserve status at Portsmouth on 17 October. Shifted subsequently from Portsmouth to the New York Navy Yard — via President Roads, Massachusetts, and Tompkinsville, Staten Island — Washington was assigned duty as receiving ship at the navy yard on 20 July.
The armored cruiser was placed in commission again on 23 April 1914, Captain Edward W. Eberle in command. Later that spring, the armored cruiser took aboard drafts of men from Norfolk and Port Royal, South Carolina
Port Royal, South Carolina
Port Royal is a town in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Largely because of annexation of surrounding areas , the population of Port Royal rose from 3,950 in 2000 to 10,678 in 2010, a 170% increase. As defined by the U.S...
on 30 April and 2 May; touched at Key West, and proceeded to Santo Domingo.
Once again there was unrest in the Dominican Republic. A revolution in the northern province of Santiago, against the rule of Provisional President José Bordas Valdés
José Bordas Valdés
José Bordas Valdés was a politician from the Dominican Republic. He served as provisional president of the Dominican Republic from 14 April 1913 until 27 August 1914. He was born in Santiago de los Caballeros.-Reference:*...
, had been quelled; but one in the province of Puerto Plata
San Felipe de Puerto Plata
San Felipe de Puerto Plata, often referred to as simply Puerto Plata, is the capital of the Dominican province Puerto Plata.The city is famous for resorts such as Playa Dorada and Costa Dorada, located east of San Felipe de Puerto Plata. There are a total of 100,000 hotel beds in the city.The only...
— near the capital of Santo Domingo itself — continued unchecked and was marked by severe fighting, fighting so severe that "marked apprehension" existed in Washington.
On 1 May, had been ordered to Dominican waters, but a further show of force seemed to be in order. Accordingly, Washington was chosen to "show the flag" in those troubled waters. She departed Key West on 4 May and arrived at the beleaguered city of Puerto Plata on 6 May to protect American interests, joining the Petrel. Six days later, Captain Eberle invited representatives of both warring parties — the insurgents and the government — out to his ship, in an attempt to persuade both sides to come to an amicable settlement.
Unfortunately, the attempt failed, and the fighting continued. The insurgents were aided by a recent large consignment of guns and ammunition smuggled across the Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an border that had given them new blood. The revolutionaries soon recaptured the key city of La Vega and were successfully holding Puerto Plata. Government forces, laying siege to that port and shelling the insurgents, clearly endangered the lives of the neutral citizens still living in the city. Captain Eberle objected to the bombardment and warned President Valdés repeatedly.
Washington departed Puerto Plata on 6 June with the conflict between the insurgents and the government of President Valdes still unresolved. Her place had been taken by . Washington coaled ship and took on stores at Guantánamo Bay from 7–10 June before she sailed for Veracruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
, Mexico. She then remained in Mexican waters from 14–24 June before she shifted to Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, to protect American interests there during an outbreak of violence that summer.
Washington remained at Cap-Haïtien
Cap-Haïtien
Cap-Haïtien is a city of about 190,000 people on the north coast of Haiti and capital of the Department of Nord...
into July. In the meantime, the situation in the Dominican Republic had worsened when government shellings of rebel positions in Puerto Plata resulted in an inevitable "incident". On 26 June, a stray shell killed an English woman in Puerto Plata causing the gunboat Machias to shift to a berth in the inner harbor and shell one of President Valdes' batteries, silencing it with a few well placed shots. During early July, Machias again fired her guns in anger when stray shots hit the ship.
In view of those developments, Washington returned to Puerto Plata on 9 July and remained there into the autumn, keeping a vigil to protect American lives and property and standing by to land her landing force if the situation required it. That August, Captain Eberle's attempts to bring about a conference finally bore fruit. The United States government sent a commission — consisting of John Franklin Fort
John Franklin Fort
John Franklin Fort was an American Republican Party politician, who served as the 33rd Governor of New Jersey, from 1908–1911. His uncle, George Franklin Fort, was a Democratic Governor of New Jersey from 1851–1854....
, the former governor of New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, James M. Sullivan, the American Minister to Santo Domingo; and Charles Smith, a New Hampshire lawyer — to mediate a peace in the Dominican Republic.
Both sides ultimately accepted the American suggestions which provided for the establishment of a constitutional government and the institution of elections under United States "observation."
Washington left Santo Domingo on 20 November; but, later that month, continued high feelings over the closely contested election resulted in further unrest - unrest met by the dispatch of additional Marines to Santo Domingo. For Washington, however, her part in the Dominican intervention of 1914 was over. She sailed for home and arrived at Philadelphia on 24 November and became flagship of the Cruiser Squadron.
Following an overhaul at the Portsmouth Navy Yard from 12 December 1914-11 January 1915, Washington sailed — via President Roads, Massachusetts (where she took on ammunition on 11 January) — for Hampton Roads, arriving there on 14 January. After a five-day visit, during which she took on stores and provisions and an expeditionary force of marines, Washington sailed for the Caribbean once more.
Two revolutions had rocked Haiti in 1914; a third, in January 1915, led by General Vilbrun Guillaume Sam, had resulted only in further unrest for that troubled nation. Washington arrived at Cap-Haïtien on 23 January, a week after General Sam's troops had invested it. The armored cruiser, flying the flag of Rear Admiral William B. Caperton
William B. Caperton
William Banks Caperton was an admiral of the United States Navy.-Biography:He was born on June 30, 1855 in Spring Hill, Tennessee. Caperton graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1875...
and commanded by Captain Edward L. Beach, Sr.
Edward L. Beach, Sr.
Edward Latimer Beach, Sr., was a career American naval officer and later author. He served in three of the United States' wars, ranging from the Spanish–American War up through World War I. He was the father of the future Captain Edward L. Beach, Jr...
— the father of the future naval officer
Edward L. Beach, Jr.
Edward Latimer Beach, Jr. was a highly-decorated United States Navy submarine officer and best-selling author....
who would win fame as a famous submariner and author — stayed in port there until the 26th investigating "political conditions" before she shifted to the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, on 27 January. There, she again observed local political conditions in the wake of General Sam's takeover of the government before sailing, via Guantánamo, for Mexican waters.
Washington conducted sub-caliber practices, observed political conditions, and conducted torpedo practices off the ports of Tampico
Tampico
Tampico is a city and port in the state of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located in the southeastern part of the state, directly north across the border from Veracruz. Tampico is the third largest city in Tamaulipas, and counts with a population of 309,003. The Metropolitan area of...
, Tuxpan
Tuxpan
Tuxpan is both a municipality and city located in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The population of the city was 78,523 and of the municipality was 134,394 inhabitants, according to the INEGI census of 2005, residing in a total area of 1,051.89 km²...
, Progreso
Progreso
Progreso or Progresso may refer to:Argentina* Progreso, Santa FeMexico* Progreso, Baja California* Progreso, Coahuila* Progreso, Chihuahua* Progreso, Puebla* Progreso, Sinaloa* Progreso, Sonora* Progreso, Veracruz* Progreso, Yucatán...
, and Veracruz into the summer. Receiving provisions and stores from the supply ship off Progreso on 26–27 June, the armored cruiser sailed for Guantánamo where she coaled and took on water on 30 June. She sailed the same day for Cap-Haïtien, as all reports from the American minister there indicated that yet another crisis was brewing.
While Washington awaited further developments at Cap-Haïtien, events in Port-au-Prince deteriorated, moving American chargé d'affaires
Chargé d'affaires
In diplomacy, chargé d’affaires , often shortened to simply chargé, is the title of two classes of diplomatic agents who head a diplomatic mission, either on a temporary basis or when no more senior diplomat has been accredited.-Chargés d’affaires:Chargés d’affaires , who were...
Davis to send a telegram on 27 July to the Secretary of State, Robert Lansing
Robert Lansing
Robert Lansing served in the position of Legal Advisor to the State Department at the outbreak of World War I where he vigorously advocated against Britain's policy of blockade and in favor of the principles of freedom of the seas and the rights of neutral nations...
, reporting the troubled conditions. He reported that President Sam and some of his men had been surrounded in the presidential palace and that the presence of American war vessels was desirable.
In accordance with that message, the Navy dispatched Washington to that port. Meanwhile, Sam took refuge in the French legation where he hoped that diplomatic immunity would prevail. The mobs of angry Haitians, however, were not concerned with such international niceties: they invaded the legation at 10:30 on 28 July 1915, forcibly removed former President Sam, killed and dismembered him, and paraded portions of his body on poles around the city.
Washington arrived at Port-au-Prince that day. Upon reviewing the situation, Admiral Caperton acted quickly. He ordered marines and a landing force ashore from his flagship to protect not only American interests but those of other foreign nations as well. Washington remained at Port-au-Prince into the winter. During that time, the United States effectively ran Haiti. On 12 August, Philippe Sudré Dartiguenave
Philippe Sudré Dartiguenave
Philippe Sudre Dartiguenave was a Haitian political figure. He served as president of Haïti from 12 August 1915 to 15 May 1922 in a government set up by the United States after its intervention began on July 27, 1915 following an uprising which resulted in the death of Jean Vilbrun Guillaume...
was elected president; and his government was recognized by the United States on 17 September.
Ending that lengthy in-port period, Washington departed Port-au-Prince on 31 January 1916 and arrived at Guantánamo the following day. There, she transferred passengers and stores to other ships of the Fleet and later transferred a company of marines to Norfolk soon after her arrival in Hampton Roads on 5 February. The armored cruiser steamed north, via New York and Boston; reached Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire in the United States. It is the largest city but only the fourth-largest community in the county, with a population of 21,233 at the 2010 census...
on 29 February; and began an overhaul in the navy yard there which lasted until the end of March. Then, on 31 March, she was placed in reserve.
World War I
Seattles peacetime duties as flagship for the Destroyer Force were short. On 6 April 1917, the United States, after attempting to remain neutral despite repeated incidents on the high seas, finally entered World War I.Seattle arrived at New York on 3 June to be fitted out at the New York Navy Yard for war service. She sailed on 14 June as an escort for the first American convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
to European waters and as flagship for Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
Albert Gleaves
Albert Gleaves
Albert Gleaves was an admiral in the United States Navy, also notable as a naval historian.-Biography:...
. At 22:15 on 22 June, she encountered her first enemy submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
s at 48°00′N 25°50′W.
Shortly before the convoy was attacked, Seattles helm jammed; and she sheered out of formation sharply, sounding her whistle to warn the other vessels. A few minutes later, the ship was brought back on course. Soon lookouts noted a white streak in the water 50 yd (45.7 m) ahead of the vessel, crossing from starboard to port at right angles to Seattles course. Admiral Gleaves, asleep in the charthouse at the time, awoke and was on the bridge in time to see the armored cruiser's gun crews manning their weapons and the transport De Kalb opening fire on the U-boat.
Subsequently, the destroyer attacked an enemy submersible but failed to sink the German submarine. Later information indicated that the enemy, probably aware of the approach of the first American expeditionary forces, had dispatched a pair of submarines to lie in wait for it. The attack, conducted under "ideal" conditions, was, fortunately for the Americans, unsuccessful. Admiral Gleaves, in his report to the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet, on 12 July, reported unequivocally: "their [the enemy's] failure to score hits was probably due to the attack being precipitated by the fortuitous circumstances of the Seattle's helm jamming and the sounding of her whistle, leading the enemy to suppose he had been discovered."
Seattle operated on comparatively uneventful escort duties for the remainder of World War I, completing her ninth round-trip voyage at New York on 27 October 1918.
Inter-war period
After the armistice of 11 November 1918, Seattle — like many other ships — was fitted with extra accommodations to enable her to function as a transport, and she brought back doughboyDoughboy
Doughboy is an informal term for an American soldier, especially members of the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I. The term dates back to the Mexican–American War of 1846–48....
s from France until 5 July 1919. Later, after all of her special troop fittings had been removed, Seattle sailed for the west coast to join the Pacific Fleet.
Reviewed by President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
on 12 September at her namesake city — Seattle — the armored cruiser shifted to the Puget Sound Navy Yard where she was placed in "reduced commission". While in that inactive status, Seattle was reclassified a heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
— CA-11 — on 17 July 1920.
Placed in full commission again on 1 March 1923, Captain George L. P. Stone in command, Seattle became the flagship for the Commander in Chief, United States Fleet
United States Fleet
The United States Fleet was an organization in the United States Navy from 1922 until after World War II. The abbreviation CINCUS, pronounced "sink us", was used for Commander-in-Chief, United States Fleet. This title was disposed of and officially replaced by COMINCH in December 1941 . This...
. In that role, over the next four years, she wore the four-starred flags of a succession of officers: Admiral
Admiral (United States)
In the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard and the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, admiral is a four-star flag officer rank, with the pay grade of O-10. Admiral ranks above vice admiral and below Fleet Admiral in the Navy; the Coast Guard and the Public Health...
s Hilary P. Jones
Hilary P. Jones
Hilary Pollard Jones, Jr. was an officer in the United States Navy during the Spanish-American War and World War I. During the early 1920s, he served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet....
, Robert Coontz
Robert Coontz
Robert Edward Coontz was an admiral in the United States Navy, who sailed with the Great White Fleet and served as the second Chief of Naval Operations.-Background:Born in Hannibal, Missouri, Coontz graduated from the U.S...
, Samuel S. Robison (who was embarked in the ship at the time of the Australian cruise of 1925), and Charles F. Hughes. During that time, the armored cruiser operated from Seattle to Hawaii and from Panama to Australia.
Subsequently returning to the Atlantic in June 1927, Seattle passed in review before President Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
on 3 June. After a cruise along the east coast, the ship arrived at New York on 29 August to assume duties as the receiving ship at that port. On 1 July 1931, the ship's designation was changed to "unclassified".
As receiving ship, Seattle served as a floating barracks — a "clearance house for personnel" — at New York into the 1940s. Ships and stations transferred men to her for attending various schools in the 3rd Naval District; she provided men for tugs and other district craft, as well as naval escorts for patriotic functions (parades and funerals, etc.) and, on board her, crews for ships preparing to go into commission were assembled. Among those ships was the light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
.
On 17 February 1941, the erstwhile armored cruiser was reclassified as IX-39. She was ultimately placed out of commission at New York on 28 June 1946 and was struck from the Navy List
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register 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 the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
on 19 July of the same year. Sold on 3 December to Hugo Neu of New York City, the former flagship of the United States Fleet and receiving ship at New York was subsequently scrapped.