The Lighthouse Tender Lotus, shown here in 1939 at the Lighthouse Depot in Chelsea, Massachusetts, was one of six vessels transferred to the U.S. Lighthouse Service in 1922 that had originally been built for the U.S. Army in 1918-19 as mine laying ships. The intent was to have them be dual purpose vessels: mine laying in time of war and lighthouse tenders in time of peace. The idea proved to be impractical and the Army scrapped the plans. During World War II the vessel was used to lay antisubmarine nets off the coast of Newfoundland. Later she was equipped with armament and sent to Puerto Rico. There were numerous complaints about her seaworthiness and in 1946 the Lotus was decommissioned and sold.
This story appeared in the
Jul/Aug 2013 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
All contents copyright © 1995-2024 by Lighthouse Digest®, Inc. No story, photograph, or any other item on this website may be reprinted or reproduced without the express permission of Lighthouse Digest. For contact information, click here.
|