Sagamore III ATA-208

Sagamore III

(ATA-208: dp. 860 (f.), 1. 143', b. 33'10", dr. 15'
s. 13 k.; cpl. 45; a. 1 3", 2 20mm.; cl. ATA-174)

The third Sagamore, originally designated ATR-185 was laid down as ATA-208 on 27 November 1944 by the Gulfport Boiler and Welding Works, Port Arthur Tex., Launched on 17 January 1945, and commissioned on 19 March 1945, Lt. S. D. Northrop in command

Following shakedown off the Texas coast, A TA-208 departed Galveston on 18 April for Hawaii and general towing duty in the Pacific. Arriving at Pearl Harbor

on 2 June, she operated as a unit of Service Squadron (ServRon) 2 for the remainder of the year on towing assignments that took her east to California and west to Okinawa. With the new year, 1946, A TA-208 was reassigned to the Atlantic Fleet. On 2 February, she arrived at Norfolk and reported to the Commandant of the 5th Naval District for operational and administrative control. Named Sagamore on 16 July 1948, she continued general towing duty, ranging the Atlantic, the Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico.

Primarily engaged in coastal operations, Sagamore towed Cod ( SS-224) from New London to Cleveland, via the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959 assisted in the consolidation of the reserve fleets in 1960, and towed APL-41 from Mayport, Fla., to Holy Loch, Scotland in 1961. In May 1964, she participated in mine recovery operations off the Carolinas; then, during the summer, supported Operation "Sealab I" which proved that man could survive under the sea for extended periods. From 18 June to 13 August, she towed YFBN-12, the "mother ship" of the project in the Bermuda area.

Often called upon for target towing and torpedo recovery operations in addition to her primary mission of towing at sea and her secondary mission of emergency rescue and salvage, Sagamore continued to serve the Atlantic Fleet until February 1972. She was transferred to the Dominican Republic, under lease, on 1 February and commissioned in the Dominican Navy on the 16th as Canoabo.