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The ''Thomas Corwin'' was a United States Revenue Cutter and subsequently a merchant vessel. These two very different roles both centered on Alaska and the Bering Sea. In 1912, Frank Willard Kimball wrote: "The ''Corwin'' has probably had a more varied and interesting career than any other vessel which plies the Alaskan waters."〔Kimball; italics substituted for Kimball's quotes on ''Corwin''〕 The United States Revenue Cutter ''Thomas Corwin'' (aka the ''Corwin'') was the first revenue cutter to regularly cruise the Bering Sea and the Arctic Ocean.〔US Coast Guard, Historian's Office (a)〕 Built in the state of Oregon, she was finished and commissioned in San Francisco which remained her home port. In a 23-year federal career, she participated in the search for the , landed scientific parties on Wrangel and Herald islands, shelled the Tlingit village Angoon, interdicted whiskey traffic, rescued shipwrecked whalers, contributed to the exploration of Alaska, and arrested seal poachers. She had at least eight captains during her federal career,〔Commanders of the USRC Corwin: (Rank is Captain unless noted) J.W. White January 1877-July 1878; Lt. J. Brann approx. July 1878-April 1879; C.L. Hooper April 1880-Dec 1881; M.A. Healy Feb 1882-Apr 1886; A.B. Davis Apr 1886-May 1886; C.A. Abbey May 1886-Nov 1886; C.L.Hooper April 1887–1892, F.M. Munger 1892–1895, W.D. Roath 1896 (exchanged commands with H.D. Smith 1896); W.J. Herring 1898 (inclusive dates unknown). Captain () Tozier handled the sale of the ship in 1900. McCurdy's lists additionally captains Roth () and Slamm, without dates; Captain Slamm had the USRC ''Grant'' in 1896. A Who's Who entry lists () P.W. Thompson. US Coast Guard 1935; New York Times Nov 9, 1891; Nov 16, 1892; May 19, 1895; Dec 14, 1895; April 9, 1896; Sep 11, 1896; Treasury register 1879; Tacoma Public Library (c); Who's Who in America.〕 but is particularly associated with two: the cool and resolute Calvin L. Hooper and the volatile Michael Healy. She continued operating in the Bering Sea as a merchant and charter vessel after she was sold in 1900. As a merchant vessel, the SS ''Corwin'' started out as a support vessel for minerals exploration, and subsequently was extensively modified to carry passengers. She served coastal ports on Norton and Kotzebue Sounds, the Seward Peninsula, and the Bering Strait during the shipping season, and generally wintered in Puget Sound. She was the first steamer to reach Nome in the spring multiple years, and also frequently the last steamer out in the fall. Her Master through most of her commercial service was Ellsworth Luce West. She attempted to rescue the ''Karluk'' survivors from Wrangel Island and participated in the search for four missing ''Karluk'' crewmen in 1914. ==Construction== The ''Corwin'' was named for Thomas Corwin, a well-known mid-nineteenth-century politician who served as Secretary of the Treasury during Millard Fillmore's presidency. She was the second of three Revenue Cutter Service and Coast Guard vessels to bear the name (there was also a patrol boat ''Cape Corwin'').〔US Coast Guard, Historian's Office (a,c)〕 She was built as a single-screw steam-powered topsail schooner by Oregon Iron Works at Albina (Portland) Oregon in 1876 and commissioned at San Francisco in 1877.〔US Coast Guard, Historian's Office (a)〕〔Tacoma Public Library (a)〕 She was constructed of fir and "fastened with copper, galvanized iron, and locust tree nails".〔Nourse〕 Her appearance was typical of revenue cutters of the period, flush-decked (or nearly so) with clipper bow, fantail stern, two sail-bearing masts, pilot house and funnel amidships and a deckhouse (probably including the upper parts of the engine and boiler rooms) beneath and extending behind the pilot house. The boiler powering the propulsion machinery was of the Scotch marine boiler type and was the first instance of that type of boiler on a Revenue Cutter Service vessel.〔Evans, p 98〕 The addition of steam jackets on the cylinders to reduce condensation losses was another innovation new to the service.〔 Her cost and displacement were somewhat greater than the Dexter-class (1874) cutters of similar length and overall design.〔Compare US Coast Guard, Historian's Office (b). The Dexter class consisted of ''Dexter'', ''Rush'', and ''Dallas''.〕 Construction of the ''Corwin'' was contracted in May 1875 with completion scheduled for February 28, 1876. Captain John W. White was construction superintendent for the Revenue Cutter Service. The ''Corwin'' was the first government vessel constructed in the state of Oregon,〔Tacoma Public Library (a)〕 and a large crowd came out to see her launched August 23, 1876. Oregon Iron Works became insolvent that fall and was declared bankrupt; this resulted in liens filed against the vessel by suppliers and subcontractors for unpaid bills. On January 2, 1877, Judge J. Deady of the U.S District Court, Oregon District ruled that the lien of libellants Coffin and Hendry was valid, that the government was not yet the owner of the vessel and had not been in possession when the vessel was seized by the marshal on November 29. However, the ''Corwin'' had been extricated about January 1, 1877 by Captain White and the USRC ''Rush'' and moved to the middle of the Columbia River (another source has this about January 10). The Government appealed Judge Deady's ruling and Coffin and Hendry withdrew their claim on the basis of assurances that they would be paid faster if they settled. After a flurry of unsuccessful legal actions by other claimants, the ''Corwin'' was removed to San Francisco where she was completed at a cost of $10150.77 and subsequently commissioned. Congress was still considering suppliers and workmen's claims in 1884.〔Tacoma Public Library (a)〕〔50th Congress 1st Session House Report 456〕〔48th Congress 1st session Senate Reports 572, 573〕〔Kimball〕〔''The revenue cutter''〕〔''New York Times'' Jan 22, 1877〕 The ''Corwin'' was reported to be capable of 12 knots under sail (48 hour average with a beam wind), 11.5 knots under steam alone, and 13–14 knots under combined power.〔''New York Times'' January 17, 1892, June 16, 1891〕 In 1900, her speed (probably cruising speed) was reported as 9 knots.〔Vanderlip〕 Details of the ''Corwin's'' original three-gun armament are not available.〔US Coast Guard, Historian's Office (a)〕 In 1891 she reportedly carried four three-inch breech-loading rifles and two Gatling guns. In July 1891, the ''New York Times'' reported that she would be rearmed with six-pounder Hotchkiss rapid-fire guns.〔''New York Times'' June 16, 1891, July 3, 1891〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「USRC Thomas Corwin (1876)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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