USS Vireo (AM-52)
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United States
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| Ordered: | as Minesweeper No. 52 |
| Laid down: | 20 November 1918 |
| Launched: | 26 May 1919 |
| Commissioned: | 16 October 1919 |
| Decommissioned: | 18 April 1946 |
| Struck: | 8 May 1946 |
| Fate: | transferred from the Maritime Commission for disposal on 4 February 1947 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 840 tons |
| Length: | 187 ft 10 in (57.25 m) |
| Beam: | 35 ft 5 in (10.80 m) |
| Draught: | 8 ft 10 in (2.69 m) |
| Propulsion: | Two Babcock & Wilcox header boilers, one 1,400shp Chester Shipbuilding 200psi saturated steam vertical triple expansion reciprocating engine, one shaft. |
| Speed: | 15 knots |
| Complement: |
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| Armament: | two 3 in (76 mm) guns |
USS Vireo (AM-52) was a U.S. Navy Lapwing-class minesweeper, No. 52, reclassified on 1 June 1942 as a fleet tug. The bulk of her combat career was served in this capacity.
She was laid down on 20 November 1918 by the Philadelphia Navy Yard; launched on 26 May 1919; sponsored by Mrs. E. S. Robert; and commissioned on 16 October 1919, Lt. Ernest R. Peircey in command.
Vireo was assigned to the Train, Atlantic Fleet, and operated along the U.S. East Coast until departing Norfolk, Virginia, on 8 January 1920 to join the Fleet for its annual winter maneuvers in Cuban waters. She arrived back in Norfolk on 28 April and was reclassified AM-52 on 17 July 1920.
In the following years, while some of her sisterships were decommissioned and laid up in reserve, Vireo continued in active service with the Fleet. From 1920 to 1932, she served off the U.S. East Coast engaged in towing targets; transporting men, mail, and materiel; repairing buoys and beacons; and operating with the Atlantic and Scouting Fleets.
In July 1921, she towed several former German warships to sea off the Virginia Capes, where they were sunk by aircraft in attempts to prove that capital ships were vulnerable to attack from the air. Between December 1930 and March 1931, Vireo served as plane guard for aircraft engaged in supporting the Nicaraguan-Puerto Rican aerial survey.
Late in 1931, Vireo received orders assigning her to the U.S. Pacific Fleet and duty with the Train, Base Force. Departing Norfolk on 2 January 1932, Vireo steamed—via Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the Panama Canal—to the U.S. West Coast, arriving at San Pedro, California, on 6 March. Attached to the Pacific Fleet's Train, the minesweeper continued her Fleet support duties and ranged the Pacific from the California coast to Panama and the Hawaiian Islands.
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