Displacement (tons): 852 light, 1,315 max.
FY 1942 (ATR 1-40), 1943 (others). On 12 Sep 41 the chief of the Bureau of Ships sent a long letter to the Chief of Naval Operations on the "need of rescue tugs to tow in disabled vessels." He stated that it was imperative in time of war to salvage, as far as possible, every ship which had been placed in peril of sinking by reason of damage incurred through enemy action or resulting from marine casualties. This could be done only if it was possible to take damaged vessels in tow as soon as possible after the damage had been inflicted, meaning that suitable rescue vessels had to be stationed at those points along the coast where casualties to shipping could be anticipated. He noted that, for use in rescue tug services, ships needed good seaworthiness, sufficient power (1,500 HP or more) to tow large vessels at sea, proper towing arrangements (a towing engine or equivalent system), a long radius of action, firefighting equipment, and a basic supply of salvage materials and pumps, though far less extensive than that found on the dedicated salvage vessels then being operated by BuShips. Implicitly acknowledging that these recommendations were based heavily on British experience, he noted that the British then had more than 30 tugs engaged in their rescue tug service and that the number available had never been sufficient to meet all of the needs for rescue tug assistance. The British were then building more rescue tugs, and 14 (BAT 1-14) were being built in the United States under the Lend Lease act. The British had never had suitable tugs available in sufficient number to assign any to convoys, and the overall shortage of tugs meant that many intended for rescue use were diverted to other services. Although CNO on 8 Oct 41 rejected the main recommendation in this letter, that the Navy establish a Rescue Tug Service similar to the one in the U.K., the arguments in the letter were probably those that motivated the subsequent procurement of large numbers of rescue tugs for the Navy's operating forces. On 19 Jan 42 CNO directed the construction of ATR 1-40 as part of the U.S. Navy's Maximum War Effort (1799 Vessel) Program, and on 5 Aug 42 VCNO directed the construction of ATR 50-89 using tonnage still available in this program.
Presumably to minimize the impact of the rescue tug program on other Navy ship procurement, the Navy decided to have the vessels built of wood and equipped with relatively simple triple expansion steam machinery. The hulls could then be built by small shipbuilders not involved in the main Navy shipbuilding effort while the engines could similarly be built by small local machine shops. One source indicates that the design for the tugs was prepared by the firm of John G. Alden, primarily known for its private yachts but also an occasional producer of wooden hulled tugs, including the LUNA of 1930 which was being restored in 2011. The design seems to have been rugged, as indicated by the merciless pounding that ATR-15 barely survived off Normandy in June 1944. A comparison of the building times for the wooden ATRs and the 143-foot steel type then being built primarily for the British (the BAT-1, ATR-41, and AT-174 classes), however, is highly unfavorable to the wooden ship program. The 80 wood ATR's took an average of 9.4 months between keel laying and launch and 13.6 months between keel laying and commissioning while the first 79 steel 143' equivalents (omitting ATA 219-238) took an average of 1.9 months from keel laying and launch and 5.2 months from keel laying to commissioning. Part of the difference was due to the unusually fast build times for the steel ships, which suggest that General Motors and its subcontractors had put together a very efficient production process, but most of the difference is due to the basic inefficiencies that the Navy experienced in many of its wooden shipbuilding programs, in which small firms with few resources built only a few ships each and never got far down the learning curve or benefitted from efficiencies of scale. The ATR-1 program included seven ships that were ordered in 1942 and not completed until 1945, including one that was commissioned only one day before Japan's surrender.
On 16 Apr 43 the Under Secretary of the Navy directed the construction of the next batch of ATRs for the U.S. Navy, ATR 101-140. The U.S. had initially intended to fill its own needs for rescue tugs with the wooden ATR-1 type, and the new ships were to have been of this type. In early 1943, however, the Americans began to feel that the steel ATR's were more suitable for the Pacific, partly because the wooden tugs might deteriorate rapidly there from attacks by tropical shipworms. On 13 May 43 BuShips formally recommended that ATR 101-140, be changed from wood to steel construction, and CNO approved this recommendation on 3 Jun 43. These were built to the 143-foot BAT/ATR design and are listed here as the ATA-174 class.
ATR |
Name |
Notes |
1 |
ATR-1 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Argonaut Marine Co., Fond du Lac, Wisc. |
2 |
ATR-2 |
Struck wreck at Le Havre, flooded and beached 27 Jun 45, refloated and docked 30 Jun 45. CNO on 20 Sep 45 directed ComNavEur to remove equipment and scrap hull. CNO on 5 Jun 46 agreed to request from ComUSNavForGermany to use her as a fire boat and tug with local personnel, not to be commissioned. Towed to USNAB Weser River, Bremerhaven, and placed in operation ca. Aug 46. Transferred 5 May 47 to Army Office of Military Government, Bremerhaven, Transportation Division. |
3 |
ATR-3 |
Sold by FLC 1947 to Cuba as 20 DE MAYO (delivered at New Orleans). Stricken 1960. |
4 |
ATR-4 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to United Towing & Salvage Co., Ltd., c/o Lunham & Moore International Corp., New York. Merc. LOUISE SIMARD (Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel, Canada) 1947. After 1968 was restaurant LE BATEAU IVRE in Ile-aux-Grues, Quebec. |
5 |
ATR-5 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Bowring Bros., Ltd., St. Johns, Newfoundland. Removed from Navy custody 24 Jul 47. Merc. ALGERINE (Canada, converted to sealer) 1947, ARCTIC BAY 1968, BATALLA DE MAL TIEMPO 1973, deleted 1994 (scrapped 1987?). |
6 |
ATR-6 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Lloyd W. Lambert, Baltimore, Md. Merc. EDWARD R. GRIMM (Philippines) 1947, later WALLACE R. GRAY, TAKAPUNA. |
7 |
ATR-7 |
Sold (delivered) to Efthinios K. Athanasiou, c/o American Chandlers Inc., New York (instead of ATR-83). Merc. GLORIA 1948, ARDIMENTOSO 1954, possibly scrapped 1981. |
8 |
ATR-8 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Palestine Purchasing Service, Inc., New York. Removed from Navy custody 12 Aug 47. |
9 |
ATR-9 |
Sold by Navy Surplus Property Office, Honolulu, probably for use by the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) in China. |
10 |
ATR-10 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Gardiner Mfg. Co., Oakland, Cal. |
11 |
ATR-11 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Pacific Vegetable Oil Corp., Washington, D.C. |
12 |
ATR-12 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Pacific Vegetable Oil Corp., Washington, D.C. Merc. DAISHO MARU 1952, scrapped 1962. |
13 |
ATR-13 |
Decomm. and in service with minimal crew 26 Feb 46 while assigned to Com-13 for temporary duty in connection with laid up ships, out of service 27 Jun 46. Sold (delivered) by MC at Nordland, Wash., to Smallship Sales & Service Co., Seattle, Wash. Merc. SALVAGE KING 1947, scrapped 1964. |
14 |
ATR-14 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to James J. Schwebel, New York. |
15 |
ATR-15 |
Driven over a reef, damaged and nearly sunk in a gale off Normandy 19 Jun 44, towed to safety by ATR-4. Left for U.S. ca. 11 Dec 44, laid up Nov 45. Withdrawn from MC sale by Navy 8 Feb 46 because of major hull damage, disposed of by sinking in mid-1946. |
16 |
ATR-16 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Tad Travers, Burbank, Cal., delivered 23 Mar 48. |
17 |
ATR-17 (HMRT DIRECTOR) |
Completed 20 Dec 43 and trf. to UK under Lend Lease as His Majesty's Rescue Tug (HMRT) DIRECTOR. Returned to U.S. custody 23 Apr 46. Sold (awarded) by MC to Francisco Reich, New York, delivered 28 Jun 48. |
18 |
ATR-18 (HMRT EMULOUS) |
Completed 2 Feb 44 and trf. to UK under Lend Lease as HMRT EMULOUS. Returned to U.S. custody 30 Apr 46. Sold (awarded) by MC to Francisco Reich, New York, delivered 28 Jun 48. |
19 |
ATR-19 (HMRT FREEDOM) |
Completed 20 Mar 44 and trf. to UK under Lend Lease as HMRT FREEDOM. Returned to U.S. custody 23 Apr 46. Sold (awarded) by MC to Witte (Witle?) Marine Equipment Co., Hillside, N.J., delivered 9 Jul 48. Merc. FOUNDATION MARITIME (Canada) 1948. |
20 |
ATR-20 (HMRT JUSTICE) |
Completed 24 Apr 44 and trf. to UK under Lend Lease as HMRT JUSTICE. Returned to U.S. custody 20 Mar 46. Sold (delivered) by MC to Eugene P. Smith & George L. Batchelder, New York. Merc. SAINT CHRISTOPHER (Argentina) 1948, laid up 1954 at Ushuaia, beached Jan.1957, recovery and preservation begun ca. 2009. |
21 |
ATR-21 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to A. J. Anderson, New York. Merc. EL RIO JANO (Argentina). |
22 |
ATR-22 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Georgia Marine Salvage Co. Inc., Brunswick, Ga., delivered 13 Mar 48. |
23 |
ATR-23 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Sold (awarded) by MC to Carl Duval, Antioch, Cal., delivered 16 Jul 48. |
24 |
ATR-24 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Decomm. 24 Jul 46, in service at Terminal Is., Cal., 15 Aug 46, out of service 26 Mar 47. Sold (delivered) by MC to Ernest A. Judd, Long Beach, Cal. |
25 |
ATR-25 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Delivered by FLC 1947 at Charleston, S.C., to representative of Peruvian Navy as JOSE OLAYA, later OLAYA. Scrapped 1961. |
26 |
ATR-26 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Sold (delivered) by MC to Pacific Vegetable Oil Co., Washington, D.C. To Taiwan 1947 as PU TO. |
27 |
ATR-27 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Proposed for Arctic service by CinCLant on 26 Mar 46 but on 3 Apr 46 CNO assigned ATA- 217 as a replacement for ATR-27. Sold (awarded) by MC to Irving A. Germain, New York. |
28 |
ATR-28 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Sold (awarded) by MC to David A. Fall, San Pedro, Cal., delivered 20 Jul 48. |
29 |
ATR-29 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Grounded 10 Nov 45 15 mi. north of "Juppot" (probably Jupiter) Inlet (eastern Florida) and near Fort Pierce. Salvageable gear removed and salvage operations discontinued. Hulk destroyed by burning and explosives between 30 May and 30 Jul 48. |
30 |
ATR-30 |
Earlier order: Weaver SYs (19 Jun 42). Sold (awarded) by MC to Phillip Mellitas and Spirdon Gratsos, Washington, D.C., delivered 19 May 47. Merc. EL GRECO (Panama) 1947. |
31 |
ATR-31 |
Delivered by FLC 19 Jun 47 (or 22 Jul 47) to Peruvian Navy as CONDESTABLE SELENDON, later SELENDON. Scrapped 1964. |
32 |
ATR-32 |
Sold (delivered) by MC at Nordland, Wash., to Smallship Sales & Service Co., Seattle, Wash. Merc. PACMAR 1948, scrapped 1951. |
33 |
ATR-33 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Hugo Neu Corp, New York, delivered at Los Angeles 30 Jun 48. |
34 |
ATR-34 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to David A. Fall, San Pedro, Cal., delivered 2 Jul 48. Merc. SEA LARK 1949, foundered off Ecuador 3 Mar 55. |
35 |
ATR-35 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Gardiner Mfg. Co., Oakland, Cal. |
36 |
ATR-36 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to A. K. Wilson Lumber Co., Los Angeles, Cal. |
37 |
ATR-37 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Nicholas A. Kessler, Los Angeles, Cal. Merc. BEAVER (U.S.) 1947, scrapped 1952 |
38 |
ATR-38 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to A. K. Wilson Lumber Co., Los Angeles, Cal. |
39 |
ATR-39 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Capt. Floyd R. Harrington, Wilmington, Cal. |
40 |
ATR-40 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Walter H. Wilms, Detroit, Mich. |
50 |
ATR-50 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Canal Industries Inc., Seattle, Wash. Merc. TONI B 1951, off list 1955. |
51 |
ATR-51 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Hugo Neu Corp., New York. |
52 |
ATR-52 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to A. K. Wilson Lumber Co., Los Angeles, Cal. |
53 |
ATR-53 |
Grounded during 9 Oct 45 typhoon at Okinawa but refloated. Sold (awarded) by MC to David A. Fall, San Pedro, Cal. |
54 |
ATR-54 |
Withdrawn from MC sale by Navy 1 Oct 46. Sold (delivered) by FLC 2 Jul 47 to Cuba as 10 DE OCTUBRE. |
55 |
ATR-55 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Julius S. Gissel, Houston, Texas. Merc. SAN SABA (U.S.) 1947, burned off Sabine Bar 15 Oct 48 and beached. |
56 |
ATR-56 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Gardiner Mfg. Co., Oakland, Cal. |
57 |
ATR-57 |
Sold by MC to Kingdom of Greece, Washington, D.C., date not recorded. Merc. TITAN, deleted 1982. |
58 |
ATR-58 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Duelin Steel Products Co., Seattle, Wash. |
59 |
ATR-59 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to A. K. Wilson Lumber Co., Los Angeles, Cal. Merc. MYRTLE E. WILSON 1947, scrapped 1952. |
60 |
ATR-60 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to United Boat Service Corp., New York. Merc. STOREBROR 1947, LENASHIP II 1956, burned at Port Etienne 15 Nov 61. |
61 |
ATR-61 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to North American Steamship Co., Seattle, Wash. Merc. ALFRED M. CARLSON 1949, scrapped 1962. |
62 |
ATR-62 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Foss Launch & Tug Co., Tacoma, Wash. Converted to trawler WESTERN ACE 1952, burned near Panama City, Fla., 4 Dec 70 |
63 |
ATR-63 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Albert W. Riswold, Flagstaff, Ariz. |
64 |
ATR-64 |
Decomm. and placed in service 23 May 46 at Boston, Mass., out of service 7 Mar 47. Sold (delivered) by MC to George E. Gilbert, Boston, Mass. Merc. LOGMAC (Canada) 1947, MOGUL 1950, ISLAND MONARCH 1961, SEASPAN CHINOOK 1972, deleted 1993, and LA LUMIERE (?). Hulk still existed 2001 in Howe Sound, B.C. This commercial career also attributed to ATR-65. |
65 |
ATR-65 |
Decomm. and placed in service 5 Mar 46 at Seattle, Wash., probably for duty with laid up ships, out of service 24 Jun 46. Sold (delivered) by MC at Nordland, Wash., to Canadian Transport Co. Ltd., Seattle, Wash. Merc. GRENADIER (U.K.) 1947, later SANTA GLORIA (banana carrier), foundered west of Key West 18 Jan 57. This commercial career also attributed to ATR-64. |
66 |
ATR-66 |
Reported decomm. 6 Jun 46 but remained in commission for further use by the 11th Naval District. Sold (delivered) by MC to Joe W. Cooper, San Francisco, Cal. |
67 |
ATR-67 |
MC sale to United Boat Service Corp., New York, cancelled, then sold (delivered) to O. Y. Warren, Norwalk, Conn. (awarded 1 Jul 47). Delivery receipt signed 29 Jul 47, ship handed over 12 Aug 47. Merc. DOROTHY ANN MESECK 1947, scrapped 1954. |
68 |
ATR-68 |
Sold (delivered) by MC at Nordland, Wash., to Canadian Transport Co. Ltd., Seattle, Wash. Merc. TOWMAC 1947, scrapped 1961. |
69 |
ATR-69 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Tacoma Boatbuilding Co., Tacoma, Wash. Merc. SCARLET QUEEN 1948, EXPLORER 1954, lost at Salina Cruz 31 Aug 56. |
70 |
ATR-70 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Sven Jack Frazer, Mobile, Ala. Merc. CLAIRE S. (1949), CLAIRE SIMARD (1949), operated in and around Newfoundland by Marine Industries Ltd., Sorel, Canada. Scrapped 1968. |
71 |
ATR-71 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to George Milburn, Seattle, Wash. |
72 |
ATR-72 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to A. W. Riswold, Flagstaff, Ariz. |
73 |
ATR-73 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to O. Y. Warren, Norwalk, Conn. (awarded 1 Jul 47, handed over 5 Aug 47). Merc. JUDITH ANN MESECK 1947, scrapped 1954. |
74 |
ATR-74 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Lloyd W. Lambert, Luzon Stevedoring Co., Baltimore, Md. Merc. FOUNDATION FRANCES 1948, scrapped in Canada 1962. |
75 |
ATR-75 |
Damaged in typhoon at Okinawa 9 Oct 45 and beached for safe keeping. Ordered decommissioned and destroyed locally in view of non-retention of ATR's in postwar Navy. Scuttled in 240 fathoms of water 2 Feb 46. |
76 |
ATR-76 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to A. K. Wilson Lumber Co., Los Angeles, Cal. |
77 |
ATR-77 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Fordom Trading Co., New York. |
78 |
ATR-78 |
Sold (awarded) by MC at Nordland, Wash., to John G. A. Pohl, Haworth, N.J. |
79 |
ATR-79 |
Sold (awarded) by MC at Nordland, Wash., to John G. and Robert Pohl, Haworth, N.J. |
80 |
ATR-80 |
Decomm. and placed in service 26 Feb 46 for operation with minimum crew in the 13th Naval District in connection with laid up ships, out of service 20 Jun 46. Sold (awarded) by MC to Claude Kelso, Portland, Ore. Merc. WESTERN KING 1948. |
81 |
ATR-81 |
Sold 9 Apr 47 at Pearl Harbor by WSA to the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA). Subsequently reported in the Marianas in November 1947 with hull repairs completed but no generator or boiler operating and part of her crew returning to Honolulu. |
82 |
ATR-82 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Anthony deRay and Steve Bildhauer, San Francisco. |
83 |
ATR-83 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Antonios Malliarakis, New York. Scrapped in Portugal 1954. |
84 |
ATR-84 |
Decomm. and placed in service at San Francisco 30 Sep 46 for servicing decommissioned ships, out of service 23 Apr 47. Sold (awarded) by MC to Duelin Steel Products Co., Seattle. |
85 |
ATR-85 |
Sold (delivered) by MC at Lake Charles, La., to Julius Cutrone and Lawrence Cutrone, Morgan City, La. |
86 |
ATR-86 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Sound Steamship Lines Inc., Staten Is., New York. |
87 |
ATR-87 |
Sold (awarded) by MC to Robert O. Fleming & Co., Seattle, Wash., delivered 5 Jul 48. |
88 |
ATR-88 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to D. J. Woodward, San Diego, Cal. |
89 |
ATR-89 |
Sold (delivered) by MC to Paul E. Duffe, Harry B. Merner, and John H. Simpson, Jacksonville, Fla. Merc. HILA 1948, off list 1954, sold for scrap 1959, still derelict Staten Island. |
© Stephen S. Roberts, 2002-2011