US WWI US Navy Ships Cap Tally, U.S.S. Kearsarge
This item is listed for historical interest only. It was listed on our site previously but has been sold and is no longer available for purchase.
Sold for: $45.00

Original era manufacture. Gold wire embroidery on black silk ribbon, now measuring 36 inches in length, by 1.5 inches in width. Normal age and wear. The second KEARSARGE, a battleship, named by act of Congress to commemorate the famed sloop of war, was launched 24 March 1898 by the Newport News Shipbuilding Company. She was sponsored by Mrs. Herbert Winslow, wife of Lieutenant Commander Herbert Winslow, USN, the only surviving son of John A. Winslow, commander of the first KEARSARGE during her famous battle with the ALABAMA. This battleship was commissioned 20 February 1900, Captain William M. Folger in command. USS KEARSARGE became the flagship of the North Atlantic Fleet cruising down the Atlantic seaboard and in the Caribbean. She sailed into Guantanamo Bay, Cuba where, on December 10, 1903, the United States took formal possession of the Guantanamo Naval Reservation. From there she led the North Atlantic Battleship Squadron on goodwill calls to many European ports. In December 1907 the USS KEARSARGE, now commanded by Captain Herbert Winslow, following in the path of his illustrious father, became a part of the famous "Great White Fleet" of battleships sent around the world by President Theodore Roosevelt. The cruise, lasting more than a year, was an overwhelming success, showing the flag and spreading good will. This dramatic gesture impressed the world with the power of the U.S. Navy. The USS KEARSARGE was at the Philadelphia Navy Yard for modernization for several years. On 17 September 1915, she left there to land a detachment of Marines at Vera Cruz, Mexico. She joined the Atlantic Reserve Fleet in February 1916 and served as a training ship for Massachusetts and Maine Naval Militia until World War 1, then trained armed guard crews and naval engineers. In May 1919, she embarked Naval Academy Midshipmen for 3 months training in the West Indies. The second USS KEARSARGE was decommissioned 10 May 1920, for conversion to a crane ship and a new career. Designated AB-1 August 5, 1920, the KEARSARGE received an immense revolving crane with a rated lifting capacity of 250 tons and rendered invaluable service for the next 20 years. One of the many accomplishments was the raising of the sunken submarine SQUALUS off the New Hampshire coast. On November 6, 1941 the KEARSARGE was designated CRANE SHIP NO. 1, giving up her illustrious name which was to be assigned to a mighty aircraft carrier. But she continued her yeomen service and made many contributions to the American victories of World War II. As CRANE SHIP NO. 1, her name was struck from Navy List 22 June 1955, and later she was sold for scrap.