USS Druid
USS Druid (SP-321) was a private yacht launched 10 February 1902 as Rheclair that was built for Daniel G. Reid. Reid sold the yacht to Senator Nelson W. Aldrich who renamed the yacht Nirvana only just over a year before his death. Aldrich's estate chartered Nirvana to John Wanamaker until it was bought by his son Rodman Wanamaker who used the yacht for cruising until a fire on 14 December 1916, just before a cruise south, severely damaged the vessel. He chartered an alternate vessel for his trip south and, after full repairs, the yacht was sold to Walter W. Dwyer who gave it the name Druid with intentions to sell the yacht to the government in order to finance a shipyard venture in Pensacola, Florida.
USS Druid (SP-321) moored in harbor, probably in European waters in 1918. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| United States | |
| Name |
|
| Namesake | A member of a religious order in ancient Gaul, Britain, and Ireland (previous name retained) |
| Owner |
|
| Builder | Burlee Dry Dock Company of Staten Island, New York |
| Yard number | 234 |
| Launched | 10 February 1902 |
| Completed | 1902 |
| Acquired | 2 June 1917 |
| Commissioned | 17 September 1917 |
| Decommissioned | 28 May 1919 |
| Stricken | 17 May 1919 |
| Identification | 111412 |
| Fate | Sold 10 September 1919 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Patrol vessel |
| Tonnage | 539 GRT |
| Length | 217 ft (66 m) |
| Beam | 28 ft 6 in (8.69 m) |
| Draft | 13 ft 6 in (4.11 m) |
| Propulsion | Steam engine |
| Speed | 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) |
| Complement | 113 |
| Armament |
|
Druid was purchased for $90,000 by the United States Navy, commissioned USS Druid on 17 September 1917 and converted into a patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1919. She was sent to the European coast and the Mediterranean to protect Allied shipping from German submarines and other dangers.
After a little over four months in reserve Druid was decommissioned on 28 May 1919 and sold on 10 September 1919 to Carl K. MacFadden who renamed the vessel Maracay and sold it to Venezuelan buyers by 30 June 1922 when the List of Merchant Vessels of the United States shows it among those changing to foreign interest.