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Our Namesake -Revenue Cutter SENECA

The Revenue Cutter SENECA, for which the present day SENECA is named, was launched at Newport News, Virginia on March 18, 1908. Noteworthy high seas rescues, courageous crews, and dependable performance of routine law enforcement and military duties characterized her 28 years of service.

After a November 6, 1908 commissioning, the first SENECA responded to a distress call on January 23, 1909 from the passenger liner REPUBLIC. SENECA was on station in the North Atlantic when REPUBLIC reported taking on water at an alarming rate. The Revenue Cutters GRESHAM and SENECA aided in the rescue of the survivors of the ill-fated liner. SENECA successfully saved the remaining crew of the sinking ship and returned them to port in New York. From 1908 until 1913 the Cutter SENECA performed routine patrols, including the Harvard- Yale regatta and the British International Trophy Race at Huntington, Long Island.

On April 14, 1912 the RMS TITANIC struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sank with 1517 people aboard. The international cry that arose as a result of the disaster led directly to the establishment of the International Ice Patrol. SENECA became the first cutter to assume ice patrol duties, and routinely performed the patrol through 1914.

On January 28, 1915 the Revenue Cutter Service united with the U. S. Lifesaving Service to form the United States Coast Guard. This action affected SENECA's operations minimally. It was an escalating war in Europe that was to change her service dramatically. In the years prior to 1917 SENECA conducted Neutrality Patrols and was increasingly involved in Search and Rescue.

The United States broke off diplomatic relations with Germany on February 2, 1917, increasing the tension and the stakes of "Neutrality" patrols. In April of the same year the U. S. declared war on Germany, and Coast Guard Cutters were transferred to the U. S. Navy. SENECA, with the cutters TAMPA, OSSIPEE, ALGONQUIN, and MANNING made up Squadron 2 of Division 6 of the Atlantic Fleet Patrol Forces. Their mission was to protect convoys from submarine attacks. During the war SENECA escorted 19 convoys, comprising a total of 350 vessels through the sub-infested waters between Gibraltar and Great Britain.

The months between March and September 1918 were the most critical in the ship's life. While on escort duty, SENECA was involved in four dramatic SAR operations. On March 25, 1918 SENECA rescued 81 members from the torpedoed HMS COWSLIP. Three months later she rescued 27 crewmen from the torpedoed SS QUEEN, and assisted the SS PINICHE, which had been disabled by an explosion in her engine room.

While serving in French waters, escorting a large slow convoy to Great Britain, SENECA 's crew initiated one of the most heroic and tragic rescue attempts in history on September 19, 1918. A torpedo struck the SS WELLINGTON, a large British cargo vessel, ripping away the forward 30 feet of the ship. The crew of 36 was rescued by SENECA, but before they had even been taken aboard, LT Fletcher Webster Brown, USCG received permission from his captain to call for volunteers to go upon WELLINGTON and if possible, take the ship the remaining 300 miles to Great Britain. Every man of SENECA's crew volunteered, but only 18 were chosen.

The 18 SENECA crewmen boarded WELLINGTON and were later joined by 2 of the Wellington's original crew. Soon, with Coast Guardsmen manning the aft gun, engine room, and bridge, the WELLINGTON was underway toward Great Britain making approximately 5 knots. The ship maintained the speed throughout the evening, and SENECA left her to resume her duties with the convoy. By midnight, however, the weather had deteriorated significantly, and the seas had begun to rise. Shortly after midnight they lost the bet; the rising seas burst the forward bulkhead and the WELLINGTON went down with 10 of the heroic volunteers from SENECA aboard. A memorial plaque was erected at Gibraltar in honor of the valiant efforts of the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter SENECA. There is also a memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. Pictures below

From the end of the war in 1918 until 1936 the Coast Guard Cutter SENECA served with distinction. She performed Ice Patrols, scientific patrols, and other routine law enforcement patrols. On September 3, 1936 the distinguished Cutter SENECA was decommissioned.

In memory of SENECA's fallen shipmates, the monument below was erected at Arlington National Cemetery.

The Present Day Coast Guard Cutter SENECA

USCGC SENECA was built at DERECKTOR Shipyard in Newport, Rhode Island. The keel was laid on September 16, 1982 and the vessel was launched June 16, 1984. She was commissioned active on August 4, 1986 and formally commissioned on May 9, 1987.

SENECA is the sixth of thirteen 270' Famous Class Cutters. The advanced technology used in her construction makes her an effective Search and Rescue (SAR) and Maritime Law Enforcement (MLE) platform. SENECA's primary operating computer system is called SCCS (Shipboard Command and Control System). SCCS allows operators to view or act upon information from any of the ship's sensors, radar sources, or radio transceivers. Also included in SCCS is a Low Level Light TV (LLLTV) camera and an optical surveillance system (OSS) sight. Images from both the LLLTV and optical sight can be displayed to any of the SCCS positions or the ship's entertainment system.

SENECA participates in Operation New Frontier, the Coast Guard's operation to employ armed helicopters and non-lethal use of force technology to stop drug laden go-fast vessels. From 1999 to 2002, six drug smuggling go-fasts were stopped, 4,475 pounds of cocaine and 11,710 pounds of marijuana with a street value of over 125 million dollars seized, and 18 drug trafficking suspects arrested. The success of Operation New Frontier marked a new era in Coast Guard law enforcement and maritime security efforts, and achieved a principle milestone in the Coast Guard's successful execution of the President's National Drug Control Strategy.

Today SENECA's missions range from protecting and enforcing laws for America's three billion dollar living marine resources economy to deploying in support of Joint Inter-Agency Task Force-South (JIATF-S) to intercept “narco-terrorists” in the Caribbean Sea. SENECA employs tools such as armed helicopters, Marine Forward Looking Infra-Red (MARFLIR) cameras, state of the art satellite communication techonology, and non-lethal technology to stop drug-laden go-fast vessels. Since 2000, SENECA has intercepted over 100 millions dollars worth of narcotics, saved over 1.5 million dollars worth of property, and saved over 200 lives.

U.S. Coast Guard Cutter SENECA (WMEC 906) is currently under the command of Captain William J. Wolter. The previous Commanding Officers are listed below:

“270-Foot Medium Endurance Cutter (WMEC)”
“Famous Cutter Class”

270-Foot WMECs in service

• USCGC BEAR (WMEC 901), Portsmouth, VA
• USCGC TAMPA (WMEC 902), Portsmouth, VA
• USCGC HARRIET LANE (WMEC 903), Portsmouth, VA
• USCGC NORTHLAND (WMEC 904), Portsmouth, VA
• USCGC SPENCER (WMEC 905), Boston, MA
• USCGC SENECA (WMEC 906), Boston, MA
• USCGC ESCANABA (WMEC 907), Boston, MA
• USCGC TAHOMA (WMEC 908), Kittery, ME
• USCGC CAMPBELL (WMEC 909), Kittery, ME
• USCGC THETIS (WMEC 910), Key West, FL
• USCGC FORWARD (WMEC 911), Portsmouth, VA
• USCGC LEGARE (WMEC 912), Portsmouth, VA
• USCGC MOHAWK (WMEC 913), Key West, FL

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