USRC Polk

History
United States
Name	USRC Polk
Namesake	James Knox Polk, 11th president of the United States
Operator	United States United States Revenue–Marine
Awarded	4 December 1844
Builder	J.R. Anderson, Richmond, Virginia
Launched	December 1846
Completed	December 1846
Commissioned	11 January 1847
Decommissioned	29 December 1854
Fate	Sold 29 December 1854 for US$3,350
General characteristics
Class and type	Schooner
Tonnage	400 tons
Length	160 ft (49 m)
Beam	24 ft (7.3 m)
Draft	9.3 ft (2.8 m)
Installed power	51 1/2" diameter X 50" stroke steam engine
Propulsion	sail,
Sail plan	converted to barque in 1848
Armament	5 x 32 pounders

The United States Revenue Cutter Polk was one of eight revenue cutters of the Legere–class iron steamers that were constructed and commissioned during the period of 1844 to 1846. Polk was a 400 ton vessel with side-wheels driven by a single steam engine. She was built at Richmond, Virginia by J.R. Anderson and was an early example of the use of an iron hull in naval construction. The Legere–class of cutters were the first to use iron in the construction of the hull by the United States Revenue–Marine. Scheduled for delivery in early 1847, she was finished by Anderson by 3 December 1846 and was tasked by President Polk to serve with the United States Navy during the Mexican-American War.

Polk was commissioned by the Revenue–Marine on 7 January 1847 and four days later was turned over to the Navy. She arrived at Norfolk, Virginia on 12 March with Lieutenant W.S. Ogden, USN in command. On 31 March Lieutenant Ogden reported to the Secretary of the Navy that Polk had leaked badly after she stood out to sea and he put into Ocracoke Inlet while temporary repairs were made. Her hull was found to be improperly fastened and she leaked copious amounts of water. On 4 April Polk got underway again and arrived at Norfolk on 5 April. A second attempt to leave for the Gulf of Mexico and the Mexican–American War was made by Ogden only to have more leakage of the hull. The Secretary of the Navy reported to the Secretary of the Treasury that the Navy had no further use of Polk on 22 April. Polk arrived at the Brooklyn Navy Yard where she received hull repairs on 15 May. From the fall of 1847 to the fall of 1848 Polk was detailed to a inventor named McCartney who was experimenting with a new type of naval gun. During the fall of 1848 Polk was transferred to Cold Spring, New York where she was transformed into a barque sail configuration. After modification of her rigging she was ordered to San Francisco, California, leaving New York on 5 April 1850 and arriving at her destination on 27 September 1850.

Polk was sold at San Francisco on 29 December 1854 for US$3,350.

References

• "Polk (1845)". Browse by Topic, Water Assets. U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
• "Record of Movements, Vessels of the United States Coast Guard, 1790–December 31, 1933" (PDF). Historic Documents. U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office. Retrieved 27 August 2023.
• Canney, Donald L. (1995). U.S. Coast Guard and Revenue Cutters, 1790–1935. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland. ISBN 978-1-55750-101-1.
• Evans, Stephen H. (1949). The United States Coast Guard 1790–1915: A Definitive History. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland. No ISBN
• King (1989), Irving H. (1989). The Coast Guard Under Sail: The U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, 1789–1865. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland. ISBN 978-0-87021-234-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)