- City:
- Oakland, CA
- Site Type:
- Military and Public Safety, Ships
- New Deal Agencies:
- Public Works Administration (PWA), Public Works Funding
- Quality of Information:
- Moderate
- Marked:
- Yes
- Site Survival:
- Extant
Description
The USS Potomac served as Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s presidential yacht from 1936 until his death in 1945. FDR was a great yachtsman in his youth and loved being aboard the Potomac, which he used for political meetings and fishing trips to get away from the White House.
The Potomac was originally built in 1934 by the Manitowoc Ship Building Company, Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The Public Works Administration (PWA) assisted with the funding of the construction. It was originally the USCGC Electra, and renamed the USS Potomac in 1936.
The Potomac is now preserved in Oakland, California as a National Historic Landmark and is available for events while cruising on San Francisco bay (but not through the Living New Deal!)
Source notes
National Archives Record Group 69-PWA
Site originally submitted by Brent McKee on October 1, 2016.
Additional contributions by Richard A Walker.
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