USS Potomac, FDR’s Presidential Yacht – Oakland CA

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.

Location Info


540 Water St
Oakland, CA 94607
Alameda County

Coordinates: 37.795822, -122.279236

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