- USS Rainbow (AS-7)
USS "Rainbow" (AS-7) is the only ship in the
United States Navy by that name. The ship was originally converted to adistilling ship in 1898 and then converted again in 1917 to asubmarine tender ."Rainbow" was built in 1890 as the merchant ship "Norse King" by James Laing at
Sunderland ,England . She was purchased by the U.S. Navy on29 June 1898 , placed in reduced commission18 July , and transferred to theNew York Navy Yard for fitting out for use as a distilling and station ship in thePhilippines ."Rainbow" commissioned in full
2 December 1901 , Comdr.S. A. Stanton in command, and was assigned to theAsiatic Fleet . En route to the Philippines, she sailed viaGibraltar for theSuez Canal , calling atPalermo ,Sicily ;Port Said ,Egypt ; Colombo,Ceylon ; andSingapore before arriving atCavite on3 April 1902 ."Rainbow", as
flagship of thePhilippine Squadron , remained in the Philippines, with only periodic runs toHong Kong for repairs, until 1906. Her range was then expanded from an annual circuit among Philippine ports to include visits to variousJapan ese ports, and in November 1907, a call atVladivostok with Secretary of War Taft embarked.Becoming flagship of the 3d Squadron, Pacific Fleet, in 1908, "Rainbow" cruised among the Philippine and Japanese Islands and off the coast of
China , and, on at least one occasion, December 1908-January 1909, conducted hydrologic surveys. Then, designated tender to theFirst Torpedo Flotilla , she alternated between the China coast and the Philippines until pressed into service as a transport in 1911."Rainbow" departed Cavite
26 October 1911 , en route with an expeditionary force of Marines landed at Woosung (31 October -1 November ) to help protect American nationals from imminent dangers of the revolutionary turmoil in China. She became the temporary flagship of the Commander-in-Chief,Asiatic Fleet ,1 November 1911 , cruising the China coast to observe conditions which might affect the safety of Americans atShanghai , Woosung,Nanking ,Amoy , Swatow, Tsingtao, andTaku ."Saratoga" (ACR-2) relieved "Rainbow" as Asiatic Fleet flagship
10 April 1912 . "Rainbow" then proceeded to Whampoa where she became the flagship of theChina Squadron 13 April . She supported Marine expeditionary forces on the China coast until30 August 1912 when she sailed fromChefoo for repairs atOlongapo , Philippine Islands."Rainbow" shifted from Olongapo to Cavite
8 October 1912 and served there as temporary flagship for the Commander-in-Chief, Asiatic Fleet (30 October -7 November ). She departed Cavite7 November 1912 , bound by way of Woosung, Shanghai, and theYangtze River to Nanking, China. She arrived at Nanking20 November and sailed 10 days later to cruise with the American ambassador to the ports of Shanghai, Hong Kong, Swatow, Amoy, and Woosung. She departed Woosung28 December 1912 , investigating the landing facilities atLingayen Gulf in the Philippines before being repaired at Olongapo in January 1913."Rainbow" shifted from Olongapo to Cavite
26 January 1913 and remained in the Philippines until28 March when she again set course for the coast of China. She transferred stores and men to "Piscataque" (AT-49) at Woosung, then served as a station ship at Shanghai until4 November 1913 . After calling at Olongapo, she proceeded toManila , embarked the Commander-in-Chief for transport to Shanghai, and served there as flagship from21 December 1913 to19 January 1914 ."Rainbow" resumed station ship duty at Cavite
22 January 1914 . She again became temporary flagship of the Commander-in-Chief at Cavite1 March 1914 but terminated this duty23 March 1914 when she shifted to Olongapo for overhaul, completed8 July 1914 . She departed Manila Bay16 July 1914 , taking refuge from a storm in Lingayen Gulf the 18th, before proceeding to survey theFrench Frigate Shoals ,Hawaii (7 August -10 August 1914 ). She arrived atHonolulu 12 August , basing there for further survey work off the French Frigate Shoals until14 November 1914 . She then set course forSan Francisco , arriving24 November 1914 and shifting to theMare Island Navy Yard the following day to prepare for inactivation. She decommissioned in the Mare Island Navy Yard24 December 1914 ."Rainbow" was placed in commission, in reserve, at the Mare Island Navy Yard
29 January 1916 . She shifted to the U.S. Naval Training Station,Yerba Buena Island ,4 February 1916 , serving as a receiving ship there until14 December 1917 . She then entered the Mare Island Navy Yard to fit out for service as a tender to the 6th Division, Submarine Force,U.S. Atlantic Fleet . This work was completed by2 April 1918 when "Rainbow" departed Mare Island to tend submarinesL-6 (SS-45) andL-7 (SS-46) at Yerba Buena Island,California City , and San Pedro,California . On3 May 1918 she departed San Pedro for the eastern seaboard in company with L-6 and L-7. She arrived in Charleston with the L-boats9 June 1918 and proceeded independently on the 21st for thePhiladelphia Navy Yard , arriving24 June 1918 ."Rainbow" overhauled in the Philadelphia Navy Yard until
20 October 1918 , then tended theO-boats of Submarine Division 10 at Newport,Rhode Island ; Bridgeport,Connecticut ; and Tompkinsville,New York . The tender sailed from Tompkinsville in company with Submarine Division 10, bound by way ofHampton Roads ,Virginia , to Guantanamo Bay,Cuba , arriving7 January 1919 ."Rainbow" served as tender for Submarine Division 10 at Guantanamo until
10 March 1919 ; then cruised toCharlotte Amalie Harbor , St. Thomas,Virgin Islands , where the O-boats carried out daily practice on the target range until16 April . After calling atSan Juan, Puerto Rico , the tender and her submarines returned to New York1 May 1919 ."Rainbow" continued as a tender to Submarine Division 10 at
Cold Spring Inlet ,Cape May ,New Jersey , from14 May to22 September 1919 . She then sailed to Charleston, where she remained in commission, in reserve, until13 February 1920 . She entered theBoston Navy Yard 18 February 1920 for overhaul and was placed in full commission there1 July 1920 to serve as a tender to Submarine Division 12.Classified AS-7 on
17 July 1920 , "Rainbow" departed the Boston Navy Yard28 October 1920 , made a brief call at thePortsmouth Navy Yard , Kittery,Maine , then reached Newport, Rhode Island,6 November 1921 to commence tending theS-boat s of Submarine Division 12. The submarine division shifted base to New York19 November and sailed the 30th bound by way ofKey West , Guantanamo Bay, thePanama Canal and ports ofMexico , toSan Diego , arriving9 February 1921 ."Rainbow" tended Submarine Division 12 on the California coast until
6 April 1921 , then set course fromSan Francisco with the S-boats of Division 12 for Honolulu, arriving17 April 1921 . Tending operations in Hawaiian waters continued until12 November 1921 when she set course with the S-boats forApra Harbor ,Guam (27 November -30 November ), thence to Cavite, Philippine Islands, arriving6 December 1921 .Upon arrival at Cavite, Philippine Islands, "Rainbow" became the flagship of Submarine Flotilla 3 (later designated Submarine Division), Asiatic Fleet. She also served as tender to Submarine Division 12 and sometimes assisted "Finch" (AM-9) in tending the "boats" of Submarine Division 18. Except for a visit to Hong Kong (
11 October -31 October 1921 ), she remained in the Philippines until23 April 1923 . She then sailed with the Submarine Divisions of the Asiatic Fleet and tender "Finch" to serve along the China Coast at Shanghai,Chefoo ,Chinwangtao , Woosung, and Amoy."Rainbow" returned to Olongapo, Philippine Islands, from the coast of China
10 September 1923 , serving there and at Cavite until24 June 1924 . She again sailed from Cavite24 June 1924 in company with tender "Finch" and the S-boats of Divisions 12 and 18 to serve at Tsingtao, Chefoo, and Amoy until20 September . She returned to Olongapo23 September 1924 and sailed28 October for return to the western seaboard of theUnited States . She called atSorsogon Bay ,Luzon (29 September -3 October ); Apra Harbor, Guam (6 November -17 November );Pearl Harbor (7 December -19 December ); and reached the Mare Island Navy Yard31 December 1924 ."Rainbow" departed San Diego
2 February 1925 to land Marine reinforcements at Corinto,Nicaragua (11 February -12 February ), then proceeded by way of the Panama Canal, Guantanamo Bay, and Hampton Roads to the Philadelphia Navy Yard, arriving10 March 1925 . She decommissioned in the Philadelphia Navy Yard11 July 1925 ."Rainbow" remained inactive in the Philadelphia Navy Yard until her name was struck from the Navy list
26 June 1928 . She was sold for scrapping13 September 1928 to theBoston Iron Works , Baltimore,Maryland .References
External links
* [http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/r2/rainbow.htm history.navy.mil: USS "Rainbow"]
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/3607.htm navsource.org: USS "Rainbow"]
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