Sacagawea I (YT-326)
1942-1945
A Shoshone Native American girl who acted as guide and interpreter for Lewis and Clark on their expedition into the Northwest region of the U.S. "The Bird Woman," as her name was translated, proved invaluable to the explorers. On one occasion, she saved the expedition's records after they had fallen into the Missouri River when her husband's boat capsized.
I
(YT-326: displacement 25; length 97'0"; beam 21'8"; draft 9'0"; speed 10.0 knots)
The harbor tug Almirante No-ronka, built in 1925 and acquired from the Brazilian government in 1942, was renamed Sacagawea on 1 September 1942 and was placed in service as a harbor tug at Charleston, S. C., upon her delivery on 30 September.
Reclassified as a medium harbor tug, YTM-326, on 15 May 1944, she served at Charleston until she was placed out of service and stricken from the Navy Register on 22 June 1945. Sacagawea was then turned over to the State Department for disposal and was sold to foreign purchasers in May 1946.
Updated, Robert J. Cressman
15 Auigust 2024
