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Charles N Curtis Design/Construction: The Charles N. Curtis was built at Southern Ship Yards, Newport News, Virginia, as U.S. Coast Guard #402. The CG #402 has a length of 78’9”, a beam of 14’ 8” and weighs in at 43 tons. Initially the CG #402 had 2 sterling Viking II 8 cylinder gasoline engines, equipped with a 50 cal machine gun, a one pound cannon and two depth charge racks. The CG #402 traveled at a maximum speed of 24 knots  (Canney, 1989). Today the design of the Charles N. Curtis has been modified to fit the needs of the scouting program associated with the boat. The cabin galley was added in the late 1950’s, and the wheelhouse was raised and moved forward in for better visibility in 1972. The old Viking engines were replaced with are 2 – GMC 6-71 diesel engines in July of 1946. However, the new engines only have a maximum speed of 12 knots. The machine gun, cannon and depth charge racks have since been removed. The Curtis holds 500 gallons of fresh water and 1200 gallons of diesel fuel (Rogers, Tom, personal communication, July 2012).

History: The history of the Charles N. Curtis dates back to before World War II during a time of prohibition. Southern Ship Yards out of Virginia delivered six patrol crafts numbered 400 to 405 were commonly referred as the “400” boats (Willoughby, 1964). The patrol craft CG #402 was delivered to the U.S. Coast Guard in 1931at a cost of $49,000 (Rum WAR, 2014). The CG #402 was used as a Rum Runner during Prohibition which ended in 1933. In June of 1937, all the “400” boats were transferred to the Pacific coast. The CG #402 was renamed CG #78302 and was assigned to the Tacoma Coast Guard as their patrol boat (Colton, 2013). At the time of her arrival in Tacoma, she was regarded as the fastest boat in the area (Anonymous, 1937). From 1942 until 1946, the CG #78302 served as an off shore patrol boat from Port Angels and the Columbia River. In July of 1946, the CG #78302 was decommissioned and sold to the Mount Rainer Council, BSA. At the time of purchase the cutter was re-named Charles N. Curtis after the council’s scout executive. (Fowler, 2011) Organization: Currently the Charles N. Curtis, Sea Scout Ship 110 operates out of the Pacific Harbors Council, BSA, which was Mount Rainer Council, BSA. The Curtis is believed to be the longest serving Sea Scout vessel in the United States. It is moored at the Tacoma Youth Marine Foundation located on the Thea Foss waterway (Anonymous, 1937). The Curtis is a training vessel for youth ages fourteen to twenty-one. The purpose of the program is to teach leadership and responsibility through maritime skills and boating skills. The crew of the Curtis meets two or more a days a week depending on their schedule of events. On an average the crew participates in over 100 activities, provides over 50 hours of community service, and spends over 85 days underway in a given year.

Personnel: The Curtis has several licensed captains and mates which consist of adult volunteers to help train and guide the youth of tomorrow. The crew have several leadership positions within their ranks. They include the Boatswain, Deck Crew Leader, Engine Crew Leader, Navigation Crew Leader, and Yeoman. The youth that participate in the program learn valuable skills learned while operating the boat. While on the boat they are assigned to different crews. Senior Crew: Senior crew are the youth that have been in the program for several years and have developed the skills and knowledge and are capable of teaching the younger scouts. Boatswain: Lead all crew. The deck crew leader, engine crew leader, navigation crew leader, and yeoman report to the boatswain. The Boatswain in turn reports to the skipper. The Boatswain conducts the quarterdeck meetings, knows the needs of the ship and crew. Appoint crew to head committees for activities. Deck Crew:   This crew is the crew responsible for handling the lines when the boat is preparing for getting underway or while docking. They also perform various watches while the boat is underway. These watches are Stern, log and helm duties. When they are not performing these duties they are responsible for keeping the deck clean. Engine Crew: The engine crew is responsible for the two 6-71 diesel engines and the two generators that are on board. They also assist with the maintenance of the water, fuel, electrical and sewer functions on the boat. This crew monitors the engines while underway and is responsible to answer the telegraph. The telegraph is way the captain relays information to the engine room telling the engine crew to operate the boat at. Navigation Crew: This crew is responsible for monitoring radio communications and plotting courses for the boat. They maintain logs of when and where the boat is going and keep a record of who is on the boat. (Boy Scouts of America, 2012)