Restorers seek clues to ship\’s history (1948 it was docked in Gloucester City)

\"Bilde\" The Lilac was spared a scrap-heap fate thanks to New York volunteers trying to revive the deteriorated ship as a working, educational treasure. A Delaware native with family ties to the ship crew is helping researchers fill in some of the holes in the vessel\’s history.

PHOTO: The Lilac is launched in 1933 at the Pusey & Jones Shipyard in Wilmington. Andrew J. Davidson was appointed captain during construction. (Hagley Museum and Library)

Shifted in 1939 as the Coast Guard assumed Lighthouse Service duties, the ship was renamed WAGL-227 and tended buoys after lighthouses automated. The Coast Guard converted most steam ships to diesel, but left the Lilac intact. Today, it is the only Coast Guard steam vessel left.

Painted gray in World War II, it added weapons and was assigned to port security. It was repainted in peacetime and moved to Gloucester, N.J., after its Edgemoor base closed in 1948.

via www.delawareonline.com

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