USS YMS-328

USS YMS-328 is a decommissioned US Navy YMS-1-class (YMS-135 subclass) Yard Mine Sweeper (YMS), built in Ballard, Washington at Ballard Marine & Railway in Ballard, Washington (Seattle). She was classified as a Mark II design and her hull is constructed completely out of 3" vertical grain Douglas fir. Sister ships include Jacques Cousteau's RV Calypso. After naval service during World War II, she became a private yacht.

USS YMS-328
History
Name:
  • YMS-328 (1943–1948)
  • La Beverie (1948–1956)
  • Wild Goose II (1956–1962)
  • Wild Goose (1962–present)
Owner:
  • US Navy (1943–1948)
  • Harold Jones (1948–1956)
  • Max Wyman (1956–1962)
  • John Wayne (1962–1979)
  • Lynn Hutchins (1979–1986)
  • City of L.A. (1986–1989)
  • Deil Gustafson (1989–1996)
  • Hornblower Cruises (1996–present)[1]
Builder: Ballard Marine Railway Co., Seattle, Washington
Laid down: 6 July 1942
Launched: 19 December 1942
Completed: 26 May 1943
Decommissioned: 29 October 1946
Stricken: 29 October 1946
Status: Still in operation as a cruise yacht
General characteristics
Class and type: YMS-1-class minesweeper (YMS-135 subclass)
Displacement: 270 long tons (274 t)
Length: 136 ft (41 m)
Beam: 24 ft 6 in (7.47 m)
Draft: 8 ft (2.4 m)
Propulsion:
Speed: 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement: 32
Armament:
Wild Goose (yacht)
Location2431 West Coast Highway (boat berth), Newport Beach, California
Coordinates33°37′9″N 117°55′19″W
NRHP reference No.11000431[2]
Added to NRHP19 July 2011

US Navy history

YMS-328 was delivered on 26 May 1943. She served in the Aleutian Islands during World War II, sweeping enemy minefields at Attu and US minefields at Kiska, and patrolling out of Adak.

She was en route to Dutch Harbor to be fitted for the invasion of Paramishiru Island in Japan, when Japan surrendered. YMS-328 returned to Bremerton, Washington.

She was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in 1946.

Private ownership

YMS-328 was sold privately in 1948 to Vancouver Tug & Barge owner Harold Jones. He named her La Beverie. Upon Jones's death in 1956, millionaire Max Wyman purchased the yacht and renamed her the Wild Goose II. Wyman traveled the world on the yacht including Tahiti, Bora Bora, and Hawaii. In 1962, she was bought by John Wayne and went through a major renovation. Wayne changed her name to Wild Goose. He kept the ship for the last 17 years of his life. He entertained a who's who of the time including Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan.[3][4]

The Wild Goose seen in 1962 before its major renovation, by Arthur Beaumont

Wild Goose was featured in the 1968 film Skidoo where she was the yacht, named Mother, of a reclusive mob boss named "God" played by Groucho Marx. The yacht was used extensively with scenes shot from the exterior and in the wheel house, cabins, engine room, upper and lower decks. This ship was also featured in the 1967 film The President's Analyst, doubling as a Canadian spy ship.[5]

The travels of the ship were well documented during Wayne's ownership in the 1993 book On Board with the Duke authored by his former captain Bert Minshall.[6] Minshall was on Wild Goose for 16 years with Wayne.

Recent history

The vessel is still in operation for dinner cruises in Newport Beach, California by Hornblower Cruises.[1] It was listed on the US National Register of Historic Places on 19 July 2011.[2][7][3]

References
  1. "Wild Goose". Hornblower Cruises & Events. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  2. "Announcements and actions on properties 7/18/11 through 7/22/11". Weekly Listings. National Park Service. 29 July 2010. Retrieved 12 December 2011.
  3. Cassidy, Jon (11 August 2011). "The Duke's boat gets historic designation". Orange County Register.
  4. "Weekly Highlight: Wild Goose (yacht) / Orange County, California". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
  5. Byrne, Diane M. (12 August 2011). "Wild Goose, John Wayne's Yacht, Now on National Register of Historic Places". Megayacht News. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  6. Minshall, Bert; Sharon, Clark (1993). On Board with the Duke: John Wayne and the Wild Goose. Washington, D.C.: Seven Locks Press. ISBN 9780929765136. OCLC 924762447.
  7. Williams, Lauren (11 August 2011). "John Wayne's beloved yacht gets historical protection". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 11 August 2011.
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