The history of a presidential yacht
Giles M. Kelly makes the history of the Sequoia, the former presidential yacht, a rattling good story. Used by at least eight presidents, the author spent close to 10 years researching the book, as, oddly enough, only two logs exist from its 44 years of naval service.
Sequoia was 79 when the book was published (in 2004). Kelly, formerly a navy man, was named her skipper in 1983, and resigned in 1988.
It was not a “commanding” ship, it was just 104 feet, seven inches; had only three double cabins and one single; and it plowed only in protected waters, so often the stream of governmental and other visitors came for dinner or short rides, conferences or parties.
No one seems to know how it got its name, only that its name contains all our vowels. President Hoover made a photograph of it his Christmas card in 1932. It was commissioned in 1933 by President Roosevelt, who took it fishing almost every weekend. There is a wonderful picture of him doing just that, smiling in such a relaxed, happy way.
Pictures: The ones in color were taken by Kelly’s wife, Ann Stevens, a professional photographer. Her pictures, in vivid color, give a wonderful series of views of the yacht inside and out, from near and far. Others taken over the earlier years were found in various presidential libraries.
The history is given sequentially in short, telling narrative with reader-oriented titles with some history accompanied in asides, anecdotes or references to other times, along with statistics (at the end, so it doesn’t interrupt the story) – a great mix. Sometimes it had no guests and the sailors took it down the Potomac for a swim. Other times the boat and its crew had to be ready for guests in 20 minutes as it was only 10 minutes from the White House. In 1951-52, its captain recorded 1000 guests. For the duration of the war it was decommissioned by Eisenhower.
Kissinger and Nixon met on it to discuss Vietnam; Nixon came alone as he made his decision to resign (on their helicopter flight from the White House, the family flew low over Sequoia to say goodbye to the crew).
The captain at the time Breznev and Gromyko met there, he confessed he was nervous when he had “the two most famous men in the world on board;” or as he put it, “felt the weight of my responsibility.” When Emporer Hirohito and his wife came for an afternoon cruise, everyone aboard was told not to look at “their majesties while in their presence.” Three flags flew that day: the emperor’s, the Japanese and the American.
The Kennedys came. Caroline and her brother, on one occasion, got to wandering about the ship during a dinner party. The crew admonished them: “you can’t come in here.”
“We can go wherever we want!”
“OK, but only if you bring us some cake from the party.”
She brought a whole half to their astonishment. They threw the empty pan overboard so she wouldn’t be caught, mystifying the steward who came to collect it. Jack’s last birthday, his 46th, was celebrated aboard the Sequoia.
Many incidents enliven Kelly’s story: Bob Hope was made an honorary admiral on his 80th birthday; Ginger Rogers slipped and was caught by the author (upon which she said, “Now, Sir, you and Fred Astaire have something in common: you have both caught me in their arms”); and many, many more including a hair-raising trip into a narrow channel during a hurricane.
Lady Bird loved the ceremony when Sequoia slowed as it passed George Washington’s tomb at Mt. Vernon: the crew stood at attention and tolled the ship’s bell, the flag flown at half mast. As it passed the tomb itself, the crew saluted and “Taps” was played; guests held their hand over their hearts, following which the “Star-Spangled Banner” rang out over the speaker system. Then came the command, “Carry on.”
On March 30 one year, Jimmy Carter, never having been on it (though his nephew had said “Uncle Jimmy is going to love this”), signed the order to “deactivate the Sequoia and have it disposed of through public sale.” The crew thought it was an April Fool’s joke, but when documented, their morale sank as they kept it clean to show to prospective buyers. Carter’s secretary, Jodi Powell, later told Carter, jokingly, that by selling off the Sequoia, he had really missed the boat.
Several buyers later, The Presidential Yacht Trust took over.
The Presidential Yacht Trust, concerned about its cost during the ’80s, authorized a 6,000-mile tour, a national goodwill cruise from Florida’s west coast, across to Texas up then reverse to go up the Mississippi, through the northern lake region, then east and down the inland waterways. It was very successful in introducing people west of Washington to their national ship and there were crowds all along their stops where they were given tours of their national ship. Why did Jimmy Carter sell it, was the most frequent question for the crew.
The author, the captain of this trip, relates a “memorable incident: radar picked up an object moving slowly across her bow, but, as it was dark, nothing could be seen, so the captain, concerned that it might be a canoist or a swimmer, stopped the yacht and ordered the searchlight turned on – and there was a mother duck and her six little ducklings paddling across.” They were “given the right of way.”
The Presidential Yacht Trust did not prosper, the author resigned, and Sequoia was finally turned over to the Coast Guard for safe-keeping.
The story makes great reading whether or not you are interested in American history. It is so well-balanced between story, incident and sequential history, aside from being so well-written.
Book info:
Sequoia: Presidential Yacht
By Giles M. Kelly, Captain, USNR (Ret.)
Tidewater Publishers, $19.95
Posted by Rae Eastman
on September 27, 2012. Filed under Arts and Entertainment,Book Reviews,Columns,Opinion.
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