View source for Patrol torpedo boat PT-658

{{use mdy dates|date=August 2013}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin |display title=Motor Torpedo Boat ''PT-658''}}
|+Motor Torpedo Boat ''PT-658''
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[File:Aerial_view_PT658_at_35knots_Columbia_River_October_2014.jpg|300px|PT658 at 35knots]]
|Ship caption=''PT-658'' in October 2014
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|USA}}  
|Ship name=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=[[Higgins Industries]], [[New Orleans]]
|Ship original cost=
|Ship yard number=
|Ship way number=
|Ship laid down=February 24, 1945 
|Ship launched=April 11, 1945
|Ship sponsor=
|Ship christened=
|Ship completed=July 30, 1945
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=1945
|Ship decommissioned=1958
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship reclassified=*Small Boat, C105343, August 27, 1946
*Floating Equipment, December 3, 1948
*"RCT-13" November 7, 1949
|Ship refit=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship homeport=
|Ship identification=
|Ship motto=  
|Ship nickname=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=
|Ship status=*Sold June 30, 1958
*[[Museum ship]] from 1993
|Ship notes=
|Ship badge=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship class=''PT-625''-class Higgins {{convert|78|ft|abbr=on}} [[PT boat]]
|Ship displacement={{convert|103000|lb|abbr=on}}
|Ship length={{convert|78|ft|6|in|abbr=on}}  
|Ship beam={{convert|20|ft|1|in|abbr=on}}  
|Ship draft={{convert|5|ft|3|in|abbr=on}}  
|Ship power=3 × {{convert|1850|shp|0|abbr=on}} [[Packard]] 5M-2500 [[V12 engine]]s
|Ship propulsion=3 shafts
|Ship speed={{convert|41|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range={{convert|520|nmi|abbr=on}} at 2,000 rpm
|Ship endurance=
|Ship complement=2 officers, 14 enlisted
|Ship sensors=Raytheon SO/[[SO3 radar]]
|Ship EW=Farnsworth BN Interrogator Responsor and Hazeltine BK Transponder [[Identification friend or foe|IFF]]
|Ship armament=
* 4 × {{convert|22.5|in|mm|abbr=on}} [[Mark 13 torpedo]]es
* 1 × [[Bofors 40 mm]] [[autocannon]]
* 1 × 37 mm [[M4 cannon]]
* 2 × [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon]]s
* 2 × twin .50 cal. [[M2 Browning]] [[machine gun]]s
* 2 × Mk6 420 lb[[depth charge]]s
* 2 × Mk50 Rocket Launchers (8 cell) firing {{convert|5|in|abbr=on}}Mk7 spin-stabilized rockets SSR
* 1 × 60mm [[M2 Mortar]] for target illumination mounted on bow
* 2 × .30 cal [[Browning Automatic Rifle]]s BAR
* 2 × [[Thompson submachine gun]]s
* 2 × [[M1 carbine]]s
* 1 × 35 gal Mk6 TiCl4 Smoke generator
|Ship armor=
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox NRHP
|embed=yes
|name=''PT-658'' (motor torpedo boat)
|nrhp_type=
|location=Vigor Industrial Shipyard, Pier 307 5555 N Basin Av., [[Portland, Oregon]]
|coordinates = {{coord|45|34|13.4|N|122|43|13.6|W|display=inline,title}}
|locmapin=Oregon
|map_width=300
|built=
|builder=
|added=September 4, 2012<ref name="NPS-weekly"/>
|area=
|governing_body=Private 
|refnum=12000602
}}
|}
'''Motor Torpedo Boat ''PT-658''''' is a ''PT-625''-class Higgins {{convert|78|ft|adj=on}} [[PT boat]], built for the [[United States Navy]] during World War II. ''PT-658'' is a prime example of US Navy Motor Torpedo Boat development during World War II. ''PT-658'' was in the last group of four boats delivered from the 36-boat contract NObs-1680, October 1944 for ''PT-625'' to ''PT-660''. Delivered and accepted on July 31, 1945, she was fitted with all of the latest armaments and design modifications as a result of lessons learned from previous contracts and battlefield experience. In this way, ''PT-658'' is a showcase of the final form that Motor Torpedo Boats would take by the end of World War II. ''PT-658'' was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] on September 4, 2012.<ref name="NPS-weekly">{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/listings/20120914.htm |title=Weekly list of actions taken on properties: 9/04/12 through 9/07/12 |date=September 14, 2012 |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |accessdate=September 25, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release |title=Rare World War II boat in Oregon added to National Register |date=September 5, 2012 |publisher=[[Oregon Parks and Recreation Department]] |url=http://www.prd.state.or.us/news.php?id=1649 ||archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120920162300/http://www.prd.state.or.us/news.php?id=1649 |archivedate=2012-09-20|accessdate=September 11, 2012}}</ref> Of three PT boats listed on the National Register, she is the only one maintained in operating condition.<ref name="oreg-2012sep">{{cite news |last=Parks |first=Casey |title=PT-658, last remaining operable PT boat from World War II, named to National Register of Historic Places |newspaper=[[The Oregonian]] |date=September 8, 2012 <!-- (online date September 7, 2012) --> |page=B2 |url=http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2012/09/pt-658_last_remaining_operable.html |accessdate=December 7, 2014}}</ref>

==Service history==
''PT-658'' was one of a group of PT boats assigned to MTB Squadron 45 in April 1945, for transfer to the [[USSR]] under [[Lend-Lease]]. By the time she was completed on July 30, 1945, this transfer had been cancelled. ''PT-658'' was transported to Bremerton on the deck of ''LST-375'' from New Orleans along with ''PT-657'', ''PT-659'', and ''PT-660'', arriving on September 25, 1945. ''PT-658'' was then stationed at [[Port Hueneme, California]], where on August 27, 1946, she was reclassified as a Small Boat and renumbered C105343 to serve as a missile range patrol boat.  On December 3, 1948, she was reclassified as Floating Equipment.<ref name="factsheet" />  ''PT-658'' was then transferred to [[Naval Air Station Point Mugu]], reclassified as ''RCT-13'', and used for patrolling the Point Mugu missile test range for stray craft into the missile landing area, and for towing targets. Also during this period, ''PT-658'' served twice a week as a high speed transport, carrying men and supplies to the USAF D.E.W. Radar Station on [[Santa Rosa Island, California|Santa Rosa Island]], off the coast of [[Los Angeles]] in the [[Channel Islands of California|Channel Island Group]]. ''PT-658''{{'}}s survival has been attributed to her completion late in the war, and that she was never sent overseas.<ref name="APviaSeattleTimes">{{cite news |title=Veterans Want To Hear Old PT Boat Howl |date=November 6, 1994 |newspaper=[[The Seattle Times]] |agency=[[Associated Press]] |url=http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19941106&slug=1940150 |accessdate=June 7, 2012}}</ref>

On June 30, 1958, ''PT-658'' was sold to a private individual in the Oakland and Alameda, California area and renamed ''Porpoise''. The private owner changed very little of her structure during the time he owned her. In 1993, she was donated by the late owner's estate to the veterans of Save the PT Boat, Inc. of Portland, Oregon. ''PT-658'' was transported from Alameda to Portland in May 1994 by the 144th Transportation Unit of the Washington National Guard on the deck of the US Army Logistics Support Vessel {{ship||General Brehon B. Somervell|LSV-3}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/feature/weekly_features/2012/PT658Oregon.pdf#page=14 |format=pdf |title=National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Motor Torpedo Boat PT-658 |first=Bob |last=Alton |first2=Barbara |last2=Brunkow |date=June 12, 2010 |website=[[National Park Service]] |page=14}}</ref>

==Restoration==

A dedicated group of PT Boat veterans formed the organization Save the PT Boat, Inc., a [[501(c)(3)]] [[non-profit organization]]. The group restored ''PT-658'' to her original 1945 configuration between 1995 and 2005. ''PT-658'' is now fully functional and afloat, the only restored US Navy PT Boat that is operational today.<ref name="oreg-2012sep" /><ref name="Trib2011Aug">{{cite news |last=Newell |first=Cliff |title=Car-Boat Show to offer spectacle, fun |date=August 17, 2011 |newspaper=[[Portland Tribune]] |publisher=[[Pamplin Media Group]] |url=http://portlandtribune.com/component/content/article?id=10974 |accessdate=August 25, 2013}}</ref> 

''PT-658''{{'}}s restoration included a full armament of four Mark 13 Torpedoes, two twin [[.50 BMG|.50 caliber]] [[M2 Browning machine gun|Browning M2]] machine guns, a [[Bofors 40 mm gun|40 mm Bofors cannon]], two [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|20 mm Oerlikon cannon]], two eight-cell Mark 50 Spin Stabilized 5 inch Rocket Launchers, and two Mark 6 {{convert|300|lb|kg|abbr=on}} [[trinitrotoluene|TNT]] [[depth charge]]s. She has three working {{convert|1850|hp|abbr=on}} [[Packard]] Model 5M-2500 [[V12 engine|V12]] gasoline engines.

''PT-658'' Heritage Museum is located in [[Portland, Oregon]] at the Swan Island Industrial Park. She is moored to Pier 307 of [[Vigor Industrial]] Shipyard as of October, 2013. Visitor access is provided via the marked Gate 18 at 5555 N. Lagoon Avenue.  The ''PT-658'' Heritage Museum is open to the public every Monday, Thursday and Saturday 9am to 4pm for visitors. She has been moved into the new boathouse and the group continues to raise money for ongoing projects such as deck replacement, charthouse repair, and bottom replacement.  Money is also being raised for final boathouse improvements and to build a ''PT-658'' Heritage and Education Center. In May 2010, replacement of the deck was completed in time for various summer festivals and shows. 

Funding raised for additional restoration work included a $14,000 grant from the [[Oregon Cultural Trust]], awarded in July 2010.<ref name="cultural trust">{{cite news |last=Row |first=D. K. |title=Oregon Cultural Trust looks to the future as it announces new grants |date=July 26, 2010 |newspaper=[[The Oregonian]] |location=Portland, Oregon |url=http://www.oregonlive.com/art/index.ssf/2010/07/oregon_cultural_trust_looks_to.html |accessdate=June 7, 2012}}</ref>  

When originally launched in 1945, ''PT-658'' wore a [[camouflage]] paint scheme, (specifically, Camouflage Measure 31-20L) and this was restored in early 2011.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Fowler |first1=Chuck |last2=Withers |first2=Dan |title=Patrol and Rescue Boats |year=2011 |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |location=Charleston, South Carolina |isbn=978-0-7385-7581-0 |page=55 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qfzrSHKztzMC&pg=PA55 |accessdate=September 11, 2012}}</ref> In July 2011, two Mark 50 eight-cell rocket launcher mounts were added to the port and starboard bow. In May 2012, an original SOA Radar mast (obtained on loan from PT Boats Inc. of Germantown, Tennessee) was installed along with an appropriately sized radar dome, signal generator and waveguide. Simultaneously, the 40mm Bofors cannon mount was improved with the addition of an ammunition clip holder/loader handrail to the rear of the mount, along with adjustable seats and authentic aerial spider type gunsights. Further equipment additions added by the crew in 2014 include authentic IFF dipole antennae on the chart house and radar mast, and a US M2 60mm mortar on the starboard side of the bow. 

{{Gallery
|title=''PT-658''
|width=160
|height=170
|lines=4
|align=center
|File:PT-658.JPG|alt1=|''PT-658'' in Portland, Oregon, in 2007
|File:Motor Torpedo Boat PT-658.jpg|alt2=|''PT-658'' in 2006, in the paint scheme she wore from the late 1940s through 2010
|File:PT-658 near the Broadway Bridge in Portland, Oregon (2012).jpg|alt3=|In 2011, ''PT-658'' was restored to her original paint scheme, a camouflage pattern known as [[Ship camouflage#United States|Measure 31-20L]].
|File:Photo taken of PT658,PT659 and PT660 renamed as RCT13,14,and 15 in PT Mugu Nov 1949.jpeg|alt4=|''PT-658'', ''PT-659'' and ''PT-660'' (''RCT-13'', ''RCT-14'' and ''RCT-15''), [[Naval Air Station Point Mugu|Point Mugu]] Boat Basin November 1949
|image:DickLowe.JPG|alt5=|PT veteran Dick Lowe in front of bunk
}}
{{-}}

==See also==
*  [[List of museum ships]]

==References==
{{Reflist |refs=
*<ref name="factsheet">
 {{cite web
 |url= http://www.savetheptboatinc.com/new_page_9.htm
 |title=PT658 Fact Sheet
 |website=Save the PT Boat!
 |accessdate=June 7, 2012
 }}</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|PT-658 (ship, 1945)|''PT-658''}}
*{{official website |http://www.savetheptboatinc.com/contents.htm |''PT 658'' - Save The PT Boat!}}
* {{navsource|12/05658|PT-658}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.hnsa.org/ships/pt658.htm  |website=Historic Naval Ships Association |title=''PT-658''}}

{{Overlook, Portland, Oregon}}
{{Surviving ocean going ships}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:PT-658}}
[[Category:1945 ships]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:PT boats|658]]
[[Category:Ships on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon]]
[[Category:Overlook, Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:World War II on the National Register of Historic Places]]