FDR's yacht offers the chance to see presidential decor up close
It set sail, sleek and graceful, from Oakland's Jack London Square and made its way into San Francisco Bay, gliding past Treasure Island. People waved from Pier 39. After all, this wasn't just any yacht but a part of presidential history. From 1936 to 1945, this former U.S. Coast Guard cutter served as President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's presidential yacht, after being renamed the USS Potomac and being recommissioned as a Navy vessel in 1936. During Roosevelt's term, it was a retreat for the president from the tremendous pressures of dealing with the Great Depression and World War II.
On a recent Saturday, passengers stood on the ship's teak decks, enjoying a fogless afternoon and a two-hour history cruise narrated by Capt. Wade Church. Docents from the Potomac Association, including David McGraw, took visitors on a guided tour of the ship's three decks, telling of Roosevelt's time there. The association, a nonprofit historical and educational organization devoted to teaching the continuing influence of the Roosevelt era, also offers dockside tours, fall and spring educational tours by reservation, and cruises.
Read entire article at San Francisco Chronicle
On a recent Saturday, passengers stood on the ship's teak decks, enjoying a fogless afternoon and a two-hour history cruise narrated by Capt. Wade Church. Docents from the Potomac Association, including David McGraw, took visitors on a guided tour of the ship's three decks, telling of Roosevelt's time there. The association, a nonprofit historical and educational organization devoted to teaching the continuing influence of the Roosevelt era, also offers dockside tours, fall and spring educational tours by reservation, and cruises.