USS Wilmington (PG-8) - Inter-war Period

Inter-war Period

The ship continued routine patrol and "flag-showing" duties through 1919 and 1920 and into 1921. On 8 July 1921, the starboard propeller shaft parted, and the propeller was carried away. Proceeding on one engine, the ship finally arrived at Shanghai on 22 July and entered drydock. Wilmington operated on the Yangtze through December, when she headed south for duty along the China coast until heading to the Philippines where she operated into the late spring of 1922.

On 2 June of that year, the ship departed Olongapo and set her course for the east coast of the United States. En route, she called at Singapore; Colombo, Ceylon; Bombay and Karachi; Aden, Arabia; Port Said, Egypt; Gibraltar; and Ponta Delgada, in the Azores. On 20 September 1922, the ship dropped anchor off the Portsmouth (N.H.) Navy Yard.

The ship remained there in an unassigned state until July 1923, when she was ordered to join the 3d Regiment, United States Navy Reserve Force, 9th Naval District, for the states of Ohio and Kentucky. After repairs and overhaul, Wilmington departed Portsmouth on 19 July, bound for Toledo, Ohio.

The ship anchored off Quebec, Canada, on the 25th and proceeded on toward Montreal on the following day, arriving on 27 July. After passing through the Soulanges and Cornwall Canals, the gunboat proceeded up the St. Lawrence River to Kingston, Canada, before setting course for the Welland Canal. After coaling at Port Colborne, Wilmington entered Lake Erie, stopped briefly at Cleveland, and arrived off Toledo on 1 August 1923.

Wilmington served as a training ship on Lake Erie— operating out of Toledo and calling at Cleveland and Buffalo—well into 1923. On 2 September of that year, the ship became inactive as her men were released from their training period. She remained in this state until 1 June 1924, when a large draft of reservists reported on board for training.

During that month, she operated in company with Paducah (Gunboat No. 18), Dubuque (PG-17), and the unclassified vessel Wilmette. On 10 June, the commanding officer, 7 officers, and 55 men left the ship at Cleveland to participate in a parade in conjunction with the Republician Party's national convention. The following day, Secretary of the Navy Curtis D. Wilbur came on board to inspect the ship.

Wilmington remained as training vessel on the Great Lakes for reservists through the 1930s, occasionally calling at Chicago, as well as her normal ports of call — Toledo, Buffalo, and Cleveland. During the winter months, she was laid up at her home base in preparation for spring and summer cruising.