The PT Boat Forum & Message Board

Currently when "Posting" and/or "Replying" to a Post, some members names and or passwords might not work - email me to repair any damaged account.

The PT Boat Forum ª PT Boats of WWII ª PT Boats - General

Post a reply to: PT 557 WILDWOOD NJ

	Message: Please type your message in the box to the right.
	Message Tags How to use colors, images and urls in your message.
	HTML Allowed

[StartQuote]
Well, a quick history on what I know from working on the Sightseer (PT-486) from 1979 through 1983 working with and knowing the owners Otto Stocker and Chuck Schumann and their families.  The PT-486 was originally purchased by George Sinn with the PT-557.

PT-486 and PT-557 were 80-foot Elco boats.  The 486 was placed in service on 2 December 1943. It was the first in the 486 series and was used in the training squadron (MTBRON)4 in Melville, Rhode Island.  Recent revealed history also shows that it was used as part of a secret naval operation being converted to PT Drone boats.  The operation was cancelled, but not before the boat was stripped of all of her engines, fuel tanks and all aux systems.  All that remained was a hull with the original steering system, rudders and shaft logs.  At some point, the boat was returned to Ron4.  There are great pictures of both boats running up the Hudson River in 1945 for a War Bond drive.

The vessel was stricken from the active list 16 January 1946 with 7 other PT's  They were stored at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, NY.

In 1951, PT-557 along with the PT-486 was purchased as a set from BFM Industries (Brooklyn, NY) by Capt. George C. Sinn of Wildwood Crest, NJ on 9 October 1951 for $1,015.00.

The story, (as I heard it from the Stocker family) is the boats went up for sale as surplus.  The sale was for both boats.  The 486 was stripped down again prior to being sold.  George Sinn had a neighbor directly across the street who was (as I heard it) a good friend and fellow mariner Otto Stocker.

George intended to use the 557 for a sightseeing boat ride.  Further research has found that the 557 hull was cut back to less than 65'.  This was common practice to keep the tonnage down and meet minimal USCG passenger vessel standards of the day.

PT-557:
<a href="http://ptboatforum.com/PhotoGallery/image/Gziig"><img src="http://ptboatforum.com/PhotoGallery/images/Gziig.jpg" alt="Gziig.jpg" border="0" /></a>

PT-486:
<a href="http://ptboatforum.com/PhotoGallery/image/j7wuH"><img src="http://ptboatforum.com/PhotoGallery/images/j7wuH.jpg" alt="j7wuH.jpg" border="0" /></a>

Former crew member of the Big Blue Sightseer ex-PT 486[EndQuote]

UPLOAD PHOTOS

Emotion Icons:
Choose an icon to be displayed next to your message or click on the icon to include it in your message:

	None

Options:
Check the check boxes to the right for the options you would like to use.

Would you like to include your signature in this message?
Would you like to recieve notification via email when a reply is received to this message?
Would you like to preview this post before posting?

User Name:

Have you registered?

Password:

Have you lost your password?

Click 'Post' to post your message.

Who May Post? Registered Users

NOTICE
The Conditional Use of this Forum/Message Board and Website

Members and visitors reading and/or participating in this PT Boat Forum must agree to the following use terms.
If NOT, such individuals must leave this forum's website immediately:

By using this forum, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless the owner(s) and moderator(s) of any claims and/or damages resulting from your usage of this forum, including any damages to yourself or any party and or damages to computing equipment owned by you or others including any and all files contained on your’s or other’s computer(s).
The owner(s) and moderator(s) takes no responsibility for accuracy, copyright compliance, legality or decency of any content or materials contained in these forums. Any messages posted by Authors of messages are not the opinion of the owner(s) and moderator(s) and they shall not be held liable for damages of any kind, to any party.

Please note that any information disclosed on these forums becomes public. For this reason we urge you to take caution when disclosing any personal information. No spam of any nature will be tolerated. Spam can be considered as, posting advertisements and generally promoting something off topic.

Notice: If a member or visitor disagrees to the above terms, they must not use this forum and or website. Membership can be terminated and/or member banned for what ever reason at the owner(s) and/or moderator(s) discretion.

This forum originally founded in 1995 and is Copyrighted � 2019 by Richard J. Washichek

This site was last updated Friday, December 16, 2019.