CGC SPENCER AND CAMPBELL, New York harbor

NEW YORK - Coast Guard Cutters Campbell (W-32) and Spencer (W-36) moored at the former Coast Guard Base at St. George, Staten Island, N.Y., circa 1957. These "Treasury" class cutters -- sometimes referred to as the "Secretary" class and named for former secretaries of the Treasury Department -- proved to be highly dependable, versatile and long-lived warships. Most served their country for more than 40 years. Naval historian John M. Waters, Jr., called them the nation's maritime workhorses: "The 327s battled through the winter of 1942-43 in the North Atlantic, fighting off German U-boats and rescuing survivors from torpedoed convoy ships. They went on to serve as amphibious task force flagships, as search and rescue ships during the Korean War, and as naval gunfire support ships during Vietnam." Photo courtesy of the Port of New York Authority.