USS Quinnebaug (SP-1687)

The third USS Quinnebaug was the Old Dominion steamship Jefferson temporarily converted for planting the World War I North Sea Mine Barrage. John Roach & Sons launched Jefferson at Chester, Pennsylvania on 14 October 1898. Jefferson steamed between Norfolk, Virginia and New York City until The United States Shipping Board took control of the ship from Old Dominion Steamship Company in 1917. She was fitted out for United States Navy service at Robins' Dry Dock and Repair Company at Brooklyn, New York. The minelaying conversion enabled her to carry mines on two decks, and included four Otis elevators individually capable of transferring two mines every 20 seconds from the storage deck to the launching deck. USS Quinnebaug was commissioned on 23 March 1918 with Commander D. Pratt Mannix, USN, in command. While operating as part of Mine Squadron 1 out of Inverness, Scotland, from 14 July until the close of the war on 11 November 1918, Quinnebaug: Quinnebaug then returned to the United States for decommissioning and return to Old Dominion Steamship Company in 1919.
 * planted 600 mines during the 3rd minelaying excursion on 14 July,
 * planted 600 mines during the 4th minelaying excursion on 29 July,
 * planted 610 mines during the 6th minelaying excursion on 18 August,
 * planted 590 mines during the 7th minelaying excursion on 26 August,
 * planted 600 mines during the 8th minelaying excursion on 7 September,
 * planted 600 mines during the 9th minelaying excursion on 20 September,
 * planted 610 mines during the 10th minelaying excursion on 27 September,
 * planted 610 mines during the 11th minelaying excursion on 4 October,
 * planted 615 mines during the 12th minelaying excursion on 13 October, and
 * planted 610 mines during the final 13th minelaying excursion on 24 October.

Sister ship
In the words of British Rear Admiral Lewis Clinton-Baker, the North Sea mine barrage was the "biggest mine planting stunt in the world's history." The United States converted eight civilian steamships as minelayers for the 100,000 mines manufactured for the barrage. Old Dominion Steamship Hamilton was similarly converted to USS USS Saranac (1899) among these eight.