AH-WR-1874

USS Cythera

Patrol Yacht · United States · Lost 1942 · The Outer Banks

A converted luxury yacht that served in both World Wars, sunk off North Carolina in 1942 with 69 lost.

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Historically Reconstructed. Drawn from partial documentation of this vessel together with her known class and configuration. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Cythera was built in Scotland in 1907 as the luxury yacht Agawa for the Harkness family. She served the U.S. Navy as an escort in World War I, returned to the family, and was sold back to the Navy for one dollar in 1941. Leaving Norfolk for the Pacific, she was torpedoed by U-402 off North Carolina on May 2, 1942. Sixty-nine of 71 aboard died; the two survivors were taken aboard the U-boat as prisoners.

Vessel

Built: 1907
Builder: Ramage and Ferguson Ltd.
Yard: Scotland
Material: Steel
Length: 214.8 ft
Beam: 27.6 ft
Tonnage: 602 gross tons
Propulsion: Steam, single screw
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: May 2, 1942
Cause: Enemy action
Location: Off the North Carolina coast
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Norfolk, Virginia → Pearl Harbor
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: 71
Lives lost: 69
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: Not established
Accuracy: Position not established
Nearest: Cape Hatteras, North Carolina
Region: The Outer Banks

Precise wreck position not taken into this record.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Documented (84/100)

The wreck site has not been located.

NOAA Monitor National Marine Sanctuary
Particulars, loss date, attacker and survivors.