Vashon
Vashon (#) (1936-1949), 88-foot fishing vessel built by the Seattle Shipbuilding Company. The boat had an Atlas diesel 4-cylinder engine. It was acquired by the Navy in October 1940 and converted into a Coastal Minesweeper and commissioned as the USS Cockatoo (AMc 8) in April 1941. The Cockatoo served in Pearl Harbor during WW2 and survived an attack by Japanese bombers.
According to Daughters of Infamy, the “Cockatoo was placed on the floating dry-dock ARD-8, which was then towed to San Diego from Pearl Harbor. On September 23, 1946, Cockatoo was transferred to the U.S. Maritime Commission for final disposition.”
The vessel was sold in 1947 to Andrew Vidovich of San Pedro for use as a fishing boat. It was then sold in 1948 to Paul Marinkovich, also of San Pedro. On July 23rd, 1949 the ship caught fire and sank. It “burned for almost eight hours and sank less than 100 yards off shore.” The captain, Paul Marinkovich, and the crew of 10 escaped unharmed. According to Marinkovich, “the fire started after an explosion in the engine room of the 88-foot boat about 11:30 p.m.”
The wreck lies in about 150 feet of water on the backside of Catalina Island. Because the hull was made from wood and because it burned to the waterline, there isn’t much left of the hull or shape of the wreck. However, the Atlas 4 cylinder diesel engine is still there along with most of the other parts of the wreck.
