{"product_id":"american-yachts-in-naval-service-9781476682600","title":"American Yachts in Naval Service","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e   Before there was a U.S. Navy, several Colonial navies were all-volunteer--both the crews and the vessels. From its beginnings through World War II, the Navy has relied on civilian sailors and their fast vessels to fill out its ranks of small combatants. Beginning with the birth of the yacht in the Netherlands in the 17th century , this illustrated history traces the development of yacht racing, the advent of combustion-engine power and the contribution privately owned vessels have made to national defense. Vessels conscripted during the Civil War served both the Union and Confederacy--sometimes changing sides after capture. The first USS \u003ci\u003eWanderer\u003c\/i\u003e saw the slave trade from both sides of the law. Aboard the USS \u003ci\u003eSylph\u003c\/i\u003e, Oscar-winning actor Ernest Borgnine fought the Third Reich''s U-boats under sail. USS \u003ci\u003eSea Cloud\u003c\/i\u003e made history as the first racially integrated ship in the Navy, three years before President Truman desegregated the military.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"McFarland \u0026 Co Inc","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51742570971479,"sku":"9781476682600","price":29.96,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9781476682600.jpg?v=1758385305","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/american-yachts-in-naval-service-9781476682600","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}