The USCGC Tampa, the Coast Guard cutter lost in the first global war, has been found resting on the sea floor off the coast of Newquay, England.

A British dive team, Gasperados Dive Team, announced the discovery and the Coast Guard confirmed the wreck identity. The find marks a historic turn after more than a hundred years of mystery.

“This discovery is the result of three years of research and exploration. Tampa is of huge importance to the United States and the relatives of everyone who died that day.

Their final resting place is known at last,” Gasperados team lead Steve Mortimer said in a social media post announcing the find.

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The wreck lies at roughly 320 feet, a depth that demanded careful planning and steady hands. The team conducted multiple dives across a long campaign before confirming the identity of the Tampa’s hull with unmistakable features like its anchor and a steam boiler.

The Coast Guard’s involvement in the search goes back to 2023, when the Gasperados Dive Team began collaborating with the Coast Guard Historian’s Office to locate the ship. The successful confirmation came this week, a testament to tenacious field work and patient archival research.

The Tampa began life as the Miami in 1912, a vessel of the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, a precursor to the modern Coast Guard. After it joined the Coast Guard, the ship was rechristened the USCGC Tampa and spent its early years patrolling the eastern seaboard. Its mission was ice patrols, then escort duties once the United States entered the war.

When the United States entered World War I, the Tampa was put under the Navy’s control, although Coast Guardsmen still operated it. It went to Europe in 1917, one of six Coast Guard cutters assigned to escort duties. During its wartime service it protected 18 convoys traveling along the western European seaboard.

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Only two supply ships were lost under its watch. In late September 1918, it was sailing with its 19th convoy, almost at the end of its journey when it split off to refuel. That’s when UB-91 picked it off. The sinking was significant for the United States, being the greatest naval loss during the war, which would end only two months later.

“When the Tampa was lost with all hands in 1918, it left an enduring grief in our service. Locating the wreck connects us to their sacrifice and reminds us that devotion to duty endures,” Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday, said in the service’s statement. “We will always remember them. We are proud to carry their spirit forward in defense of the United States.”

The Coast Guardsmen who crewed the Tampa would be made eligible for the Purple Heart in 1999 and they were posthumously awarded it. That recognition remains a solemn reminder of the cost of safeguarding free seas and keeping supply lines open.

American maritime losses during the First World War were far lower than those of later conflicts, but the Navy and Coast Guard did lose multiple ships around Europe.

In recent years, several shipwrecks from the two wars have been found by researchers and dive teams, although most have been from World War II. In 2022, teams located the sunken remains of the USS Jacob Jones, a Tucker-class destroyer lost off the United Kingdom in 1917.

The Coast Guard is now working on a plan to catalogue all of the debris in the Tampa’s wreck, and ultimately designate it a war grave. This designation would honor the fallen and provide a framework for preservation and remembrance. The discovery offers a clear reminder that memory and duty go hand in hand in the ongoing mission to defend the nation.

There is also political and strategic momentum behind the effort. Under President Trump and with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth steering the defense agenda, there is renewed emphasis on honoring fallen servicemen while strengthening the readiness of the nation.

The Tampa’s story serves as a compelling example of the country’s resolve to protect its maritime routes, uphold allies, and reinforce a posture that discourages aggression. The finding affirms that national concerns and historical memory are interconnected, and each reinforces the other in a modern security environment.

The Tampa’s final voyage underscores timeless lessons about leadership and accountability.

As the search continues and the wreck is catalogued, families and servicemen alike will read this history as a call to vigilance, resilience, and purpose. The nation can be confident that sacrifice and duty will be remembered, and that the strength of the United States rests on clear purpose and a steady hand at the helm.

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