..After acceptance the vessel sailed to Baltimore where she entered service in 1896. The “William Windom” served along the Chesapeake Bay until the spring of 1898, when she was pressed into service for the Spanish-American War, serving in the waters off Cuba.

..After the war, she returned to Baltimore to resume her duties, being berthed at Chase’s Wharf, at Philpot, and Thames St., Fell’s Point. Her commander was Captain George E. McConnell, and her crew consisted of five officers, and ten seamen.

..On Saturday, February 6, 1904, the “Windom” left Baltimore for a routine trip to Annapolis. Captain McConnell received a message at noon on Sunday of the serious fire in Baltimore and was ordered to proceed there immediately. Upon arrival on Sunday evening, the “Windom” was sent to the piers along Pratt Street, where all night long, her fire pumps fought a losing battle, as the numerous docks and wharfs were gutted.

..Exhausted after 26 hours of continuous service, the “Windom” was ordered to the Shryock Lumber Yard on Philpot Street, ahead of the fire, to pour all the water she could pump on the 5 million feet of lumber stored there. If the fire was not stopped at this point, all of East Baltimore would be threatened. The actions of the “Windom”, along with a shift in the wind to the north, saved the lumber yard and soon after, the Great Fire was placed under control.

..A short time later, the merchants of Fell’s Point, headed by Mr. Shryock, held a reception for the crew of the “Windom” where they were commended, and each man presented with a gold piece and bottle of champagne.

..The “Windom” was transferred to Galveston, TX, in 1906. She was renamed “Comanche” in December, 1915, underwent a year-long refit during 1916, and then was transferred to the Navy on April 6, 1917. She enforced neutrality laws and patrolled the waters of the Gulf of Mexico during World War I.

..After the war she was returned to the Coast Guard and continued to patrol the Gulf of Mexico out of Key West and Galveston for the rest of her career.

..She was decommissioned in 1930 and sold to Weiss Motor Lines in Baltimore for $4,501. The former cutter had come full circle back to Baltimore where she was dismantled and converted to a bay barge.