USCGC Munro (WHEC-724) - 1970s

1970s

The dedication of the ship took place on April 15, 1972, at Munro's first homeport of Boston, Massachusetts. Secretary Volpe was once again on hand, retelling the story of Douglas Munro and reminding the crew of the honor they had to bear the name of that hero. While operating out of Boston, the ship's original missions included ocean station patrol and search and rescue.

The stay in Boston was not to last long, however, as the Munro shifted to a new homeport of Seattle, Washington, on August 29, 1973. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer hailed the arrival of "Two (Munro and Boutwell) of the newest, finest ships in the Coast Guard fleet." Seattle was also especially receptive to the Munro because Douglas Munro himself had been a resident of Cle Elum, a small town in Washington State. While operating out of Seattle, the Munro became more active in the fisheries enforcement mission and less active in the ocean station mission, which was quickly being made obsolete by technological advances. Alaskan fisheries were especially busy and controversial at this time. In 1971, for instance, the combined Japanese, Russian, Canadian, and South Korean fishing fleets had caught about ten times as many fish as the U.S. fleet did. Coast Guard action was badly needed to regulate the practices of these foreign fleets. Munro performed this mission admirably and with many successes, including the seizure of the Korean longliner Dong Won No. 51 in June 1979.