Recent World War I shipwreck discovery the latest chapter in the legacy of Goffstown’s Fred Wesley Wyman

The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Tampa is moored in the Bristol Channel between England and Wales, sometime before it was sunk on Sept. 26, 1918. The Tampa was one of several Coast Guard ships used to escort convoys to Great Britain during World War I, and its loss to a German U-boat was the service branch’s single largest loss of life. Douglas Wyman Sr. is presented with a posthumous Purple Heart for his great-uncle, Fred Wesley Wyman, in 2012. Fred served on board the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Tampa, which was sunk during World War I by a German U-boat near Great Britain. After nine days at sea, the crew of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Tampa had good cause to rest on Sept. 26, 1918. They had safely escorted another convoy across the Atlantic Ocean and were now sailing alone in friendly waters toward the British port of Milford Haven for a fresh supply of coal. The evening calm was interrupted when an explosion tore a hole through the center of the cutter. A German U-boat torpedoed the vessel in a deadly surprise attack, the type of ambush that drew America into World War I the previous year. The Tampa sank in three minutes. Its entire crew of 130 people was killed in the service branch’s greatest single wartime loss, according to a recent Coast Guard social media post. Among them was 23-year-old Fred Wesley Wyman of Goffstown, the only crew member from New Hampshire. Efforts to remember their sacrifice began quickly, according to the Coast Guard Historian’s Office. Wyman had an American Legion Auxiliary post named after him in his hometown and, in 2012, his family was presented a posthumous Purple Heart by then-U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte. But the final resting place of the Tampa was not found until last week. For relatives of Wyman, the discovery strengthened their sense of connection with their ancestor. “I thought it was fantastic,” said Douglas Wyman Sr., grandnephew of Fred Wesley Wyman. “I had thought the ship was lost forever, since it was a small vessel, just 119 feet long and half made of wood. I was surprised and greatly relieved.” “When I heard the news, I immediately shared the story with my family,” said Chris Wyman, Douglas’s son. “It’s nice to know his final resting place has been found. It’s not lost anymore. I felt a sense of pride and excitement that they found him.” Following Wyman’s example Fred Wesley Wyman had enlisted in the Coast Guard at a young age, just four months before the Tampa sank. His descendants shared his willingness to put himself in harm’s way to save lives. Fred’s nephew — Douglas Sr.’s father — served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, while Douglas served in the Concord Police Department. Douglas Sr.’s sons Kent, Douglas Jr., and Chris are a New Hampshire National Guard lieutenant colonel, a retired Sandwich chief of police and a Merrimack Fire and Rescue lieutenant, respectively. Chris said they always knew Fred served in World War I. His name appears on a headstone in Hillside Cemetery in Goffstown, on a plaque in Concord, and on a memorial to servicemen lost at sea at Hampton Beach. Over the years, though, the family has uncovered more and more details about Fred’s life, sometimes in unlikely places. A bracelet with Fred’s name engraved on it was found in the dirt outside a Goffstown home years ago and returned to the family. In the early 2010s, Chris learned families of the Tampa’s crew could receive a posthumous Purple Heart, an award that was not authorized in 1918. The family received Fred’s Purple Heart in a ceremony at the Coast Guard Station in New Castle in 2012, attended by Rear Admiral Daniel A. Neptun, of the 1st Coast Guard District, and Ayotte. In addition to the medal, the family received a gift from the crew of a modern Coast Guard vessel also named Tampa. The Tampa’s captain cut down its American flag, which was delivered — halyard still attached — to the Wymans. Douglas Sr. said he still has the flag in his possession. The rediscovery of the Tampa also happens to coincide with recent events in the Strait of Hormuz, over 3,600 miles away from the wreckage site, where the U.S. military is again defending commercial ships from attacks under different circumstances. “Since 1790, the Coast Guard has defended our nation during every armed conflict in American history, a legacy reflected in the courage and sacrifice of the crew of Coast Guard Cutter Tampa,” said Admiral Kevin Lunday, commandant of the Coast Guard, in an April 29 news release. “Locating the wreck connects us to their sacrifice and reminds us that devotion to duty endures,” Lunday said. The Coast Guard plans to continue researching and exploring the underwater wreckage in coordination with historians.