Mizpah

Originally constructed in 1926 by the Newport News Shipbuilding Company, the yacht was initially named Savarona. It cost a staggering $1.3 million and was commissioned for James Elverson, Jr., the owner of the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper. The elegant vessel measured 185 feet in overall length, 27 feet in beam, and boasted a cruising range of 7,000 miles. Its name, Mizpah, was inspired by a biblical reference from Genesis 31:49: “And Mizpah: for he said, the Lord watch between me and thee, when we are absent from one another.” Following Elverson’s passing in 1929, Eugene F. McDonald, Jr., President of the Zenith Radio Corporation, acquired the yacht. Renamed Mizpah, this 549-ton pleasure boat became the largest on the Great Lakes during the Jazz Age. Throughout the 1930s, Mizpah embarked on numerous adventures, including polar expeditions, a Costa Rican treasure hunt, and a mysterious scientific cruise to the Galapagos Islands. In 1937, McDonald equipped the yacht’s Marconi room with an exceptionally powerful radio marine telephone installation—twice as potent as those found on large ocean liners. This radio phone facilitated ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore communication, akin to long-distance land calls. However, in March 1942, the U.S. Navy requisitioned Mizpah for war service. She underwent conversion at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, including the addition of armament, and was commissioned as the U.S.S. Mizpah (FY-29) on October 26, 1942. After World War II, she was sold to H.O. Merren and Company in Roatan, Honduras, likely serving as a coastal freighter. Unfortunately, Mizpah eventually found herself in Tampa with a broken crankshaft, languishing as a derelict slated for the scrapyard. In 1967, Eugene Kinney, Eugene McDonald’s nephew and Zenith’s current vice-president, intervened. Recognizing the historical significance of Mizpah, he donated her to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for use as an artificial reef. On April 8, 1968, with her upper deck removed, Mizpah was scuttled off Palm Beach. Today, the wreck rests upright in 90 feet of water, her bow pointing north. While portions of the hull have collapsed due to hurricanes, divers can easily explore its interior. Beware, though—the wreck is home to several large Goliath grouper. Visibility varies, influenced by tides and Lake Okeechobee outflow. Mizpah shares its underwater neighborhood with other wrecks, including the PC-1174, the Amaryllis, and a barge—all connected by a trail of rock and concrete. Divers can drift over all these wrecks in one captivating dive