USS Bagley and USS Potomac at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, 1937

Among collection of construction photos of the destroyer USS Bagley (DD-386) is this January 4, 1937 photo of the warship at pier side after launching.  Notice the ship in the background.  The vessel is USS Potomac (AG-25), President Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidential yacht.  Whether the vessel was at the Navy Yard for repairs or a surprise Presidential visit, we are not sure.

Potomac was formerly a U.S. Coast Guard cutter before her new role as F.D.R.'s "Floating White House."  Norfolk Naval Shipyard converted the vessel to her new role from 1935 to 1936 and recommissioned the vessel on March 4, 1936.  The ship is now a National Historic Landmark and docked in Oakland, California.